“We Have Ways Of Making Men Talk”
By Raymond Benson
Despite its grammatically incorrect title, The Lives of a Bengal Lancer is considered one of the great old-school Hollywood epic adventure movies, and it remains so to this day. It was released very early in 1935 after a long gestation period and became one of the most popular pictures of the decade. It was nominated for the Oscar Best Picture, Best Director (Henry Hathaway), Best Adapted Screenplay, and four other awards, but it won only one—Best Assistant Director? (Obviously a now defunct category.)
What are Bengal Lancers, you ask? They were British soldiers serving in India in those days of the British Raj between the two world wars. Apparently, one didn’t have to be British to serve. The protagonist, Lieutenant Alan McGregor (Gary Cooper), is Scottish-Canadian. Lieutenant John Forsythe (Franchot Tone) seems to be American, but maybe the actor...
By Raymond Benson
Despite its grammatically incorrect title, The Lives of a Bengal Lancer is considered one of the great old-school Hollywood epic adventure movies, and it remains so to this day. It was released very early in 1935 after a long gestation period and became one of the most popular pictures of the decade. It was nominated for the Oscar Best Picture, Best Director (Henry Hathaway), Best Adapted Screenplay, and four other awards, but it won only one—Best Assistant Director? (Obviously a now defunct category.)
What are Bengal Lancers, you ask? They were British soldiers serving in India in those days of the British Raj between the two world wars. Apparently, one didn’t have to be British to serve. The protagonist, Lieutenant Alan McGregor (Gary Cooper), is Scottish-Canadian. Lieutenant John Forsythe (Franchot Tone) seems to be American, but maybe the actor...
- 5/6/2020
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
“A Gallant Gesture”
By Raymond Benson
The novel Beau Geste by Percival Christopher Wren was published in 1924 and has been adapted to film no less than four times and parodied a few instances as well. It’s a classic story of the French Foreign Legionnaires set in the years between the turn of the 20th Century and the First World War, and for nearly a hundred years it has been deemed one of the great adventure tales.
The 1939 adaptation, directed by William A. Wellman, was the second filmed version and is generally considered the best and certainly most well-known variation (the first was a silent picture made in 1926 and starring Ronald Colman). With an outstanding cast that includes Gary Cooper, Ray Milland, Robert Preston, Brian Donlevy, Susan Hayward, J. Carrol Naish, Broderick Crawford, Albert Dekker, and even a young Donald O’Connor, Beau Geste is indeed a rousing “Arabian” action flick,...
By Raymond Benson
The novel Beau Geste by Percival Christopher Wren was published in 1924 and has been adapted to film no less than four times and parodied a few instances as well. It’s a classic story of the French Foreign Legionnaires set in the years between the turn of the 20th Century and the First World War, and for nearly a hundred years it has been deemed one of the great adventure tales.
The 1939 adaptation, directed by William A. Wellman, was the second filmed version and is generally considered the best and certainly most well-known variation (the first was a silent picture made in 1926 and starring Ronald Colman). With an outstanding cast that includes Gary Cooper, Ray Milland, Robert Preston, Brian Donlevy, Susan Hayward, J. Carrol Naish, Broderick Crawford, Albert Dekker, and even a young Donald O’Connor, Beau Geste is indeed a rousing “Arabian” action flick,...
- 3/25/2020
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
The Great McGinty
Blu ray
Kino Lorber
1940/ 1:33:1 / 82 min.
Starring Brian Donlevy, Akim Tamiroff
Cinematography by William C. Mellor
Written and Directed by Preston Sturges
If the story of a unscrupulous crook who rises to great political power hits a little too close to home these days, consider that in 1940’s The Great McGinty the mobster in question is a fundamentally decent gent who sacrifices his career to do the right thing. When the jig is up he high-tails it to the border, penniless but with a clean conscience. Current events require that Preston Sturges’ bittersweet political satire be filed under Fairy Tales.
The movie opens in a rowdy little dive in South America where the once and future lowlife Dan McGinty has made his new home, lording over the bar while dispensing equal amounts booze and wisdom. One poor fellow wanders in who could use a little of both.
Blu ray
Kino Lorber
1940/ 1:33:1 / 82 min.
Starring Brian Donlevy, Akim Tamiroff
Cinematography by William C. Mellor
Written and Directed by Preston Sturges
If the story of a unscrupulous crook who rises to great political power hits a little too close to home these days, consider that in 1940’s The Great McGinty the mobster in question is a fundamentally decent gent who sacrifices his career to do the right thing. When the jig is up he high-tails it to the border, penniless but with a clean conscience. Current events require that Preston Sturges’ bittersweet political satire be filed under Fairy Tales.
The movie opens in a rowdy little dive in South America where the once and future lowlife Dan McGinty has made his new home, lording over the bar while dispensing equal amounts booze and wisdom. One poor fellow wanders in who could use a little of both.
- 2/15/2020
- by Charlie Largent
- Trailers from Hell
It may be a little creaky, but Dr. Cyclops is a genuine classic of the imagination, from a time long before pulp fantasy dominated Hollywood filmmaking. For 1940 audiences this must have felt like a strange dream. Five humans are miniaturized and terrorized by Albert Dekker’s Dr. Thorkel, a card-carrying mad scientist. Held firm by a giant rubber hand, ‘Mr. Crabby’ Charles Halton keeps an unfortunate appointment with a horrifying fate. Who will survive, and how big will they be? Did Thorkel change his name to Soberin, move to California, and steal The Great Whatzit? Kino’s new HD transfer of this oddball gem is a wonderment — the Technicolor is outstanding, better than Paramount’s old nitrate studio print.
