Love with the Proper Stranger (1963)

I don't consider myself a huge fan of love stories, but every now and then one comes along that really works for me, and this is one of those rare occasions. While some reviewers consider the subject matter and the prevailing culture of the film to be "dated", do movies have to mirror the 21st century in order to be important, interesting, or even entertaining? I never dismissed "Casablanca" as "dated" because it happened to take place in 1941, a time when even this old geezer didn't yet exist. Now, why would I do that?This month's tcm star of the month being Natalie Wood, viewers were treated to a fascinating introduction by Wood's former husband, Robert Wagner, and her daughter, Natasha Gregson Wagner, who was raised by Wagner since infancy. I very much appreciated their special, personal rapport and their "inside knowledge" regarding the making of this film, as well as the two other films shown on the same night, "Splendor in the Grass" and "West Side Story".The success of this movie, brilliantly directed by Robert Mulligan ("To Kill a Mockingbird"), revolved around the highly engaging interaction between the two main actors, Natalie Wood as Macy's salesperson Angie Rossini and Steve McQueen as musician Rocky Papasano, but I don't think that their performances would have been as alluring without a very intelligent and complex script, as written by Arnold Schulman. Another vital element of the film's appeal was the outstanding supporting cast, especially Tom Bosley as an awkward, love-stricken restaurateur, Hershel Bernardi as Angie's possessive, produce pushing brother, and Edie Adams as an exotic dancer who also serves as Rocky's roommate of the moment. Portraying their characters as victims of intense personal crisis, both Wood and McQueen very credibly project an entire spectrum of feelings that convey their general state of extreme confusion and frustration. I especially appreciated how McQueen developed his character from unlikable to sympathetic in the course of the film, often employing his entire body in the process, and how Wood enabled us to share the wide range of emotions that Angie endured at a time of severe inner turmoil. The scene of her initial attempt at leaving the only home that she had ever known, for better or for worse, should "hit home" with anyone who had experienced a similar situation in their lives, including myself. Bravo Natalie. Loved the clothes hanging out of the hastily packed suitcase. Nice touch.Without fatally destroying the end of this movie for anyone who has never seen it, I was still left guessing how it would end until the very last scene. Even though the ending had its corny aspect, we need to accept the time as the dawn of the protest movement, so the final scene may have had a very different impact on an audience back in 1963 than it does in 2016. I still loved the final resolution. It actually brought tears to my hopelessly sentimental eyes. How about you?

I can't figure out why an incredible gritty drama like "Love with the Proper Stranger" (1963) is still out of print. The 50th anniversary of the release of this film is coming up next year, so now would be a great time to release it. There are a lot of people out there that would love to own this film but you can't buy it anywhere at any price. On TCM's website there are over 2630 people who have expressed their interest in seeing this film released on DVD and it is currently ranked #26 on their most asked for list.The plot of the film: After a one-night stand, Angie (Natalie Wood) finds herself pregnant and she informs Rocky (Steve McQuenn) that she wants an abortion. The big twist: Abortion's are illegal and being performed in back rooms by hacks. The lucky few who have actually seen "Love with the Proper Stranger" would tell you that the cast are at their very best. And yet it's been out of print for over 10 years. I don't get it because the film is very clean and doesn't need a huge overhaul. Just slap it on a disc and put it on the shelves, PLEASE!

"The times, they are a'changin'." – Bob Dylan Arguably director Robert Mulligan's best film, "Love With The Proper Stranger" is a charming romantic movie about a carefree jazz musician (played by the charismatic Steve McQueen) who has a brief romantic affair with a shop-girl (played by the cute Natalie Wood) and inadvertently gets her pregnant. Rather than face her strict Italian-American family, Steve and Natalie decide to find a back street abortionist, but chicken out once the weight of what they intend to do hits them. Steve, a progressive type who sees no reason to get married, let alone limit himself to one woman, and Natalie, who sees no reason to stay with a man who doesn't adhere to her romantic and fantastical notions of true love, then part ways and go on with their lives. Of course, over the film's final hour they are slowly drawn back together and fall in love.The film's low key direction, excellent performances and lively location shooting in New York's Little Italy are top notch, but what makes the film interesting is the way it captures a mood shift in the US. This was an era of second wave feminism, contraceptives, women's liberation movements, free sex and abortion. As such, this film is filled with young people turning their backs on customs, values and family/religious codes and nervously testing the waters of the sexual revolution. By the film's end, pre WW2 romantic values and the liberative force of the 1960s, as well as issues of social norms, family obligations and personal independence, have all been reconciled. Cue the obligatory happy ending.The film was deemed sensational and risqué back in the 60s, but is pretty much status quo today. On the plus side, the film's aesthetic, which mixes fairy tale notions of romance with gritty black and white cinematography and grungy cinema verite techniques, is still pretty unique. In the following decades, cinematic feminism would take the form of "bionic women", "action heroines", chicks with "buns of steel" and leotard wearing ladies with cellulite busting super powers. Two steps forward, one step back.8.5/10 – Worth one viewing. Part of a wave of 60's gender cinema ("The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie", "Shampoo" etc etc)

Coming off the success of their 1962 adaptation of Harper Lee's classic remembrance novel, "To Kill a Mockingbird", director Robert Mulligan and producer Alan J. Pakula immediately teamed again to make this semi-forgotten 1963 blend of topical drama and romantic comedy. Set in working class Manhattan, Alan Schulman's perceptive screenplay focuses on the travails of a couple of young Italian-Americans - Angie Rossini, a Macy's salesgirl feeling suffocated by her family and Rocky Papasano, a loose-cannon jazz musician living with a stripper. A one-night stand has produced an unwanted pregnancy, and the movie is frank in how it deals with abortion, an option that was illegal and done dangerously in backrooms back then. Instead of focusing on the moral questions, the movie deals primarily with how the two stumble toward a relationship that neither are prepared to accept in light of the circumstances. It's this uncommonly mature perspective that prevents the film from feeling overly dated. On the other hand, the plot structure is quite uneven as it moves from a character study to a social drama to a romantic comedy in pretty quick order over its 102-minute running time.Fortunately, the movie boasts two attractive leads, then peaking in their popularity, to carry the storyline to the finish line. Although her pronounced New York accent wavers at times, Natalie Wood gives a strong performance as Angie, especially in the scenes where she silently conveys her character's emotions. Just beginning to take on leading roles, Steve McQueen proves to be a surprisingly adept comic actor as Rocky. Together, their chemistry is combustible. Except for Edie Adams' comic turn as slatternly, dog-loving stripper Barbie, the rest of the cast falls into stereotypical ethnic roles. However, Herschel Bernardi makes a vivid impression as Angie's overprotective brother Dominick, while Tom Bosley (Mr. C on "Happy Days") makes his film debut as the poor, all-thumbs schlub competing with Rocky for Angie's affection. Milton Krasner's crisp black-and-white cinematography is noteworthy here, in particular, with the compelling use of real locations. Still not on DVD, the film is most worthwhile to see Wood and McQueen in their prime. Sadly, they would both die prematurely a year apart in 1980-81.