Saturday, July 23, 2011

THAT'S HOT! 10 SEXY PERFORMANCES FOR A STEAMY SUMMER

Yes, it's hot here in my neck of the woods. Words like steamy and sultry and sizzling are bandied about and, while it should make me think of air conditioning, it is making me think of sexy movies (I know, I'm hopeless!). Because they all come rushing into my head like bargain hunters at a one-hour sale at Walmart, I need to put them in some order. Otherwise, I may just pass out from the excitement!


So, in no particular order, here are my top 5 sexy male and female film performances. This list is totally subjective and based upon my feelings today (things change on a daily basis here sometimes).


*** WARNING ***
IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR AN ABOVE-THE-WAIST INTELLECTUAL DISSECTION OF WHAT MAKES THE LIBIDO TICK, MOVE ON!


Women

1. Clara Bow in "Call her Savage"
This poster pretty much says it all: "The throbbing adventures of a woman who unleashed her heart... so revelatory... so courageous in its searching depiction of the secret things in a woman's life that its burning words left a trail of readers breathless and amazed."


Clara is unbelievably sexy in this one, especially when she is horsewhipping Gilbert Roland's "Moonglow" (don't ask) and frolicking - clearly sans undergarments - on the floor with her Great Danes. Just outrageous pre-code stuff.
Clara, just 27, would only make one more film.

2. Rita Hayworth in "Gilda"
If you have never seen this, all I can say is fasten your safety belts. While my lists of top 5 may change ever so slightly depending on mood, this one will never fall out. 
This is one of the sexiest female performances ever committed to film. Rita is beautiful, daring and totally uninhibited. In other words, she is Gilda.


3. Louise Brooks in "Pandora's Box"
The legendary Louise Brooks is so unconsciously sexy as the conscienceless Lulu that it is impossible to take your eyes off of her.
Besides that face, that hair, that attitude, she also had a beautiful back and neck, with which Pabst was apparently fascinated!


4. Ingrid Bergman "Notorious"
I admit that I am a sucker for Hitchcock and Grant and think those 2 could make any woman feel and act sexy. However, for Ingrid, who was plenty sexy enough, this combo just upped the ante.
As the good-bad-girl who dabbles in espionage, she is all woman. Little girls need not apply for this role!


5. Eva Marie Saint "North by Northwest"
This one will never fall off of my list of tops, either. Eva is Hitchcock's sexiest leading lady in this film - bar none. 
Always cool, always a lady (no matter how many men she beds), but sexy down to her tippy-toes, she is a sweetheart underneath it all (not to mention a knock-out in those fabulous Edith Head costumes). She is fearlessly sexy in this film -  alarmingly, but charmingly, so.


Men


1. Rudolph Valentino in "The Son of the Sheik"
Unself-consciously romantic, macho and hot, Valentino lays it all out there for the world to adore.
Who needs subtlety when you look like that, kiss like that and have biceps like that? 


2. William Holden in "Picnic"
Need I say more?
Okay, if you insist. Aside from the fact that Holden was at the peak of his beauty and that the shirt kept coming off at the drop of a hat, when he and Kim Novak started dancing to "Moonglow," which segued into the "Theme from Picnic" there were never 2 more beautiful people on a lantern-lit dance floor.


3. Gene Kelly in "The Pirate"
Gene Kelly is a beautiufl, sexy man. Period.
In this film he gets to showcase his Fairbanksian charm, devastating smile and dangerous edge. His joie de vivre was never more evident as "Mack the Black" and he was never sexier. And that's saying a lot.

4. Laurence Olivier in "Wuthering Heights"
Again - you need more?
Okay, besides being impossibly handsome, earthy and sexy, his heartbreak over Cathy's demise was unutterably romantic. Great actor and great looks - some people get it all!


5. Cary Grant in "An Affair to Remember"
Notice how Cary crept into a few of the women's performances? Well, I can't help it and I really have a hard time just picking one, so I'm going with "An Affair to Remember," even though it is far from my favorite Cary Grant film.
I'm selecting this film because here Cary plays the pursuer. He is usually more the object of desire than the initiator ('though he always finishes up just fine). Here he is is the playboy who really wants Deborah Kerr. And what Cary wants, Cary should get! I can't think of anything sexier than being pursued by Cary Grant.
And finally, I am adding this photo because it looks fine on any day, but on a 104 degree day? I'd love to cool off with Cary, but I have a feeling you'd be able to boil an egg in that water!


Well, I could go on and on and on and on and have left out so many, but I did limit it to 5. Sorry Clark, Greta, Marilyn, Paul, etc.


