AMERICAN CINEMA
Film Vault
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ALL ABOUT EVE 1950 Dir. Joseph L. Mankiewicz Cast. Bette Davis, Anne Baxter, George Sanders, Gary Merrill, Thelma Ritter, Marilyn Monroe
A near-perfect script highlights this wonderful film about an aging theater actress who becomes the idol of a young starlet. The stand-out in the superb cast is Sanders as theater critic Addison Dewitt, in his oscar-winning performance. Some of the finest dialogue ever written for the screen can be found here. Oscar winner for best picture, director and screenplay (by Mankiewicz.)
AND GOD SPOKE
This movie does for filmmaking what This Is Spinal Tap did for heavy metal. A hilarious look at the making of a biblical epic by an inept film crew. One great scene after another. The highlight is the struggle to fit product placement into the film. The twist ending is perfect.
THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI
The Allies attempt to destroy a bridge in Burma that's vital to the Japanese war effort during WWII. The bridge is being built by British POWs under the command of a Colonel (Guinness) bent on proving British superiority over their Japanese captors. The film was promoted as a star vehicle for William Holden, who plays one of the members of the sabotage team. But the star of the film is definitely Alec Guinness, who won an Oscar as the mad British colonel whose sense of reasoning is clouded by his arrogance. The screenplay was credited to the author of the novel, Pierre Boulle, because the actual authors, Carl Foreman and Michael Wilson, were blacklisted at the time.
CHINATOWN
EMPIRE OF THE SUN
Forget Schindler's List. Forget Saving Private Ryan. This is Spielberg's greatest film. A young British boy is sent to a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp in China. There, he is transformed from a snotty rich kid to a war-weary young man. The performance by young Bale is arguably the finest ever by a juvenile on film.
GENTLEMAN'S AGREEMENT
Peck plays a reporter who poses as a Jew to add depth to his article about anti-semitism. Fine performances by the whole cast elevate this film past the dated handling of the subject matter. Oscar winner for best director and supporting actress (Holm). Screenplay by Moss Hart.
THE GRAPES OF WRATH
Based on the book by John Steinbeck. A family attempts a trek from Oklahoma to California to start a new life after being decimated by the Great Depression. Fonda's portrayal of Tom Joad was a landmark in his career. Gritty realism is achieved through the cinematography, which was inspired by black-and-white photos of the era. The screenplay by Nunnally Johnson adds an upbeat ending that is not in the novel, but the change does little to soften the impact of the film.
IT'S A MAD, MAD, MAD, MAD WORLD
The ultimate comedy. Kramer, noted for his deep social dramas, amassed the ultimate cast of comedians and pulled out all the stops in this story of a cross-country race to find $350,000 buried under "a big W." Everybody who was anybody at the time wanted a part, no matter how small. The cast is all top-notch, but Merman stands out as a domineering mother-in-law. A complete riot from beginning to end.
JAWS
Da-dum. Da-dum. Da-dum da-dum da-dum... made you look. When it comes right down to it, Spielberg's film about a great white shark that terrorizes a New England beach town is really just a cheesy horror film, with every element working perfectly. The cast, the photography, the editing, the music, (oh, the MUSIC!!) and Spielberg's technique of not showing the shark for most of the movie, all add up to one of the few post-Godfather classics Hollywood's produced.
KELLY'S HEROES
One of the few war comedies. A WWII platoon, led by Eastwood, goes on a mission deep into German territory to rob a bank filled with gold bars. The whole cast is terrific, especially Carol O'Connor as a gung-ho general, and Don Rickles as a profiteering sergeant.
LAWRENCE OF ARABIA
Here is a film that is all too rare these days... a thinking man's epic. O'Toole makes his screen debut here as T.E. Lawrence, who led the Arabs in revolt against the Turks during World War I. This is filmmaking at it's zenith, on a grand scale. The cinematography is so beautiful, the desert almost becomes another character in the story.
MAGIC TOWN
Jimmy Stewart plays a pollster who finds a statistically perfect town in small-town America in which to conduct his research, as long as the townspeople don't catch on. Though not directed by Frank Capra, there's very obviously a Capra influence at work here. Wyman plays the newspaper editor with which Stewart falls in love. The failure at the box office of this little film urged Stewart to take his career in a different direction, playing characters with a bit of a darker side.
