Classics

  • Kihachi Okamoto – Samurai aka Samurai Assassin (1965)

    1961-1970AsianClassicsJapanKihachi Okamoto

    Synopsis:
    February 17 to March 3, 1860, inside Edo castle. A group of assassins wait by Sakurada Gate to kill the lord of the House of Ii, a powerful man in the Tokugawa government, which has ruled Japan for 300 years. They suspect a traitor in their midst, and their suspicions fall on Niiro, an impoverished ronin who dreams of samurai status, and Kurihara, an aristocratic samurai who befriends Niiro. Niiro longs to identify his father, knowing he is a high-ranking official who will disclose himself only if Niiro achieves samurai status. With American ships in Japan’s harbors, cynicism among the assassins, and change in the air, Niiro resolves to reach ends that may prove ephemeral.Read More »

  • R.G. Springsteen – When Gangland Strikes (1956)

    1951-1960ClassicsFilm NoirR.G. SpringsteenUSA

    Plot:
    In this crime drama, mobsters swear to get revenge upon a zealous public prosecutor as he tries to get them put into prison. The desperate mobsters try to stop him by using his innocent daughter in a blackmail scheme.Read More »

  • Maurice Tourneur – The Blue Bird (1918)

    1911-1920ClassicsFantasyMaurice TourneurUSA

    Quote:
    Wildly inventive and effortlessly enchanting, Maurice Tourneur’s legendary 1918 fantasy The Blue Bird combines spectacular costumes, lavish sets, ingenious camera effects and disarmingly naturalistic performances in a wholly original American silent film masterpiece. Tourneur’s extravagant vision anticipates the spellbinding German Expressionism of The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, made the following year, while affectionately evoking the whimsical theatricality of Georges Méliès’s pioneering cinematic genius.Read More »

  • Federico Fellini – Lo sceicco bianco AKA The White Sheik (1952)

    1951-1960ClassicsComedyFederico FelliniItaly

    Synopsis:
    Who would have thought that only moments after arriving at Rome for their honeymoon, the young and pure bride, Wanda, would sneak out of the room, leaving her fastidious groom, Ivan, all alone? Obsessed with the masculine Fernando Rivoli–the hero of her favourite romantic photo-novel, The White Sheik–Wanda plucks up the courage to meet him in person, only to be seduced by the arrogant protagonist, so far away from the hotel and her husband. As a result–perplexed by Wanda’s strange disappearance, and unable to disclose the news to his family–Ivan meanders through the ill-lit Roman streets in search of his wife, on pins and needles, waiting for their eleven o’clock appointment with his uncle and the Papal Audience at the Vatican. What does the new day have in store for the separated newlyweds?Read More »

  • Robert Vernay – Le comte de Monte-Cristo (1954)

    1951-1960AdventureClassicsFranceRobert Vernay

    Edmond Dantes is falsely accused by those jealous of his good fortune, and is sentenced to spend the rest of his life in the notorious island prison, Chateau d’If. While imprisoned, he meets the Abbe Faria, a fellow prisoner whom everyone believes to be mad. The Abbe tells Edmond of a fantastic treasure hidden away on a tiny island, that only he knows the location of. After many years in prison, the old Abbe dies, and Edmond escapes disguised as the dead body. Now free, Edmond must find the treasure the Abbe told him of, so he can use the new-found wealth to exact revenge on those who have wronged him.Read More »

  • Luis Alcoriza – Mecanica Nacional AKA National Mechanics (1972)

    1971-1980ClassicsCultLuis AlcorizaMexico

    This is a satirical look at Mexican contemporary life. It makes fun of its culture in many ways. Even though it has many dramatic and serious moments, it’s a very effective comedy.
    The movie is simply about two families from Mexico City that go camping to the mountains outside the city overnight to see the conclusion of a cross country car race. Most of the movie takes place the night before the race. There is a lot of drinking, dancing, and many other things that happen in a big party. And there’s like two hundred vehicles camping waiting for the race the next day.Read More »

  • Joseph H. Lewis – The Mad Doctor of Market Street (1942)

    1941-1950ClassicsHorrorJoseph H. LewisUSA

    Synopsis:
    A mad scientist is forced to leave San Francisco when his experiments become known. He lands on a tropical island, takes control and terrorizes the local populace. The survivor of a shipwreck washes ashore on the island, sees what is happening and determines to free the natives from his rule.Read More »

  • Rafael Gil – Don Quijote de la Mancha (1947)

    1941-1950ClassicsComedyRafael GilSpainSpanish cinema under Franco

    Quote:
    The first sound film version in Spanish of the great classic novel by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra. A huge undertaking for Spanish cinema in its day, it was the longest film version of the novel up to that time, and very likely the most faithful, reverently following the book in its dialogue and order of episodes.Read More »

  • John Ford – The Long Gray Line (1955)

    1951-1960ClassicsDramaJohn FordUSA

    Plot Summary
    Martin “Marty” Maher, an immigrant from Ireland, arrives at West Point where he is assigned to work in the kitchen. He soon proves to be ill-suited to such work and quits only to enlist in the army. The head of the West Point athletics department, Captain Koehler (known as the Master of the Sword), takes Marty on as an assistant. Marty proves to be no great specimen of a sports expert, but he has a winning way about him in dealing with the cadets, whether it’s boxing, swimming or football.Read More »

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