Dr. Cyclops
Blu-ray
Kino Lorber Kino Classics
1940 / Color / 1:37 Academy / 77 min. / Street Date January 7, 2019 / available through Kino Lorber / 29.95
Starring: Albert Dekker, Thomas Coley, Janice Logan, Charles Halton, Victor Kilian, Frank Yaconelli,...
Dr. Cyclops
Blu-ray
Kino Lorber Kino Classics
1940 / Color / 1:37 Academy / 77 min. / Street Date January 7, 2019 / available through Kino Lorber / 29.95
Starring: Albert Dekker, Thomas Coley, Janice Logan, Charles Halton, Victor Kilian, Frank Yaconelli,...
- 12/28/2019
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
The film industry goes back to the beginning of the 20th century, and most experts still maintain that 1939 is the greatest single year in movie history. At no other point in the long chronicle of the film industry has Hollywood had such an ability to draw in and hold and audiences. Cinelinx looks at 1939.
In 1939, Americans bought an incrediblel 80 million movie tickets per week. There were 365 films released by the major studios in the United States during 1939. That’s an average of one film each a day. If you went to the theater every day, you’d never have to see the same movie twice. And the best part is that most of them were good.
The American Film Institute, along with such critics as Pauline Kael, Siskle & Ebert, Leonard Maltin and others have dubbed 1939 as the cinema's best single year ever. Looking back, its hard to argue with that opinion.
In 1939, Americans bought an incrediblel 80 million movie tickets per week. There were 365 films released by the major studios in the United States during 1939. That’s an average of one film each a day. If you went to the theater every day, you’d never have to see the same movie twice. And the best part is that most of them were good.
The American Film Institute, along with such critics as Pauline Kael, Siskle & Ebert, Leonard Maltin and others have dubbed 1939 as the cinema's best single year ever. Looking back, its hard to argue with that opinion.
- 1/23/2017
- by feeds@cinelinx.com (Rob Young)
- Cinelinx
'Saint Joan': Constance Cummings as the George Bernard Shaw heroine. Constance Cummings on stage: From sex-change farce and Emma Bovary to Juliet and 'Saint Joan' (See previous post: “Constance Cummings: Frank Capra, Mae West and Columbia Lawsuit.”) In the mid-1930s, Constance Cummings landed the title roles in two of husband Benn W. Levy's stage adaptations: Levy and Hubert Griffith's Young Madame Conti (1936), starring Cummings as a demimondaine who falls in love with a villainous character. She ends up killing him – or does she? Adapted from Bruno Frank's German-language original, Young Madame Conti was presented on both sides of the Atlantic; on Broadway, it had a brief run in spring 1937 at the Music Box Theatre. Based on the Gustave Flaubert novel, the Theatre Guild-produced Madame Bovary (1937) was staged in late fall at Broadway's Broadhurst Theatre. Referring to the London production of Young Madame Conti, The...
- 11/10/2015
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
You almost expect news to hit that someone is going to throw Beau Geste at us again. Also, you have to follow people on social media if you want to make sure you don’t miss things.
As is becoming the trend, Bryan Singer announced via Instagram that he’ll be directing 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. You’ll notice that he gets Story credit on the script, though not screenplay credit. Considering the full text of the Instagram message, and the fact that he is who he is, you have to wonder what it really takes to get your name on the Story line. Frankly, unless this is a really weird spin that involves aliens and a “Sea” that isn’t really a sea, I’m not sure what to do with Story credit for an adaptation anyway, but there you go.
While the novel obviously tells a great story,...
As is becoming the trend, Bryan Singer announced via Instagram that he’ll be directing 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. You’ll notice that he gets Story credit on the script, though not screenplay credit. Considering the full text of the Instagram message, and the fact that he is who he is, you have to wonder what it really takes to get your name on the Story line. Frankly, unless this is a really weird spin that involves aliens and a “Sea” that isn’t really a sea, I’m not sure what to do with Story credit for an adaptation anyway, but there you go.
While the novel obviously tells a great story,...
- 9/18/2015
- by Marc Eastman
- AreYouScreening.com
Susan Hayward. Susan Hayward movies: TCM Star of the Month Fiery redhead Susan Hayward it Turner Classic Movies' Star of the Month in Sept. 2015. The five-time Best Actress Oscar nominee – like Ida Lupino, a would-be Bette Davis that only sporadically landed roles to match the verve of her thespian prowess – was initially a minor Warner Bros. contract player who went on to become a Paramount second lead in the early '40s, a Universal leading lady in the late '40s, and a 20th Century Fox star in the early '50s. TCM will be presenting only three Susan Hayward premieres, all from her Fox era. Unfortunately, her Paramount and Universal work – e.g., Among the Living, Sis Hopkins, And Now Tomorrow, The Saxon Charm – which remains mostly unavailable (in quality prints), will remain unavailable this month. Highlights of the evening include: Adam Had Four Sons (1941), a sentimental but surprisingly...