M*A*S*H
The big-screen version of Richard Hooker's novel about army surgeons serving in the Korean war was a tremendous hit when it was first released, and with good reason. Altman's groundbreaking filmmaking technique broke a number of molds, not the least of which was the use of dialogue, with his overlapping lines. The comedy was irreverent, and the obvious parallels to the current situation in Vietnam were lost on no one. Ring Lardner's screenplay won an Oscar. The film spawned a successful television series that lasted 11 seasons, though Altman was never a fan of the show.
THE PHILADELPHIA STORY
A very funny sophisticated comedy. Hepburn used to be married to Grant. Now she's marrying somebody else, and Stewart is the reluctant reporter sent to cover the wedding for the rag of a newspaper he works for. Great dialogue, and an academy-award-winning performance by Stewart (though Grant is equally good.)
PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE
Oh, come on. Did you ever see it? Sure, it's considered by many to be THE worst film ever made, but it's so darn funny! Legendarily awful director Wood scrapes the bottom of the barrel with this inept sci-fi horror thriller about aliens who resurrect the dead in an attempt to take over the Earth to prevent human scientists from developing something called solarbinite that would inevitably blow up the sun... or something. With a cast like that, how can you go wrong? Lugosi died before filming was completed (actually, he died before filming even BEGAN! Wood just happened to have some old footage of him lying around.) So a young, bald man who stood a foot taller than Lugosi filled in, covering his face in every shot with a black cape. So you wouldn't notice the difference, I guess. Get the picture? A film that has to be seen to be believed.
THE PRODUCERS
VERY funny film about the attempt of a struggling Broadway producer and a timid accountant to make a fortune off of a Broadway flop. Too much synopsis here would ruin the wonderful surprises, so you'll just have to take my word for it. Or trust the Academy, who gave Brooks the oscar for Best Original Screenplay. This is his funniest film, which is a shame, since it was his first, and he had nowhere to go but down. Then again, so did Orson Welles, so he was in good company.
RAGING BULL
Screen bio-pic of boxer Jake LaMotta is both brutal and artistic. DeNiro gives a flawless, oscar-winning performance as the fighter whose personal life is as full of punishment as his life in the ring. The black-and-white cinematography and Thelma Schoon- maker's oscar-winning editing are top-notch. This film made many critics' lists as the best film of the decade.
THE RUSSIANS ARE COMING, THE RUSSIANS ARE COMING
When a Russian submarine becomes stuck in shallow water off the coast of a small town in New England, the crew has a heck of a time getting themselves a small boat to use as a tow. The townspeople panic as rumor of an invasion spreads, and the great cast has a field day with the clever script by William Rose, who also wrote It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. The Cold War mentality seems a bit dated now, but the humor is timeless.
SULLIVAN'S TRAVELS
Sturges' amusing take on Hollywood tells the tale of John L. Sullivan (McRea), a filmmaker who wants to make a movie about human suffering, so he sets out with only 10 cents in his pocket with the hopes of learning what it's like to be down-trodden. One of Sturges' first, and best, films.
THE THIRD MAN
Cotten plays a writer who goes to Vienna to visit an old friend, and becomes embroiled in post-war black market intrigue. Probably the greatest "Alfred Hitchcock" film not directed by Alfred Hitchcock. The script is by noted fiction writer Graham Greene. The theme by Anton Karas became a pop hit, and the cinematography won an oscar.
THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE
Three Americans go prospecting for gold in the mountains of Mexico. One of John Huston's many triumphs, this masterpiece boasts Bogart's finest performance, as a man consumed by greed. One of the first films to be shot entirely on location. A multiple Oscar winner for best director, best screenplay (J. Huston), and best supporting actor (W. Huston). |
1993
Goes beyond simply a tribute to film noir, to become a near-perfect film on it's own merits. Private eye Nicholson investigates murder and corruption in 1930's Los Angeles. The oscar-winning script by Robert Towne is considered to be one of the greatest ever written, to the point where some critics recommend a four-year screenwriting program that simply studies this script. Director John Huston stands out in his supporting role, and Nicholson's never been better. A must-see for any true film lover.