Classic Movies
When it comes to Old Hollywood, myths and rumors still run rampant. Documentaries on film stars, celebrities, and studios can help straighten out facts and shed light on lesser-known celebrities. Here are a few must-see documentaries on classic Hollywood that you can rent from DVD Netflix.
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Never heard of Harold and Lillian Michelson? Unfortunately, you are one of many. Rarely did Harold or Lillian get either credit or public recognition for their work. Thanks to director Daniel Raim and his documentary Harold and Lillian: A Hollywood Love Story, the world can now learn about Harold and Lillian’s extraordinary story.
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Sometimes a story is so good, Hollywood decides to tell it again.
Since the silent film era, films have been remade in Hollywood. Remakes can either be a mirror image of the original film; nearly scene-for-scene with similar lines. Others reimagine the story and take on a different angle, sometimes adding music or an updated plot.
When it comes to holiday classics, several have been retold. Here are a few:
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Four Academy Awards, plus sixteen nominations. More than 1,500 published songs. Johnny Mercer founded a record company and the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame.
Sometimes singer, sometimes composer, always wordsmith. He had a way with making the simple things sound fantastical and making unlikely phrases roll of the tongue. His smooth Southern drawl and his ability to capture a phrase made him one of the most sought-after songwriters in Hollywood.
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The terrifying tale has been around since, I would guess, human beings first had fire. “Okay everyone, we just figured out that with this ‘fire’ thing, we don’t have to eat raw mastodon anymore.” So they cook it up and after dinner find themselves sitting around the fire with a long, uncomfortable silence. “Now what do we do?” one of them might have asked. “Board games haven’t been invented yet so…”
So someone started telling a very scary story. Everyone was gripped as the tale was told and then they all went into their respective caves and tried to sleep, awakening with what James Thurber called “the things that go bump in the night.” Thus was born the tradition of telling a story designed to scare the pants off the listener.
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The summer season brings sunshine, high temperatures, and a carefree feeling. But what if you want the feeling of summer without getting a sunburn by the pool?
There are a few summer films that allow you to stay inside in the air conditioning. Dive into these films.
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When it comes to film commentary, the only comparison I feel comfortable making between myself and Roger Ebert is that we were both introduced to the Marx Brothers at a young age by our fathers. The first film Mr. Ebert saw at the theater was a re-release of 1937’s “A Day at the Races,” and my earliest memory of watching a movie with my dad is sitting down to a well-worn VHS copy of “Animal Crackers.” Watching the Marx Brothers was something of a tradition in my family, going back to when my great-grandmother took her family to see all the original theatrical runs of their films. As a family of Neapolitan immigrants, Chico was the perpetual household favorite and Little Nonna went to her grave believing not only that he was Italian, but also that Groucho’s mustache was real and Harpo was really a red-haired lunatic who couldn’t speak.
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The immortal characters of Nick and Nora Charles first met in the backseat of a car. William Powell and Myrna Loy were on set for Manhattan Melodrama, a gangster flick with heart. The director hadn’t had a chance to introduce the two before cameras started rolling. In her autobiography, Loy recalls, “My instructions were to run out of a building, through a crowd, and into a strange car. When Woody called ‘Action,’ I opened the car door, jumped in, and landed smack on William Powell’s lap. He looked up nonchalantly: ‘Miss Loy, I presume?’ I said, ‘Mr. Powell?’ And that’s how I met the man who would be my partner in fourteen films.”
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In celebration of Pride Month, let’s take a look at some of my favorite LGBT films from the 20th Century, starting with the 1930s and ending in the 1980s. All of these titles are available to rent on DVD Netflix.
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If you had to list the top directors of the classic film era, Billy Wilder would most likely be among those listed. Not only was Wilder a brilliant filmmaker, he was also a prolific screenwriter, particularly when he was teamed with Charles Brackett. When it comes to Wilder’s directing projects, there are a few that are mentioned the most often. Some of his best known films include “Sunset Boulevard” (1950), “Sabrina” (1954), “Some Like It Hot” (1959), or “The Apartment” (1960). While these films are excellent, here are five other overlooked Wilder films you should check out:
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