So, how about you? Who steams up your glasses and sets you heart racing over the long, hot summer?


31 comments:

toody said...

Colin Firth and George Clooney. Both look sexy from the back, even wearing clothes.

FlickChick said...

I totally agree - especially about Colin Firth! And now you've got me thinking about Clive Owen....

The Lady Eve said...

Cary was pretty sexy in "Notorious," too - not to mention "To Catch a Thief" and "North by Northwest."

Paul Newman in "The Long, Hot Summer" and "Hud." And just about everything he did...

FlickChick said...

@ Lady Eve: oh yes! Cary was sexy everywhere and he made his leading ladies sexy,too! As for Paul, it was really hard to leave him off the list. He would have been #6 for sure!

Caftan Woman said...

Gene Kelly's sexiness snuck up on me a few years ago. I got that he was an appealing song and dance man, but nothing more until, I think it was "Thousands Cheer", it was like getting struck by a lightning bolt.

The guys that do it for me are usually in a cowboy hat: Joel McCrea, Randolph Scott, Audie Murphy, George O'Brien (George O'Brien!!).

FlickChick said...

@ CW - Gene Kelly was never put forth as a sexy guy, but we girls know better, don't we? Those western boys were sexy, too, but I couldn't come up with one defining performance - more of an overall quality.

Diane said...

They all were really sexy to me... each and every one you mentioned and a few more. Bring on the heat!

FlickChick said...

@D - sorry Your Jane Russell didn't make this list, but she was in the top 10!

Classicfilmboy said...

How about Elizabeth Taylor in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof?

Christian Esquevin said...

Super post FlickChick. All your picks are great. I do have to say that with Ingrid Bergman, I think she was the best, most romantic kisser of all-time. Especially in Notorious but in her other films too, she makes her kisses look like she was really in love with her co-star. And it wasn'r just the kiss, it was how she looked at her co-star, and how she wrapped her hands around them. The hands to me always seem to give away the real emotion (or lack of) in the on-screen kiss.

FlickChick said...

@ Classicfilmboy: Liz certainly was sexy in that film! I guess she tops your list and I'll bet you are not alone!

@ Christian: you are so right about Ingrid's kissability. No wonder all of her leading men fell in love with her. But, from what I've read, her passion ended when the film ended. Gary Cooper said that while they were making "For Whom the Bell Tolls" she was passionately into him. After the film ended, he couldn't get her on the phone. A true "method" actress!

Dawn said...

Love your picks for your, "Thats Hot" list, especially.. Gene Kelly. The films that pop into my head are: The Fountainhead(1949), with Gary Cooper and Patricia Neal. And...

My all time favorite "Thats Hot" film pick is, The Thomas Crown Affair, with Steve McQueen and Faye Dunaway.

FlickChick said...

@ DAwn: Yes - Gary Cooper was sexy! I am in the midst of writing apost aobut how I used to not think so mcuh of him, but now do!

ClassicBecky said...

Oh FlickChick, did you steam up my glasses! What a fun post! The women are gorgeous - OK, enough about women-LOL! Olivier in Wuthering Heights - Cathy was crazy. I love David Niven, but with Olivier to hope for, I would have kept a permanent watch on the moors. Holden and Novak in that dance - that is thrilling romantic sensuality. Valentino's funeral showed how much women felt about him-me too! Gene Kelly in Slaughter on Tenth Avenue ballet was my favorite steamy performance. Cary Grant-well, he's Cary Grant!

One teeny tiny little bone to pick, and you may already know what it is. Flynn? Errol Flynn? You may have heard of him... Just speaking of western sexy guys, get a gander at him in Dodge City! Whether he was in a fabulous suit or in doublet and tights, he is my pick for sexiest, most charming man in movies...Ivan doesn't call me Errolette for nothing!

ClassicBecky said...

P.S. I DID think of one other woman - Ann Dvorak in Scarface -- WOW!

FlickChick said...

Now, Becky - Errol was handsome, but just doesn't make MY top 5 (see - more time to spend with you!). As for Ann Dvorak in "Scarface" - you bet! Especially, if we do a post about dangerous sexy performances!

DorianTB said...

Yum! FlickChick, your taste in sexy performances is spot-on in male and female screen hearthrobs! Granted, when it comes to fellas (I'm straight, not blind :-)), I usually go for the quirky, funny guys like Danny Kaye and young Bob Hope circa MY FAVORITE BRUNETTE, but some fellas are hard to resist, like (for me) Cary Grant. Gene Kelly, or Humphrey Bogart.

