Classic Film Guide

Camille (1936)

August 29, 2014 // 0 Comments

Camille (1936) One of Greta Garbo’s best performances on-screen (especially the ending) can be witnessed in this essential romance drama. She plays a kept woman (by Henry Daniell) that falls in love with another a young admirer played by the dashing Robert Taylor. Lionel Barrymore plays Taylor’s stern father; Jessie Ralph (among others) also appears. Directed by George Cukor (Little Women (1933)) it’s based on the novel by [...]

Happy 15th Anniversary TCM!

August 29, 2014 // 0 Comments

Happy 15th Anniversary TCM! Where to begin? In honor of TCM’s 15th Anniversary let me first say “THANK YOU”. Thank you for preserving film’s history for us. Thank you for offering us an escape from the schlock that’s been coming out of Hollywood ever since the summer blockbuster (which seduced its executives) was born and a myopic focus on the “date movie” demographic (and an obsession with a movie’s first weekend’s box office [...]

Shadow of a Woman (1946)

August 29, 2014 // 0 Comments

Shadow of a Woman (1946) The plot and the acting performed by its cast make it very difficult to stay engaged in this below average noirish drama making it a poor “thriller”. As convoluted unusual and somewhat confusing as the story is to begin with the characterizations also don’t provide anyone with whom an audience can identify with or trust such that one just doesn’t care about them or what happens. Directed by Joseph [...]

D.O.A. (1950)

August 29, 2014 // 0 Comments

D.O.A. (1950) Dead On Arrival. A terrific film I’m glad I saw thanks to a recommendation from a friend. Edmond O’Brien is a victim of a slow-acting poison who must track down his own killer! Directed by (five time Academy Award nominated cinematographer) Rudolph Maté and written by Russell Rouse & Clarence Greene. Added to the National Film Registry in 2004. Within the first few minutes of the film O’Brien’s [...]

Gun Law (1938)

August 29, 2014 // 0 Comments

Gun Law (1938) George O’Brien plays Marshal Tom O’Malley in this B-Western directed by David Howard and written by Oliver Drake. He happens upon the notorious Raven (Edward Pawley) in the desert and discovers that he’s the target of the outlaw’s plans. But after getting the drop on the Marshal the Raven drinks some bad water and dies. After O’Malley is saved from a similar fate by a Parson and his daughter Ruth (Rita Oehmen) he decides [...]

Straight Place and Show (1938)

August 29, 2014 // 0 Comments

Straight Place and Show (1938) Directed by David Butler based on a play co-written by Damon Runyon with a screenplay co-written by Allen Rivkin and additional dialogue provided by Lew Brown this below average B comedy stars the Ritz Brothers a cheap imitation of the more famous Marx Brothers. Though both sets of brothers have a leading man Harry Ritz is not nearly on par with Groucho and Al & Jimmy seem to have no distinct personality traits [...]

Men Against the Sky (1940)

August 29, 2014 // 0 Comments

Men Against the Sky (1940) Directed by Leslie Goodwins with writing credits for John Twist (story) and Nathanael West this film like the more celebrated Test Pilot (1938) tells of the perils of the pre-World War II days of flying and airplane development though not quite as well. Unfortunately the story in this one is not nearly as compelling or believable and the characterizations are even somewhat laughable unlike those in The Tarnished Angels [...]

Hurricane The (1937) – full review!

August 29, 2014 // 0 Comments

Hurricane The (1937) – full review! Produced by Samuel Goldwyn and directed by John Ford this James Norman Hall/Charles Nordhoff novel was adapted by Oliver H.P. Garrett and features a screenplay by Dudley Nichols that was rewritten by Ben Hecht (though he didn’t receive a screen credit). One of the early disaster movies following San Francisco (1936) it still preceded Oscar’s Special Effects category by a couple of years. It [...]

Farmer’s Daughter The (1947)

August 29, 2014 // 0 Comments

Farmer’s Daughter The (1947) This political campaign film saw Loretta Young receive her Best Actress Oscar & Charles Bickford also get nominated. It focuses on a young Swedish-American woman (Ms. Young) who leaves the family farm to go to the "big" city to earn an education but is bilked out of her money on the way and finds herself working as a maid to a US Senator (Joseph Cotten). During a rally for him she speaks up for [...]

Smiling Lieutenant The (1931)

August 29, 2014 // 0 Comments

Smiling Lieutenant The (1931) An excellent Best Picture Oscar nominated film by director Ernst Lubitsch with Maurice Chevalier in the title role. Charles Ruggles plays Max who is in love with biergarten violinist Franzi played by Claudette Colbert. Unfortunately Max “introduces” his friend (Chevalier) to Franzi and loses her. Shortly thereafter the smiling Chevalier is winking at her while on duty as a visiting king and his daughter [...]

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