- 9/4/2015
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Sarah Leonor Discovers a Great Man
By Terry Keefe
Writer/director Sarah Leonor is one of France's most exciting new cinematic exports. Her latest film, The Great Man (Le Grand Homme), is an extraordinary drama depicting the traumas of war and immigration, and how they ricochet, opens on Friday, August 14 in New York at the Film Society of Lincoln Center’s Elinor Bunin Theater, then platforms wider on September 4. Starring Jérémie Rénier (The Dardenne Brothers' Palme D’or Winner L’Enfant), The Great Man is a powerful story about friendship and solidarity and takes a closer look at how men try to piece their lives back together when they’ve been shattered by war.
Hamilton (Jérémie Rénier) and Markov (Surho Sugaipov) are about to finish five years of service in the Foreign Legion. During their six-month posting in Afghanistan, they wind up amidst a crossfire while out on an impromptu and unauthorized leopard hunt.
By Terry Keefe
Writer/director Sarah Leonor is one of France's most exciting new cinematic exports. Her latest film, The Great Man (Le Grand Homme), is an extraordinary drama depicting the traumas of war and immigration, and how they ricochet, opens on Friday, August 14 in New York at the Film Society of Lincoln Center’s Elinor Bunin Theater, then platforms wider on September 4. Starring Jérémie Rénier (The Dardenne Brothers' Palme D’or Winner L’Enfant), The Great Man is a powerful story about friendship and solidarity and takes a closer look at how men try to piece their lives back together when they’ve been shattered by war.
Hamilton (Jérémie Rénier) and Markov (Surho Sugaipov) are about to finish five years of service in the Foreign Legion. During their six-month posting in Afghanistan, they wind up amidst a crossfire while out on an impromptu and unauthorized leopard hunt.
- 8/14/2015
- by The Hollywood Interview.com
- The Hollywood Interview
Seventy-five years after the premiere of "Gone With the Wind" (on December 15, 1939), it seems that nothing -- not the passage of time, not the movie's controversial racial politics, not the film's daunting length, and not even the release of certain James Cameron global blockbusters -- can diminish the romantic Civil War drama's stature as the most popular movie of all time.
The film is certainly a formidable artistic achievement, a cornerstone of movie history, and a highlight of a year so full of landmark films that 1939 has often been called the greatest year in the history of Hollywood filmmaking. Each viewing of the four-hour epic seems to reveal new details. Still, even longtime "Gwtw" fans may not know the behind-the-scenes story of the film, one as lengthy and tumultuous as the on-screen romance between Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh) and Rhett Butler (Clark Gable). Producer David O. Selznick spent fortunes, hired...
The film is certainly a formidable artistic achievement, a cornerstone of movie history, and a highlight of a year so full of landmark films that 1939 has often been called the greatest year in the history of Hollywood filmmaking. Each viewing of the four-hour epic seems to reveal new details. Still, even longtime "Gwtw" fans may not know the behind-the-scenes story of the film, one as lengthy and tumultuous as the on-screen romance between Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh) and Rhett Butler (Clark Gable). Producer David O. Selznick spent fortunes, hired...
- 12/16/2014
- by Gary Susman
- Moviefone
Some of the international movie posters presented in Cinema Retro issue #28, which features in-depth coverage of the making of Zulu.
By Brian Hannan
The 50th anniversary showing of Zulu in Britain next month is unlikely to be repeated in the U.S. where the film flopped. But even the poorest box-office performer has an afterlife. So in 1965 Zulu was pushed out again anywhere that would have it. That meant it supported some odd, not to say ugly, bedfellows – exploitationer Taboos of the World in Kansas City, The Three Stooges in The Outlaws Is Coming in Phoenix, B western Stage To Thunder Rock in Long Beach, How to Stuff a Wild Bikini in Des Moines and Rhino in Abilene. They liked it in Long Beach where it supported both Circus World and That Man from Rio. It was the second feature to None But the Brave in Provo, Utah, and to two more successful Joe E.
By Brian Hannan
The 50th anniversary showing of Zulu in Britain next month is unlikely to be repeated in the U.S. where the film flopped. But even the poorest box-office performer has an afterlife. So in 1965 Zulu was pushed out again anywhere that would have it. That meant it supported some odd, not to say ugly, bedfellows – exploitationer Taboos of the World in Kansas City, The Three Stooges in The Outlaws Is Coming in Phoenix, B western Stage To Thunder Rock in Long Beach, How to Stuff a Wild Bikini in Des Moines and Rhino in Abilene. They liked it in Long Beach where it supported both Circus World and That Man from Rio. It was the second feature to None But the Brave in Provo, Utah, and to two more successful Joe E.
- 5/19/2014
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
Joan Fontaine today: One of the best actresses of the studio era has her ‘Summer Under the Stars’ day Joan Fontaine, one of the few surviving stars of the 1930s, is Turner Classic Movies’ "Summer Under the Stars" star today, Tuesday, August 6, 2013. I’m posting this a little late in the game: TCM has already shown six Joan Fontaine movies, including the first-rate medieval adventure Ivanhoe and the curious marital drama The Bigamist, directed by and co-starring Ida Lupino, and written by Collier Young — husband of both Fontaine and Lupino (at different times). Anyhow, TCM has quite a few more Joan Fontaine movies in store. (Photo: Joan Fontaine publicity shot ca. 1950.) (TCM schedule: Joan Fontaine movies.) As far as I’m concerned, Joan Fontaine was one of the best actresses of the studio era. She didn’t star in nearly as many movies as sister Olivia de Havilland, perhaps because...
