TIME MACHINE WORLD CINEMA: THE 1940s

[RAGHAVENDRA]

With the rapid growth of cinema the world over, 40s began to be an era of class as well as experiment. Look at a few titles



Top ranking films as listed in the wikipedia:

1. Sergeant York Warner Bros. Gary Cooper, Walter Brennan
2. They Died with Their Boots On Warner Bros. Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland
3. Honky Tonk MGM Clark Gable, Lana Turner
4. A Yank in the RAF 20th Century Fox Tyrone Power, Betty Grable
5. How Green Was My Valley 20th Century Fox Walter Pidgeon, Maureen O'Hara
6. Citizen Kane RKO Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten
7. Sullivan's Travels Paramount Joel McCrea, Veronica Lake
8. Moon Over Miami 20th Century Fox Betty Grable, Don Ameche
9. Buck Privates Universal Bud Abbott, Lou Costello
10. Ziegfeld Girl MGM James Stewart, Judy Garland, Hedy Lamarr
11. Ball of Fire RKO Gary Cooper, Barbara Stanwyck
12. The Maltese Falcon Warner Bros. Humphrey Bogart, Mary Astor
13. That Night in Rio 20th Century Fox Alice Faye, Don Ameche
14. Meet John Doe Warner Bros. Gary Cooper, Barbara Stanwyck
15. Suspicion RKO Joan Fontaine, Cary Grant
16. Hold Back the Dawn Paramount Charles Boyer, Olivia de Havilland
17. Here Comes Mr. Jordan Columbia Robert Montgomery, Claude Rains
18. I Wanted Wings Paramount Ray Milland, William Holden
19. Dive Bomber Warner Bros. Errol Flynn, Fred MacMurray
20. I Wake Up Screaming 20th Century Fox Betty Grable, Victor Mature

Academy Awards

Best Picture: How Green Was My Valley - 20th Century-Fox
Best Actor: Gary Cooper - Sergeant York
Best Actress: Joan Fontaine - Suspicion
Best Supporting Actor: Donald Crisp - How Green Was My Valley
Best Supporting Actress: Mary Astor - The Great Lie
Best Director: John Ford - How Green Was My Valley

A list of films released in the world over in 1941 (country name mentioned for non-US films)

