Movie Classics Posted by Judy on April 24, 2011

Since reading Moby Dick a few years ago, I’ve been  interested in seeing different film and stage versions of it. I was especially intrigued to see John Barrymore playing Ahab, as sadly only one of his full Shakespearean roles survives on film (Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet). It is often...   read more

Movie Classics Posted by Judy on April 17, 2011

I’m always saying that I plan to write more shorter postings, but now I’m really going to do it, as I’m so busy these days that it’s a choice between writing short postings or not updating this blog at all. Anyway, I will hopefully put a good selection of pictures...   read more

Movie Classics Posted by Judy on March 30, 2011

I’ve been thinking about James Cagney a lot today, because I realised it was the 25th anniversary of his death. There are many classic actors that I love and admire, but he has to be at the top of my list, as anyone who reads this blog probably realises already!  I think it’s...   read more

Movie Classics Posted by Judy on March 13, 2011

After seeing Borzage’s Depression drama Man’s Castle, I  was keen to see more of his pre-Code work – and, having now seen  A Farewell to Arms twice, must say I think it is a masterpiece. I’ll admit that I don’t remember Hemingway’s novel very well and am not sure   read more

Movie Classics Posted by Judy on February 23, 2011

I’ve been getting increasingly interested in the Barrymores recently and watching a lot of their films, so I want to write about some more of them here. Glossy drama Grand Hotel is one of three  films made in 1932 which starred brothers John and Lionel together – the others were...   read more

Movie Classics Posted by Judy on February 9, 2011

I’m going to write about the whole plot in this review – so, if you haven’t seen this famous movie, be warned! William A Wellman’s earlier films often tend to focus on outcasts in society – wandering  from one town to the next and struggling to make a living. His...   read more

Movie Classics Posted by Judy on January 28, 2011

Constance Bennett, Lowell Sherman and Gregory Ratoff in What Price Hollywood? I’ll admit I originally wanted to see What Price Hollywood? because I knew it was an important influence on William A Wellman’s masterpiece A Star Is Born, released just five years later. (David O Selznick prod   read more

Movie Classics Posted by Judy on January 15, 2011

John Barrymore and Helen Twelvetrees I’ll soon be writing about Wellman’s A Star Is Born (1936), but first wanted to post a few thoughts about a couple of earlier movies which have links with it. One, of course, is What Price Hollywood? (1932), George Cukor’s great pre-Code drama   read more

Movie Classics Posted by Judy on January 9, 2011

Florence Vidor in 'Chinatown Nights' No time tonight to write a long posting, but I just wanted to say that I’ve seen yet another Wellman pre-Code. This one, Chinatown Nights, a romantic gangster melodrama starring Wallace Beery, Florence Vidor and Warner Oland,  isn’t a great   read more

Movie Classics Posted by Judy on January 2, 2011

I saw in the New Year with yet another 1930s William Wellman movie which isn’t available on DVD! After seeing this one twice, I can hardly believe that it hasn’t had an official release. It is a highly entertaining romantic comedy-drama and has close links with Wellman’s Oscar-winn   read more

Movie Classics Posted by Judy on December 19, 2010

Agnes Moorehead, Margaret O'Brien and Edward G Robinson in Our Vines Have Tender Grapes I was looking for a different Christmas film to watch, and this gentle MGM family movie directed by Roy Rowland, set in a small Norwegian-American community in Wisconsin and released just after the end of th   read more

Movie Classics Posted by Judy on December 5, 2010

Warner Baxter in 'The Robin Hood of El Dorado' I’ll admit I was expecting an awful lot from The Robin Hood of El Dorado – yet another 1930s William A Wellman film (this one made for MGM rather than Warner or RKO) which isn’t as yet officially available on DVD....   read more

Movie Classics Posted by Judy on December 4, 2010

Ceiling Zero is among the films in the BFI Howard Hawks season I was excited today to discover that the British Film Institute in London has a comprehensive-looking Howard Hawks season coming up in January. The list of movies is on their site with an introduction by David Thomson. It will...   read more

Movie Classics Posted by Judy on November 21, 2010

After watching a great production of Shakespeare’s Henry IV Part I at the Globe Theatre in London this autumn (sadly I didn’t make it to Part II), I was keen to see Orson Welles’ take on Falstaff, Chimes at Midnight. This film is less well-known than Welles’ other Shakespeare   read more

Movie Classics Posted by Judy on November 7, 2010

John Barrymore and Katharine Hepburn John Barrymore may be best-known for his work in the theatre and in films of the silent era. But, every time I see him in an early talkie, I’m struck by how great he was in these too – and A Bill of Divorcement (1932),...   read more

Movie Classics Posted by Judy on October 24, 2010

I’m finally getting on to writing about William A Wellman films made after the Hays code was enforced – although there are still just a few more of his pre-Codes which I hope to track down in the future! His 1935 drama The Call of the Wild, very loosely adapted...   read more

Movie Classics Posted by Judy on October 11, 2010

Central Airport is yet another of William Wellman’s lesser-known pre-Codes – but the good news is that this one is available on DVD, released as one of a batch of Warner Archive features starring Richard Barthelmess. It’s not one of Wellman’s very greatest, but it is still hi   read more

Movie Classics Posted by Judy on October 6, 2010

I’m pleased to see that another early 1930s William A Wellman title has just been announced as one of the latest batch of Warner Archive releases – this one is College Coach (1933), which I recently reviewed here, starring Pat O’Brien, Ann Dvorak, Lyle Talbot and Dick Powell and wi   read more

Movie Classics Posted by Judy on October 2, 2010

Dangerous Paradise is yet another very obscure early William A Wellman film – it isn’t on DVD, is never shown on TV, and the copy I got hold of has a dodgy picture and a lot of soundtrack noise. Nevertheless, I really like it. Once again, as very few people are...   read more

Movie Classics Posted by Judy on September 25, 2010

Spencer Tracy and Jack Oakie Looking for Trouble must be one of William Wellman’s most obscure pre-Codes – not officially available on DVD and never shown on TV. I’m going to try to keep this piece fairly short, as it’s a good bet that almost nobody reading this will get...   read more