Arsenic and Old Lace, 1944, Warner Bros. Pictures. Starring Cary Grant, Priscilla Lane, Josephine Hull, Jean Adair. Directed by Frank Capra. B&W, 118 minutes. Mortimer Brewster (Cary Grant) has just eloped with the girl next door, Elaine Harper (Priscilla Lane). …
Category: Classic Movies
Love Crazy
Love Crazy, 1941, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Starring William Powell, Myrna Loy. Directed by Jack Conway. B&W, 99 minutes. It’s their fourth anniversary, and Steve and Susan Ireland (William Powell, Myrna Loy) have plans to celebrate a loving union. Their evening is interrupted …
The Women (1939)
The Women, 1939, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Starring Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford, Rosalind Russell, Joan Fontaine, Paulette Goddard, Mary Boland. Directed by George Cukor. B&W, 133 minutes. Mary Haines (Norma Shearer) believes life with her husband and daughter is idyllic. That is, until—with …
The Adventures of Robin Hood
The Adventures of Robin Hood, 1938, Warner Bros. Starring Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, Basil Rathbone, Claude Rains. Directed by Michael Curtiz, William Keighley. Color, 102 minutes. In the late 12th century, England’s beloved king, Richard the LionHearted, has been …
The Maltese Falcon (1941)
In foggy San Francisco, world-weary private detective Sam Spade has taken on a new case from beauty Ruth Wonderly. But nothing about this case is at it seems, and Spade must rely on his instincts and cynicism to solve it.
How to Marry a Millionaire
How to Marry a Millionaire, 1953, 20th Century Fox. Starring Betty Grable, Marilyn Monroe, Lauren Bacall, William Powell. Directed by Jean Negulesco. Color, 95 minutes. Schatze Page (Lauren Bacall), recently divorced, has joined with fellow models Loco Dempsey (Betty Grable) …
Random Harvest
It is 1918, the end of World War I. Injuries suffered during battle have taken all memory from John Smith, and, for his protection, he is housed in the county asylum. He escapes one night and finds shelter with Paula …
Swing Time
Swing Time, 1936, RKO Radio Pictures, Starring Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Victor Moore. Music by Jerome Kern & Dorothy Fields. Directed by George Stevens. B&W, 102 minutes. Quite possibly the best musical from the Depression era, including all other Astaire/Rogers …
Design for Living
Design for Living, 1933, Paramount Pictures. Starring Gary Cooper, Miriam Hopkins, Fredric March. Directed by Ernst Lubitsch. B&W, 91 minutes. Longtime friends fall for the same lady, who perhaps is less of a lady than one would expect. She can’t …
The Lost Weekend
Writer Don Birnam is fighting failure with a bottle of cheap whiskey, and losing.
Classic for a Reason 