Classics

  • Milos Forman – Ragtime (1981)

    Drama1981-1990ClassicsMilos FormanUSA

    Synopsis:
    A well-to-do New Rochelle family is split when it takes in a homeless black woman (Debbie Allen) and her child; all initially looks well when her estranged boyfriend, Coalhouse Walker Jr. (Howard E. Rollins Jr.) reappears with a good job and an offer of marriage. The ‘younger brother’ of the family (Brad Dourif) falls in love with the notorious playgirl Evelyn Nesbit (Elizabeth McGovern) as she awaits the outcome of her husband Harry Thaw’s murder trial – Thaw killed famous architect Stanford White (Norman Mailer) out of jealousy.Read More »

  • George Sherman – Johnny Dark (1954)

    1951-1960ActionClassicsGeorge ShermanUSA

    Plot:
    Tony Curtis stars as Johnny Dark, a moody automobile designer. Rejected by a major auto firm because of his “radical” notions, Johnny sets out to prove the efficiency of his cars on the racetrack. He is aided and abetted by pretty Piper Laurie and less pretty Paul Kelly, while motor mogul Sidney Blackmer fumes and fusses until he realizes that Johnny’s designs will save his company. Most of the film is devoted to a marathon race, pitting Johnny against his friendly enemy Don Taylor. Johnny Dark is a must for racing buffs, as well as a prime example of Tony Curtis in his beefcake period.Read More »

  • Sidney Salkow – Flight Lieutenant (1942)

    1941-1950ClassicsDramaSidney SalkowUSA

    SPOILER ALERT
    In 1932, Sam Doyle, a decorated World War I pilot, is a successful commercial pilot and a single parent to his ten-year-old son Danny. One night, after drinking too much, Doyle crashes his plane, killing his co-pilot, William Thompson. Remorseful, Doyle tries to make amends by giving all his money to the dead pilot’s wife and young daughter Susie. To conceal his charity, Doyle arranges for Joe Sanford, a legal guardian, to administer the fund. When Doyle offers no defense at his hearing of the Civil Aeronautics Board, his pilot’s license is permanently revoked. The dead pilot’s brother, Lt. John Thompson, believes Doyle’s sentence is too lenient, however, and vows revenge. Read More »

  • Charles Vidor – Thunder in the East (1952)

    1951-1960Charles VidorClassicsDramaUSA

    During India’s first years of independence from Britain, Steve Gibbs lands his armaments loaded plane in Ghandahar province hoping to get rich. Pacifist Prime Minister Singh hopes to reach an agreement with guerilla leader Khan, the maharajah is a fool, and the British residents are living in the past. Steve’s love interest is Joan Willoughby, the blind daughter of a parson.Read More »

  • Fritz Lang – Das Indische Grabmal AKA The Indian Tomb (1959)

    1951-1960AdventureClassicsFritz LangGermany

    Synopsis:
    Harald Berger and his Indian lover, the temple dancer Seetha, desperately flee from the shikaris (cavalry) of Eschanapur’s maharajah Chandra, who burn a whole village just for letting them pass invoking traditional hospitality. A spider weaves a web so the trackers won’t look for them in a Shiva temple, but she is caught outside, he left for dead after a steep fall into a crocodile-infested water. Meanwhile his sister Irene and brother-in-law Dr. Walter Rhode, the architect who refuses to build a tomb to bury Seetah alive for scorning the ruler’s love before the hospital he was asked for, guess the truth, and try to make their assigned Indian servant Asagara talk, who dreads incriminating his sovereign.Read More »

  • Michael Curtiz – We’re No Angels (1955)

    Michael Curtiz1951-1960ClassicsComedyUSA

    At Christmas, three prisoners – Joseph, Albert and Jules – escape from Devil Island to a French small coastal town. They decide to rob a store, to get some money and clothes and travel by ship to another place. They pretend to be there to fix the roof, but pretty soon they realize that the financial condition of the family Ducotel is not good. Andre Trochard, the selfish and mean owner of the establishment, exploits the family Ducotel. The three convicts spend Christmas night with the Ducotels and are so well treated by the family that they decide to help them. Their pet will help them to fix the situation.Read More »

  • Robert Rossen – Body and Soul (1947)

    1941-1950ClassicsFilm NoirRobert RossenUSA

    Body and Soul is a 1947 American film noir sports drama directed by Robert Rossen, and features John Garfield, Lilli Palmer, Hazel Brooks, Anne Revere and William Conrad. The film, written by Abraham Polonsky with cinematography by James Wong Howe, is considered by some to be high among the best films about boxing, it’s also a cautionary tale about the lure of money—and how it can derail even a strong common man in his pursuit of success.Read More »

  • Heinosuke Gosho – Aibu (1933)

    Heinosuke Gosho1931-1940ClassicsJapanSilent

    Plot: Heinosuke Gosho evokes in this film the family conflicts engendered by the eternal problem of a father who projects his professional desires on the life of his son. The sister Machiko is the essential link that will allow everyone to apologize to each other and achieve reconciliationRead More »

  • Tapan Sinha – Nirjan Saikate AKA The Desolute Beach (1963)

    1961-1970ClassicsDramaIndiaTapan Sinha

    Synopsis:
    A writer meets five widows on a train to Puri, one of them played by Sharmila Tagore. As the six lives begin to intertwine, the taboos of widowhood emerge; but so, too, does a philosophy of life and hope for the future. The performers collectively won Best Actress at India’s National Film Awards in 1964. Director Tapan Sinha creates another great film of novelistic complexity.Read More »

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