- 8/6/2013
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Film Forum's 2012 William Wellman retrospective brought new and much-needed critical attention to a director best remembered today for a small handful of the 80 or so films he made between 1920 and 1958, including Wings (1927), The Public Enemy (1931), A Star is Born (1937), Beau Geste (1939), and The Ox-Bow Incident (1943). Despite the relatively strong reputations of those films, Wellman has often been overlooked in critical discussions of Hollywood auteurs. In fact, a collection of essays that grew out of the retrospective, William A. Wellman: A Dossier, edited by Gina Telaroli and David Phelps, is the closest thing to a book-length study of Wellman currently available. After reading through much of the Dossier, I was encouraged to give Wellman a serious look myself, and this formal analysis is a small effort to continue the momentum of Telaroli's and Phelps's work.
Made just a few months apart and packaged conveniently on the same disc of TCM’s Forbidden Hollywood Collection,...
Made just a few months apart and packaged conveniently on the same disc of TCM’s Forbidden Hollywood Collection,...
- 7/29/2013
- by Darren Hughes
- MUBI
DVD Review: 'Wild Bill: Hollywood Maverick' on the Life of William Wellman a Welcome Bio-Doc (Clips)
Kino Lorber’s upcoming DVD release of “Wild Bill: Hollywood Maverick,” about the life of director William Wellman, is welcome for a couple of reasons. One: In the Great Filmography of American cinema, Wellman, much like Howard Hawks, is a bit like Zelig. He’s everywhere. He made perhaps The archetypal gangster picture, “Public Enemy” (1931), which not only introduced James Cagney to the screen but planted the concept of the anti-hero in a war- and Depression-weary American psyche. He made the ur-screwball comedy “Nothing Sacred” (1937) with Carole Lombard and Frederic March; he made the highly idealistic Foreign Legion adventure “Beau Geste” (1939 version). He twisted the western into politically volatile morality play with “The Ox-Bow Incident” (1943). He directed Barbara Stanwyck five times including in “Lady in Burlesque” (1943) and he made what many consider the definitive World War II film, “The Story of G.I. Joe.” Oh yeah: He won a screenplay Oscar for writing.
- 6/10/2013
- by John Anderson
- Thompson on Hollywood
Our daily January countdown of the 300 Greatest Films Ever Made continues, with part eight out of 30. These are numbers 230-221.
230) The Avengers (2012) Joss Whedon USA
229) Brief Encounter (1945) David Lean British
228) Oliver (1968) Carol Reed British
227) The Shawshank Redemption (1994) Frank Darabont USA
226) Marty (1955) Delbert Mann USA
225) My Man Godfrey (1936) Gregory La Cava USA
224) Beau Geste (1939) William Wellman USA
223) Goodbye Mr. Chips (1937) Sam Woods British
222) The Last Picture Show (1971) Peter Bogdonovitch USA
221) La Strada (1954) Federico Fellini Italy
Numbers 220-211 coming next.
film cultureClassicslist300...
230) The Avengers (2012) Joss Whedon USA
229) Brief Encounter (1945) David Lean British
228) Oliver (1968) Carol Reed British
227) The Shawshank Redemption (1994) Frank Darabont USA
226) Marty (1955) Delbert Mann USA
225) My Man Godfrey (1936) Gregory La Cava USA
224) Beau Geste (1939) William Wellman USA
223) Goodbye Mr. Chips (1937) Sam Woods British
222) The Last Picture Show (1971) Peter Bogdonovitch USA
221) La Strada (1954) Federico Fellini Italy
Numbers 220-211 coming next.
film cultureClassicslist300...
- 1/9/2013
- by feeds@cinelinx.com (Rob Young)
- Cinelinx
We chat to director Cary Fukunaga about adapting a 150 year old story, casting Michael Fassbender, and his upcoming projects…
Cary Fukunaga’s bleakly beautiful Jane Eyre sits comfortably amongst the best cinematic adaptations of Charlotte Brontë’s novel, and features an outstanding lead performance from Mia Wasikowska. Only its director’s second feature (the first being 2009 Spanish-language immigration drama Sin Nombre), Jane Eyre is now out on DVD in the UK.
We spoke to the film’s young director Cary Fukunaga, about how he avoided making a “cheeseball” glossy period drama, Michael Fassbender’s teeth, his upcoming sci-fi and Us Civil War projects, and why he wants to fit a horse with rubber shoes…
This interview contains potential spoilers for Jane Eyre.
You had to cut a lot from the story so you could make the film, can you please make my day by telling me that there’s going...
Cary Fukunaga’s bleakly beautiful Jane Eyre sits comfortably amongst the best cinematic adaptations of Charlotte Brontë’s novel, and features an outstanding lead performance from Mia Wasikowska. Only its director’s second feature (the first being 2009 Spanish-language immigration drama Sin Nombre), Jane Eyre is now out on DVD in the UK.
