True Classics Posted by on September 17, 2014

Time to start digging in the piggy bank like our girl Jean … Here’s another round-up of some great deals out there to add to your personal film collection. As always, please note that the sale prices listed are accurate as of posting, and may be subject to change (and...   read more

True Classics Posted by on August 22, 2014

My second post for the ongoing romantic films countdown at Wonders in the Dark is up now. At number 32, it’s Frank Capra’s seminal sexy screwball classic, It Happened One Night (1934). Night has been cited as one of the founding pictures of the screwball genre, and indeed, many of the el   read more

True Classics Posted by on August 13, 2014

It’s been a difficult week for film fans. First, we lost the immensely talented Robin Williams. And yesterday, we learned that the iconic, lovely Lauren Bacall has passed away at the age of 89. “Slim darling, you came along and into my arms and into my heart and all the real true love...   read more

True Classics Posted by on August 8, 2014

Our friends at Wonders in the Dark are currently hosting their annual film countdown. This year, it’s all about the romance, with a wide selection of talented writers posting articles on the top one hundred romantic films as voted by the site’s contributors. This week, it’s my turn   read more

True Classics Posted by on August 1, 2014

In 1934, director Frank Capra released the seminal classic It Happened One Night, a picture that helped define the relatively new genre of screwball comedy. On the heels of that film’s monumental success, Capra followed up with another comedy, Broadway Bill. But while Night became a perennial   read more

True Classics Posted by on July 28, 2014

The Americanization of Emily (1964) is a wonderfully satirical, dark comedy about a “dog robber” in the US Navy serving during WWII. Starring James Garner as Charlie, a self-proclaimed coward, the film tells the story of this unscrupulous officer who prefers to avoid heroism in lieu of self-preserva   read more

True Classics Posted by on July 26, 2014

In 1956, UPA released the final of four cartoons featuring Dr. Seuss’s adorably strange, noise-making little boy, Gerald McBoing-Boing. This last cartoon in the series deviates from the typical McBoing-Boing short in one important way: the creative, sometimes nonsensical rhyming meter of the   read more

True Classics Posted by on July 16, 2014

A Life of Barbara Stanwyck: Steel-True, 1907-1940 Victoria Wilson Release Date: November 12, 2013 Simon & Schuster Hardcover, 1044 pages The word “exhaustive” gets thrown around quite a bit when talking about biographies. But never has that term been more aptly used than when referri   read more

True Classics Posted by on July 12, 2014

In 1941, Paramount approached Max and Dave Fleischer, heads of their in-house animation production, with a proposal: to adapt the increasingly popular Superman comic book into an animated series for the big screen. But the Fleischers were reluctant. As Dave later admitted (as recounted in Les Daniel   read more

True Classics Posted by on July 10, 2014

It’s time for another sweet deal round-up! As always, please note that the sale prices listed are accurate as of posting, and may be subject to change (and quickly). So if one of our recommendations catches your fancy, we urge you to snap it up as soon as possible. Also,...   read more

True Classics Posted by on June 16, 2014

Last weekend (June 6-8) I was able to check out some of the fabulous events at the Gone With the Wind Festival in Marietta, GA. In celebration of the 75th anniversary, this festival was made up of some great events, including a costume ball complete with dinner and dancing to...   read more

True Classics Posted by on June 9, 2014

On June 9, 1934, the Walt Disney animation studios released The Wise Little Hen, a Silly Symphony adapted from a classic fairy tale. As with most of the Silly Symphonies, the cartoon did not feature any of Disney’s stock recurring characters, such as the already-legendary Mickey Mouse. But one   read more

True Classics Posted by on June 1, 2014

Today we’re kicking off a new feature: Stock Your Shelves (subtitled “You know you want this stuff”). Like many film fans, we’re always looking for fantastic deals on great movies to add to our personal collections. And sometimes, those deals are too good to keep to ourselves   read more

True Classics Posted by on May 27, 2014

To finish up the month of May, the Month of Mothers (hey, we changed a lot of diapers; we deserve more than just one day of recognition!), we’re delighted to feature a guest post analyzing the role of Mrs. Danvers in the 1940 film version of Rebecca, directed by Alfred Hitchcock. Over...   read more

True Classics Posted by on May 8, 2014

Director Raoul Walsh was not particularly known for producing lighter cinematic fare. Though his five decade-long filmography ranges from comedies to dramas to Westerns, Walsh is primarily remembered as the director of a string of successful, heavily male-driven flicks in the 1940s, beginning with a   read more

True Classics Posted by on May 5, 2014

After watching season one of Netflix’s popular series Orange is the New Black, I was excited when the opportunity arose to review 1950′s Caged, a similar story of a naive young woman who is imprisoned after collaborating in a crime. Certainly there are many parallels between the two stor   read more

True Classics Posted by on May 1, 2014

The 1942 production Her Cardboard Lover may be a minor comedy by definition, but it remains an important artifact for one simple reason: it is star Norma Shearer’s last film. At the age of 42, Shearer decided to end her nearly two-decade long career after the mediocre public reception of this   read more

True Classics Posted by on April 28, 2014

Inspired by a short story by Tennessee Williams, This Property is Condemned (1966) sports an amazing cast starring Natalie Wood, Robert Redford, and Mary Badham. This film–only the second ever to be directed by the soon-to-be legendary director/actor Sydney Pollack–tells the story of a s   read more

True Classics Posted by on April 12, 2014

It’s a lovely moonlight night, and everyone who’s anyone is making the scene at the Coo-Coo Nut Grove, the hottest nightspot in town. Ben Birdie is leading the band, the rat fink gossip columnist Walter Windpipe is looking for a scoop, and the mood is just right for stargazing. Or, at th   read more

True Classics Posted by on April 6, 2014

While scrolling through TCM’s line-up one night, I spotted a fun sci-fi flick to add to the DVR. After hearing the introduction for the film, I knew that I had to watch. I was not disappointed. TCM host Ben Mankiewicz piqued my interest in his introduction of It! The Terror from Beyond...   read more