USA

  • Richard Whorf – Champagne for Caesar (1950)

    1941-1950ClassicsComedyRichard WhorfUSA

    An unjustly neglected, extremely funny jab at the media empire and the world of big business. Beauregard Bottomley (Ronald Colman) is an unemployed genius who holds a Ph.D., skims the encyclopedia for enjoyment and never forgets a thing he’s read. He applies for work at a soap company owned by Burbridge Waters (Vincent Price) but is rebuffed by the suds magnate. Beauregard is so annoyed by the treatment he receives at Waters’s hands that he decides to bankrupt the company by becoming a contestant on the popular radio quiz show. Read More »

  • Anatole Litvak – Castle on the Hudson (1940)

    1931-1940Anatole LitvakCrimeDramaUSA

    Mobster Tommy Gordon isn’t worried about being sentenced to Sing Sing prison because his political pals have promised him a quick parole. A troublesome prisoner, he finally concedes that his friends have deserted him, and he makes an effort to reform. When his girlfriend Kay is injured in an accident, Warden Long gives Tommy a pass to go see her. But trouble erupts when Tommy encounters the man responsible for his imprisonment.

    Remake of the 1933 film 20,000 Years in Sing SingRead More »

  • George Marshall – A Millionaire for Christy (1951)

    1951-1960ComedyGeorge MarshallRomanceScrewball ComedyUSA

    This hilarious screwball comedy gave Fred MacMurray a chance to show his brilliant comedic chops as Peter, a radio personality who is told he’s just inherited two million dollars by a gold-digging secretary (Eleanor Parker as Christy) who is determined to snag him for herself. Though he never quite believes she’s telling the truth about his inheritance, circumstances continue to bring Peter together with Christy, infuriating both his fiancée, June (Kay Buckley), and his pal, Dr. Cook (Richard Carlson), who secretly loves June himself. It’s not long before Christy and Dr. Cook join forces and cook up some shenanigans to help them win the lovers they want.Read More »

  • Sofia Coppola – Lick the Star (1998)

    1991-2000DramaShort FilmSofia CoppolaUSA

    Quote:

    Sofia Coppola’s directorial debut revisits adolescence through the eyes of four middle school girls obsessed with the novels of V.C. Andrews. The film explores the politics of teenage girls during a pivotal time in their lives through a plot against the school’s boys in a secret plan codenamed “Lick the Star”.Read More »

  • Richard Rush – Freebie and the Bean (1974)

    USA1971-1980ComedyCrimeRichard Rush

    Museum of the Moving Images writes:
    Taking full advantage of Caan’s versatile ability to play both a strapping intimidator and limber comedian, Freebie and the Bean is an early entry in the buddy comedy genre that partners him with Alan Arkin as squabbling San Francisco police detectives. While ostensibly in pursuit of mob boss Red Meyers (Kruschen), the real action takes place between the mismatched Freebie Waters (Caan) and Benito Vazquez (Arkin), who leave the city cowering in fear of their technically friendly fire and careering, crashing cars. Directed by Richard Rush (The Stuntman) and shot by László Kovács (Easy Rider, Close Encounters of the Third Kind), is full on, unbridled entertainment, riddled with hyperbolic chase sequences and viciously hilarious repartee.Read More »

  • J. Lee Thompson – Kings of the Sun (1963)

    1961-1970AdventureClassicsJ. Lee ThompsonUSA

    In order to flee from powerful enemies, young Mayan king Balam leads his people north across the Gulf of Mexico to the coast of what will become the United States. They build a home in the new land but come into conflict with a tribe of Native Americans led by their chief, Black Eagle, while both Balam and Black Eagle fall in love the beautiful Mayan princess Ixchel.Read More »

  • Sofia Coppola – The Virgin Suicides [+extras] (1999)

    1991-2000DramaSofia CoppolaUSA

    Quote:
    A group of male friends become obsessed with five mysterious sisters who are sheltered by their strict, religious parents in suburban Detroit in the mid 1970s.Read More »

  • Robert Stevenson – Mary Poppins [+commentary] (1964)

    1961-1970FantasyMysteryRobert StevensonUSA

    Synopsis:
    When Jane and Michael, the children of the wealthy and uptight Banks family, are faced with the prospect of a new nanny, they are pleasantly surprised by the arrival of the magical Mary Poppins. Embarking on a series of fantastical adventures with Mary and her Cockney performer friend, Bert, the siblings try to pass on some of their nanny’s sunny attitude to their preoccupied parents.Read More »

  • Michael Cimino – Thunderbolt and Lightfoot [+commentary] (1974)

    1971-1980ComedyCrimeMichael CiminoUSA

    Brooklyn Academy of Music writes:
    Amidst the wide open majesty of Montana, an ex-con turned preacher (Eastwood) resumes his bank robbing ways when he teams up with a brash young scofflaw (Bridges). Clint Eastwood’s tough guy terseness plays nicely off Jeff Bridges’ goofy amiability in this wonderfully loose-limbed combination of ‘70s road movie, buddy comedy, and heist film, which marked the feature debut of The Deer Hunter director Michael Cimino.Read More »

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