We spoke to the film’s young director Cary Fukunaga, about how he avoided making a “cheeseball” glossy period drama, Michael Fassbender’s teeth, his upcoming sci-fi and Us Civil War projects, and why he wants to fit a horse with rubber shoes…
This interview contains potential spoilers for Jane Eyre.
You had to cut a lot from the story so you could make the film, can you please make my day by telling me that there’s going...
- 3/9/2012
- Den of Geek
...Or: The Inventiveness of Filmcraft: How to Slide a Camera Down a Dune.
The finale of William Wellman's Beau Geste (1939), featuring Ray Milland and Robert Preston; cinematography by Theodor Sparkuhl and Archie Stout:
The finale of Raymond Lee's Dragon Inn (1992), featuring Brigitte Lin, Tony Leung Ka Fai, Maggie Cheung and Donnie Yen; cinematography by Lau Moon-tong and Chow Gam-wing:
Part of our series Similar Images.
The finale of William Wellman's Beau Geste (1939), featuring Ray Milland and Robert Preston; cinematography by Theodor Sparkuhl and Archie Stout:
The finale of Raymond Lee's Dragon Inn (1992), featuring Brigitte Lin, Tony Leung Ka Fai, Maggie Cheung and Donnie Yen; cinematography by Lau Moon-tong and Chow Gam-wing:
Part of our series Similar Images.
- 3/5/2012
- MUBI
Peter O'Toole, Omar Sharif, Lawrence of Arabia Turner Classic Movies' "Race and Hollywood: Arab Images on Film" continues this evening with four movies about European powers and their difficult relationship with "the Arab races": Lawrence of Arabia, Lion of the Desert, The Four Feathers, and Young Winston. In David Lean's sprawling Lawrence of Arabia, Peter O'Toole is a much taller version of T. E. Lawrence, the Englishman who fought alongside Arabs at the time of World War I. Lawrence of Arabia won a total of seven Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director; it's also considered by many one of the greatest movies ever made. Personally, I find Lawrence of Arabia great-looking but much too long: 227 minutes. Also, at times I couldn't quite figure out what Lean's and screenwriter Robert Bolt's political take was; I'm not sure if their vision is just too muddled and wishy-washy, or...
- 7/13/2011
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Beverly Hills, CA .The Photoplay Magazine Medal of Honor winner .Humoresque. (1920) will kick off a summer-long screening series of silent films at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Monday, June 13, at 7:30 p.m. at the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater. A restored 35mm print from UCLA Film & Television Archive will be screened with live musical accompaniment composed by Michael Mortilla, and performed by Mortilla on piano and Nicole Garcia on violin.
Directed by Frank Borzage, .Humoresque. is the film version of Fannie Hurst.s short story about a young violinist who rises from New York.s Jewish slums to international fame with the help of his doting mother. The film was the first to receive the Photoplay Magazine Medal of Honor, the first significant annual film award, pre-dating the establishment of the Oscars®. The Medal of Honor was voted by the readers of Photoplay Magazine and...
Directed by Frank Borzage, .Humoresque. is the film version of Fannie Hurst.s short story about a young violinist who rises from New York.s Jewish slums to international fame with the help of his doting mother. The film was the first to receive the Photoplay Magazine Medal of Honor, the first significant annual film award, pre-dating the establishment of the Oscars®. The Medal of Honor was voted by the readers of Photoplay Magazine and...
- 6/7/2011
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Beverly Hills, CA . The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will kick off its summer screening series, “Summer of Silents: Photoplay Award Winners of the Silent Era,” on Monday, June 13, with a big-screen presentation of “Humoresque” (1920) with live musical accompaniment. The eight-film series, which will run through August 8, will showcase silent films of the 1920s, all of which were Photoplay Magazine Medal of Honor award winners. All screenings will be held on Monday evenings at 7:30 p.m. at the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater. Pre-show festivities will begin at 7 p.m.
The Photoplay Magazine Medal of Honor was the first significant annual film award, pre-dating the establishment of the Oscars®. First awarded in 1920, it was voted by the readers of Photoplay Magazine and given to the producer of the year’s winning film.
The evenings also will feature live musical accompaniment as well as pre-show presentations of such...
The Photoplay Magazine Medal of Honor was the first significant annual film award, pre-dating the establishment of the Oscars®. First awarded in 1920, it was voted by the readers of Photoplay Magazine and given to the producer of the year’s winning film.
The evenings also will feature live musical accompaniment as well as pre-show presentations of such...
- 5/23/2011
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
John Wayne, Paulette Goddard, Ray Milland, Reap the Wild Wind Debonair Ray Milland is Turner Classic Movies' Star of the Month in April 2011. This evening, beginning at 8 p.m. Et, TCM will show a couple of Milland's biggest box-office hits: Mitchell Leisen's period drama Kitty (1945), co-starring Paulette Goddard, and Cecil B. DeMille's color adventure Reap the Wild Wind (1942), with Goddard, John Wayne, Susan Hayward, and a giant octopus. Also scheduled are William A. Wellman's Beau Geste (1939), a great-looking adventure tale starring Gary Cooper as an, ahem, Englishman, and featuring Milland, Robert Preston, Broderick Crawford, a very youthful Susan Hayward, and Donald O'Connor as the boy Beau. Brian Donlevy deservedly received a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination for his sadistic Foreign Legion sergeant. Some would derisively call Beau Geste politically incorrect; it's not. Much like Gunga Din, The Four Feathers, and The Charge of the Light Brigade, it's...