For the record, the modern actors who make my little heart go pitter-pat are my fellow native New Yorker Adrien Brody (people either love him or hate him, but I love him and I'm not ashamed to say so! In addition, Brody was very kind and generous to my daughter and me at last year's New York Comic-Con, but that's a story for another time) and George Clooney.

FlickChick said...

@ Dorian - I've got a few moderns I go for, too - Clive Owen & Robert Downey, Jr. top my temperature chart these days!

DorianTB said...

FlickChick, I must admit I wouldn't kick either Robert Downey Jr. or Clive Owen out of bed for eating crackers! :-) Excellent choices!

FlickChick said...

I have excellent taste when it comes to the impossible!

ClassicBecky said...

Oh guys, if you talk about modern men, Colin Firth is the top of my list. Also Geoffrey Rush - not handsome, but smart and fascinating. To see them together in The King's Speech was such a treat. Alan Rickman is a favorite for sure. Pretty boys aren't normally my cup of tea. I like smart, dark humor, interesting faces. Errol is more than a pretty boy, I think. Half of it is his dashing charm and humor at himself. It's perfectly OK with me, FlickChick, if he isn't on your list. I just like to tease you. He was my first love as a young girl. We all have them when something about them speaks to us. And, as you say, more for me! LOL!

FlickChick said...

Becky - I think you are going to have a lot of ladies to climb over to get to Errol. I think you like the boys with the accents!

ClassicBecky said...

Yes, OK, rub it in -- he still has women drooling over him. And, about the accents, what can I way? You're right - when you're right, you're right - and you're right!

Heath Lowrance said...

Oh, Clara, Clara, Clara... if only I could go back in time... sigh.

DorianTB said...

@ Becky, when you said, "Pretty boys aren't normally my cup of tea. I like smart, dark humor, interesting faces," you proved once again that you're a gal after my own heart, because those are the attributes that captivate me, too. This would explain why I find my hubby Vinnie and Adrien Brody so alluring! :-)

Yvette said...

When I was a teen I had the biggest crush on Rory Calhoun and anything he was in at the moment was the sexiest film. But then I grew up and watched some of these films and cringed. He was SO sleazy. HA!

Paul Newman in THE LONG HOT SUMMER was something to see. (Coincidentally I have a post today on my blog about this film.)

Matt Damon in all the Jason Bourne movies is also spectacular. I don't think he'll ever look this good again. :)

Colin Firth in PRIDE AND PREJUDICE.

Clive Owen with his little round glasses as the assassin in THE BOURNE IDENTITY.

I LOVE Gene Kelly in THE PIRATE. One of my favorite movies ever. I'll be posting about it soon. I think it's one of his more overlooked roles. Mack the Black!

Yul Brynner in THE KING AND I and ANASTASIA, not to mention, dressed in black from head to toe in THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN.

Sean Connery in THE WIND AND THE LION.....sigh!

Daniel Craig as James Bond.

Cary Grant. Yes.

I'd also add Errol Flynn in ROBIN HOOD and CAPTAIN BLOOD.

......sigh!

Great Post!!!

DorianTB said...

@ Yvette, I'm shocked and stunned that Adrien Brody didn't make your "Hot" list, but you made up for it with your awesome array of smoldering stars! :-) I especially enjoyed your mention of Clive Owen's "little round glasses" as the assassin in THE BOURNE IDENTITY. I wouldn't kick Daniel Craig's James Bond outta bed, either; looking forward to seeing him and Harrison Ford together in COWBOYS VS. ALIENS!

FlickChick said...

Thank you, Yvette! But watch out for Dorian and Becky - they have their eyes on those sexy men!

Heath - so glad you find Clara delightful -she was something, wasn't she?

Classic Film and TV Cafe said...

Entertaining post (and comments)! I'd add Peggy Cummins from GUN CRAZY.

FlickChick said...

Classic Film - you are a person of rare taste! That is one sexy performance!

The Best Review said...

12 jokes within 3 minutes in conversation between Doctor Strange, Hulk and Iron Man in the beginning of movie. Too silly then super serious, switching back and forth. There were more humorous moments in this movie than any other MCU film, more than Thor Ragnarok. Avengers Infinity War should have some comedy description or category. Disney needs to stop with the excessive humor.

Thanos motive is weak and uninteresting in film. I don't recognize Thanos THE MAD TITAN from the comic books, he's too simple in this movie. LADY DEATH's influence over Thanos is more coherent. But that's what happens when a children's company takes over a sophisticated comic book company, they change the stories for kids and add lots and lots of humor.
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