The 47 Ronin (Genroku chushingura), directed by Kenji Mizoguchi - (Japan)
49th Parallel, directed by Michael Powell, starring Leslie Howard and Laurence Olivier - (U.K.)
Adam Had Four Sons
Among the Living
Andy Hardy's Private Secretary, starring Mickey Rooney
All Through the Night, starring Humphrey Bogart
Babes on Broadway, directed by Busby Berkeley, starring Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney
Back Street
Ball of Fire, directed by Howard Hawks, starring Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck
Blood and Sand, starring Tyrone Power, Linda Darnell, Rita Hayworth
Blossoms in the Dust, starring Greer Garson and Walter Pidgeon
Bowery Blitzkrieg
The Bride Came C.O.D.
Broadway Limited, starring Victor McLaglen, Marjorie Woodworth, Dennis O'Keefe, Patsy Kelly
Buck Privates, starring Abbott and Costello
Caught in the Draft
Charlie Chan in Rio
The Chocolate Soldier
Citizen Kane, directed by and starring Orson Welles with Joseph Cotten, Agnes Moorehead, Everett Sloane
The Corsican Brothers
The Devil and Daniel Webster (aka All That Money Can Buy), starring Walter Huston and Edward Arnold
The Devil and Miss Jones, starring Jean Arthur and Robert Cummings
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, starring Spencer Tracy and Ingrid Bergman
Dumbo
The Face Behind the Mask, starring Peter Lorre
Flying Wild
The Gang's All Here starring Frankie Darro and Mantan Moreland
The Great Lie, starring Mary Astor and Bette Davis
Hatter's Castle, starring Robert Newton and Deborah Kerr - (U.K.)
Hellzapoppin', starring Ole Olsen and Chic Johnson
Here Comes Mr. Jordan, starring Robert Montgomery
High Sierra, starring Ida Lupino and Humphrey Bogart in his first starring role
Hit the Road
Hold Back the Dawn, starring Charles Boyer, Olivia de Havilland and Paulette Goddard
Hold That Ghost
Honky Tonk, starring Clark Gable and Lana Turner
How Green Was My Valley, directed by John Ford, starring Walter Pidgeon and Maureen O'Hara - winner of 5 Academy Awards
I Wake Up Screaming, starring Betty Grable, Victor Mature, Carole Landis
I Wanted Wings, starring Ray Milland, William Holden, Veronica Lake, Brian Donlevy
In the Navy, starring Bud Abbott and Lou Costello
It Started with Eve
Kathleen
Keep 'Em Flying, starring Bud Abbott and Lou Costello
Kipps, directed by Carol Reed, starring Michael Redgrave - (U.K.)
Lady Be Good
The Lady Eve, directed by Preston Sturges, starring Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda
Life Begins for Andy Hardy starring Lewis Stone, Mickey Rooney, Cecilia Parker, Fay Holden
The Little Foxes, directed by William Wyler, starring Bette Davis
Look Who's Laughing, starring Edgar Bergen, Fibber McGee and Molly
Louisiana Purchase
Major Barbara, directed by Gabriel Pascal, starring Wendy Hiller and Rex Harrison - (U.K.)
The Maltese Falcon, directed by John Huston, starring Humphrey Bogart, Mary Astor, Peter Lorre
Man Hunt, starring Walter Pidgeon and Joan Bennett
Man Made Monster, starring Lon Chaney Jr. and Lionel Atwill
Meet John Doe, starring Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck
Mob Town
Moon Over Miami, starring Betty Grable
Mr. Bug Goes to Town
Never Give a Sucker an Even Break, starring W. C. Fields
Nice Girl?
One Foot in Heaven, starring Fredric March and Martha Scott
Penn of Pennsylvania, starring Clifford Evans and Deborah Kerr - (U.K.)
Penny Serenade, starring Irene Dunne and Cary Grant
Pimpernel Smith - (U.K.)
A Place to Live
Pride of the Bowery
Princess Iron Fan - (China)
Rage in Heaven
Red River Valley, directed by Joseph Kane
The Reluctant Dragon
Road to Zanzibar, starring Bob Hope and Bing Crosby
The Sea Wolf, starring Edward G. Robinson, Ida Lupino, John Garfield
Sergeant York, directed by Howard Hawks, starring Gary Cooper
Shadow of the Thin Man, starring William Powell and Myrna Loy
The Shanghai Gesture, starring Gene Tierney
The Shepherd of the Hills
Shining Victory, starring James Stephenson and Geraldine Fitzgerald
Skylark
Spooks Run Wild, starring East Side Kids and Bela Lugosi
The Strawberry Blonde
Sullivan's Travels, directed by Preston Sturges, starring Joel McCrea and Veronica Lake
Sun Valley Serenade
Suspicion, starring Joan Fontaine and Cary Grant
Swamp Water
Tank Patrol
Target for Tonight - (U.K.)
Tarzan's Secret Treasure
That Hamilton Woman (aka Lady Hamilton), starring Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier - (U.K.)
That Night in Rio
They Died with Their Boots On, starring Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland
Tobacco Road, starring Gene Tierney
Todake no kyodai (Brothers and Sisters of the Toda Family), directed by Yasujiro Ozu - (Japan)
Turned Out Nice Again, starring George Formby - (U.K.)
Unexpected Uncle, starring Anne Shirley, James Craig, and Charles Coburn
War Front
Western Union, starring Randolph Scott
The Wolf Man
A Woman's Face, starring Joan Crawford and Melvyn Douglas
A Yank in the RAF, starring Tyrone Power and Betty Grable
You Belong to Me
You'll Never Get Rich, starring Fred Astaire and Rita Hayworth
Ziegfeld Girl, starring Judy Garland


Above and more info at wiki (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1941_in_film)

1940s contd....