- 4/20/2011
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
As happens every year around this time, the cable spectrum has been heavily laced with programming throughout the week commemorating Veterans Day. HBO trundled out its full epic and brutal miniseries The Pacific for a one-day re-run broken up by the debut of the James Gandolfini-hosted documentary War Torn 1861-2010, a disturbing look at the psychological scars America’s soldiers have suffered in every conflict since The Civil War; The History Channel ran an all-day marathon of Ww II in HD, sprinkling its commercial breaks for the week with commemorative spots; AMC ran a day of war movies like The Enemy Below (1957) and A Few Good Men (1992) under the umbrella, “Vets Best” ; and so on.
The bulk of memorializing programming focused on World War II – unsurprising, in that it remains, to this day, America’s greatest, defining, and least morally problematic war. Even 65 years later, despite a half-century of...
The bulk of memorializing programming focused on World War II – unsurprising, in that it remains, to this day, America’s greatest, defining, and least morally problematic war. Even 65 years later, despite a half-century of...
- 11/11/2010
- by Bill Mesce
- SoundOnSight
“Just give him a sword and let him do his thing,” was the way Errol Flynn described the studio executive’s opinions of him. In his heyday, Flynn was known as the king of Hollywood Swashbucklers. He’s still best remembered today for his tights-and-fights adventures, such as Captain Blood, The Sea Hawk, Don Juan, The Prince & the Pauper and most notably The Adventures of Robin Hood. But there was more to Flynn’s career than that.
From the late 1930s through the mid 1940s, the dashing Flynn was one of the two biggest action film stars in the world (the other being John Wayne). Aside from costumed adventures, he also made Westerns (Dodge City; They Died With Their Boots On) and War movies (Dawn Patrol). Although he may have seemed miscast as a cowboy, people accepted it because it was the beloved Flynn in the white hat. And when it came to war films,...
From the late 1930s through the mid 1940s, the dashing Flynn was one of the two biggest action film stars in the world (the other being John Wayne). Aside from costumed adventures, he also made Westerns (Dodge City; They Died With Their Boots On) and War movies (Dawn Patrol). Although he may have seemed miscast as a cowboy, people accepted it because it was the beloved Flynn in the white hat. And when it came to war films,...
- 8/11/2010
- by Rob Young
- JustPressPlay.net
Joel Silver is one of the most prolific and successful producers in the history of motion pictures. He has produced over 60 films, including the groundbreaking “The Matrix” trilogy, the blockbuster four-part “Lethal Weapon” franchise, and the seminal action films “Die Hard” and “Predator.” To date, Silver’s catalog of films have earned more than $10 billion in worldwide revenue from all sources.
Under his Silver Pictures banner, Silver most recently produced the smash hit action adventure “Sherlock Holmes,” directed by Guy Ritchie and starring Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, and Rachel McAdams, which earned more than $500 million worldwide. He’s current producing the sequel and it’s been rumored Brad Pitt may possibly join the cast to play the infamous Dr. Moriarty.
Most recently, Silver produced the actioner “The Losers,” starring Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Zoe Saldana and Chris Evans. His production company also has a number of films upcoming, including the thriller “Unknown White Male,...
Under his Silver Pictures banner, Silver most recently produced the smash hit action adventure “Sherlock Holmes,” directed by Guy Ritchie and starring Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, and Rachel McAdams, which earned more than $500 million worldwide. He’s current producing the sequel and it’s been rumored Brad Pitt may possibly join the cast to play the infamous Dr. Moriarty.
Most recently, Silver produced the actioner “The Losers,” starring Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Zoe Saldana and Chris Evans. His production company also has a number of films upcoming, including the thriller “Unknown White Male,...
- 6/1/2010
- MoviesOnline.ca
Magnificent Seven, The Ring, Psycho, The Preacher's Wife – some remakes are an improvement, some are an abysmal waste of time. Joe Queenan judges the pack
In 1992, Abel Ferrara made a very dark, very depressing movie called Bad Lieutenant. In it, Harvey Keitel played a morally bankrupt police officer who seeks redemption by investigating the rape of a nun who refuses to bring charges against her assailant, turning the Bad Lieutenant into the Mad Lieutenant. The film did nothing at the box office, and is remembered mostly because it is the motion picture in which Keitel shows off his penis. There was at the time no great demand for Keitel – a fine actor, but never a matinee idol – to show off his penis, even though it was a very splendid penis indeed, nor has there been any grassroots groundswell of support for this sort of thing afterwards.
Not so long ago,...
In 1992, Abel Ferrara made a very dark, very depressing movie called Bad Lieutenant. In it, Harvey Keitel played a morally bankrupt police officer who seeks redemption by investigating the rape of a nun who refuses to bring charges against her assailant, turning the Bad Lieutenant into the Mad Lieutenant. The film did nothing at the box office, and is remembered mostly because it is the motion picture in which Keitel shows off his penis. There was at the time no great demand for Keitel – a fine actor, but never a matinee idol – to show off his penis, even though it was a very splendid penis indeed, nor has there been any grassroots groundswell of support for this sort of thing afterwards.
Not so long ago,...
- 12/31/2009
- by Joe Queenan
- The Guardian - Film News
Instead of doing a cheesy list for Veteran's Day, we here at Fsr decided just to give a run down of all the war-type movies that we've covered over the years (the good, the bad, and the boots on the ground). Some of these you'll be able to pick up at the rental store on your way back home from work, but hopefully your employer was nice enough to give you the day off so you could sit back with a beer, some BBQ and a swelling fervor in remembrance of the monumental jobs done by the bravest members of our society. And since we're overloading here, we went ahead and included just about any flicks that involve soldiers and wartime. We even included some featuring those limey Brits! Look how far we've come since 1776. As an added challenge, why not watch all of them? The General (1927) Battleship Potemkin (1925) The Miracle of Morgan's Creek (1944) To Hell and Back (1955) Operation Petticoat...
- 11/11/2009
- by Dr. Cole Abaius
- FilmSchoolRejects.com
The run of the Metropolitan Opera's Damnation of Faust, designed by Canadian powerhouse designer Robert Lepage and his Ex Machina troupe, just started. We promise to give you a run-down of the opera's blitz of techno-imagery on Monday. Meanwhile, here are five high-tech operas that, depending on your tilt, either jar or excite the senses.
The Magic Flute
South African artist and visual director William Kentridge wowed audiences with his experimental, cinematic staging of Mozart's The Magic Flute in Belgium in 2005 and at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in 2007. Rendering the stage a landscape of animated projections and artwork timed to correspond to singers' movements and arias, he made the opera closer to a video work. Animations come from Kentridge's "erasures"--black-and-white drawings of silhouettes, birds, and apartheid-era South African subjects that are photographed, erased, redrawn, and then animated to give a grainy, flip book-style pace to the action on-stage.
The Magic Flute
South African artist and visual director William Kentridge wowed audiences with his experimental, cinematic staging of Mozart's The Magic Flute in Belgium in 2005 and at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in 2007. Rendering the stage a landscape of animated projections and artwork timed to correspond to singers' movements and arias, he made the opera closer to a video work. Animations come from Kentridge's "erasures"--black-and-white drawings of silhouettes, birds, and apartheid-era South African subjects that are photographed, erased, redrawn, and then animated to give a grainy, flip book-style pace to the action on-stage.
- 10/30/2009
- by Diane Mehta
- Fast Company
DVD Playhouse—July 2009
By
Allen Gardner
Do The Right Thing: 20th Anniversary Edition (Universal) Spike Lee’s groundbreaking fable about race relations in an ethnically mixed Brooklyn neighborhood during a sweltering New York summer remains as potent, timely and prescient as it was in 1989. Lee is among the cast, which also includes John Turturro, Danny Aiello, Samuel L. Jackson, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, and Rosie Perez (to name a few), that provide the tableaux-like framework for this stunning work. Criminally ignored by Oscar (it wasn't even nominated for Best Picture, but did garner nods for Supporting Actor Danny Aiello and Lee’s screenplay), it endures as a timeless classic. Also available on Blu-ray disc. Bonuses: Commentary by Lee, Ernest Dickerson, Wynn Thomas, Joie Lee; Documentary; Deleted and extended scenes; Featurettes. Widescreen. Dolby and DTS 5.1 surround.
Coraline (Universal) A young girl moves into an old Victorian house with her parents...
By
Allen Gardner
Do The Right Thing: 20th Anniversary Edition (Universal) Spike Lee’s groundbreaking fable about race relations in an ethnically mixed Brooklyn neighborhood during a sweltering New York summer remains as potent, timely and prescient as it was in 1989. Lee is among the cast, which also includes John Turturro, Danny Aiello, Samuel L. Jackson, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, and Rosie Perez (to name a few), that provide the tableaux-like framework for this stunning work. Criminally ignored by Oscar (it wasn't even nominated for Best Picture, but did garner nods for Supporting Actor Danny Aiello and Lee’s screenplay), it endures as a timeless classic. Also available on Blu-ray disc. Bonuses: Commentary by Lee, Ernest Dickerson, Wynn Thomas, Joie Lee; Documentary; Deleted and extended scenes; Featurettes. Widescreen. Dolby and DTS 5.1 surround.
Coraline (Universal) A young girl moves into an old Victorian house with her parents...
- 7/14/2009
- by The Hollywood Interview.com
- The Hollywood Interview
Here’s a list of some of the new DVD and Blu-ray releases this week. Plus, some old favorites coming out this week on Blu-Ray.
New Movies:
• Knowing ~ Nicolas Cage, Rose Byrne (DVD and Blu-ray)
• Push ~ Chris Evans, Dakota Fanning (DVD and Blu-ray)
• The Unborn ~ Odette Yustman (DVD and Blu-Ray)
• Night Train ~ Danny Glover, Leelee Sobieski, Steve Zahn (DVD and Blu-ray)
• Five Fingers ~ Laurence Fishburne, Colm Meaney, Antonie Kamerling, Saïd Taghmaoui (DVD and Blu-ray)
• A Day in the Life ~ Omar Epps, Faizon Love, Michael Rapaport, Tyrin Turner (DVD)
• Flying By ~ Billy Ray Cyrus, Heather Locklear, Olesya Rulin, Patricia Neal (DVD)
• Applause for Miss E ~ Vanessa Bell Calloway, Roger Guenveur Smith, Gina Torres (DVD)
• Power Rangers Rpm, Vol. 1: Start Your Engines ~ Eka Darville, Ari Boyland, Rose McIver, Milo Cawthorne (DVD)
• Flight 666 ~ Iron Maiden (Blu-ray)
Previously Released and Classic Movies:
• Lonely are the Brave ~ Kirk Douglas, Gena Rowlands, Walter Matthau, George Kennedy...
New Movies:
• Knowing ~ Nicolas Cage, Rose Byrne (DVD and Blu-ray)
• Push ~ Chris Evans, Dakota Fanning (DVD and Blu-ray)
• The Unborn ~ Odette Yustman (DVD and Blu-Ray)
• Night Train ~ Danny Glover, Leelee Sobieski, Steve Zahn (DVD and Blu-ray)
• Five Fingers ~ Laurence Fishburne, Colm Meaney, Antonie Kamerling, Saïd Taghmaoui (DVD and Blu-ray)
• A Day in the Life ~ Omar Epps, Faizon Love, Michael Rapaport, Tyrin Turner (DVD)
• Flying By ~ Billy Ray Cyrus, Heather Locklear, Olesya Rulin, Patricia Neal (DVD)
• Applause for Miss E ~ Vanessa Bell Calloway, Roger Guenveur Smith, Gina Torres (DVD)
• Power Rangers Rpm, Vol. 1: Start Your Engines ~ Eka Darville, Ari Boyland, Rose McIver, Milo Cawthorne (DVD)
• Flight 666 ~ Iron Maiden (Blu-ray)
Previously Released and Classic Movies:
• Lonely are the Brave ~ Kirk Douglas, Gena Rowlands, Walter Matthau, George Kennedy...
- 7/7/2009
- by Chris Ullrich
- The Flickcast
A classic film in all regards is a vehicle for Gary Cooper, but it.s Brian Donlevy.s sadistic sergeant who stands out. The film had only been available as part of a Cooper box set but is given solo treatment for Universal.s Backlot Collection. Unfortunately that doesn.t mean that there are special features included. The Geste brothers, .Beau. (Gary Cooper), John (Ray Milland), and Digby (Robert Preston), have lived with Lady Brandon (Heather Thatcher) and her ward Isobel (Susan Hayward) since their childhood. The Brandon family has possession of the gem called the blue water, but the irresponsible head-of-family Sir Hector Brandon has been spending money like it was water. Word comes that Sir Hector is returning home...
- 7/7/2009
- by Jeff Swindoll
- Monsters and Critics
DVD Links: DVD News | Release Dates | New Dvds | Reviews | RSS Feed Knowing I just reviewed the Blu-ray edition of this one and you can read that right here. I still find this a fascinating movie and definitely recommend everyone check it out at least once, but the second time around the two hour runtime does begin to really weigh on you and I didn't end up finding anything new that I hadn't noticed already. I personally hoped for more from a second viewing but came up empty. Not sure this one is a purchase, but do give it a chance if you haven't seen it yet. The Unborn (Unrated) Meh, not a very good movie to begin with (read my theatrical review here) and I highly doubt this supposed "unrated" cut will be any better. If you want to see a low-rent PG-13 horror I would recommend The Uninvited over this one.
- 7/7/2009
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
Every Sunday, Film School Rejects presents a movie that was made before you were born and tells you why you should like it. This week, Old Ass Movies presents: Beau Geste (1939) I can't imagine that when P.C. Wren wrote his adventure novel way back in 1924 that he could imagine the war movies of today. In fact, I'm guessing people of the day couldn't even imagine the sort of fire power that would go into modern wars themselves. The high tech bombs, the type of precision fighting that takes place, the almost complete lack of horses. Still, the allure of the wars of older times is still strong. There's a romanticism there applied to looking at a world where men on horseback fire pistols and rifles up at garrison walls. For that, Beau Geste has the attributes of a pure adventure story. Directed by William A. Wellman (who has one of the more difficult names to say...
- 7/5/2009
- by Dr. Cole Abaius
- FilmSchoolRejects.com
The Rules of the Game by Jean Renoir Film Gone with the Wind d: Victor Fleming; scr: Sidney Howard Le Jour se lève / Daybreak d: Marcel Carné; scr: Jacques Viot, Jacques Prévert Midnight d: Mitchell Leisen; scr: Billy Wilder, Charles Brackett Mr. Smith Goes to Washington d: Frank Capra; scr: Sidney Buchman Ninotchka d: Ernst Lubitsch; scr: Billy Wilder, Charles Brackett, Walter Reisch The Old Maid d: Edmund Goulding; scr: Casey Robinson The Rains Came d: Clarence Brown; scr: Philip Dunne, Julien Josephson La Règle du jeu / The Rules of the Game d: Jean Renoir; scr: Jean Renoir, Carl Koch The Women d: George Cukor; scr: Anita Loos, Jane Murfin Laurence Olivier, Merle Oberon in Wuthering Heights Check These Out Bachelor Mother d: Garson Kanin; scr: Norman Krasna Beau Geste d: William A. Wellman; scr: Robert Carson Hello Janine d: Carl Boese; scr: Hans Fritz Beckmann, Karl Georg Külb The...
- 5/10/2009
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
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