[RAGHAVENDRA]

To facilitate recollection and dwelve in nostalgia, the 40s classics are to be discussed on a random order and chronology not followed. Popular as well as rare classics would find place here. Fellow hubbers may please put in their contribution by sharing their knowledge of this era.

To begin with the evergreen

How Green Was My Valley

http://i2.listal.com/image/85057/600full-how-green-was-my-valley-poster.jpg

book cover:
http://www.nantyglo.com/howgreen3.jpg

a classic scene snap
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-O6mFZKPZfdQ/TlJTxqBUnHI/AAAAAAAAfcU/adDdQPPkBIw/s1600/How-Green-Was-My-Valley-10.jpg




How Green Was My Valley is a 1941 drama film directed by John Ford. The film, based on the 1939 Richard Llewellyn novel, was produced by Darryl F. Zanuck and written by Philip Dunne. The film stars Walter Pidgeon, Maureen O'Hara, Anna Lee, Donald Crisp, and Roddy McDowall. It was nominated for ten Academy Awards,[1] winning five and beating out for Best Picture such classics as Citizen Kane, The Maltese Falcon, Suspicion and Sergeant York.
The film tells the story of the Morgans, a close, hard-working Welsh family at the turn of the twentieth century in the South Wales coalfield at the heart of the South Wales Valleys. It chronicles a socio-economic way of life passing and the family unit disintegrating.
In 1990, How Green Was My Valley was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the United States National Film Registry as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

Cast



Sara Allgood as Beth Morgan and Roddy McDowall as Huw Morgan.
Walter Pidgeon as Mr. Gruffydd
Maureen O'Hara as Angharad Morgan
Anna Lee as Bronwyn, Ivor's wife
Donald Crisp as Gwilym Morgan
Roddy McDowall as Huw Morgan
John Loder as Ianto Morgan
Sara Allgood as Mrs. Beth Morgan
Barry Fitzgerald as Cyfartha
Patric Knowles as Ivor Morgan
Morton Lowry as Mr. Jonas
Arthur Shields as Mr. Parry
Ann E. Todd as Ceinwen
Frederick Worlock as Dr. Richards
Richard Fraser as Davy Morgan
Evan S. Evans as Gwilym Morgan
James Monks as Owen Morgan
Rhys Williams as Dai Bando
Lionel Pape as Evans
Ethel Griffies as Mrs. Nicholas
Marten Lamont as Iestyn Evans

Directed by John Ford
Produced by Darryl F. Zanuck
Screenplay by Philip Dunne
Based on How Green Was My Valley by Richard Llewellyn
Narrated by Irving Pichel

Music by Alfred Newman
Cinematography Arthur C. Miller
Editing by James B. Clark
Distributed by Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation
Release date(s) October 28, 1941
Running time 118 minutes
Country United States
Language English Welsh

Plot

The story is told through the eyes and with the voice-over narration of Huw Morgan (Roddy McDowall), now a middle-aged man leaving his home, a mining town in the Rhondda Valley, and recalling the events that most impressed his younger self. The boy Huw is played by Roddy, but the voice-over is that of unseen actor Irving Pichel.
Huw's first memories are of the marriage of his brother, Ivor (Patric Knowles), and the burgeoning, unspoken and ill-fated romance of his sister, Angharad (Maureen O'Hara), with the new preacher, Mr. Gruffydd (Walter Pidgeon). Because of the forbidden nature of the romance, Angharad marries another man (whom she later divorces), and Mr. Gruffydd leaves the chapel in disgust after being subjected to untrue town gossip - his romance with Angharad is never consummated, nor do they ever marry. Still too young to work in the local coal mine like his father, Gwilym (Donald Crisp), and his five older brothers, Huw senses the seriousness of an imminent strike by the rift it creates between his father and the other boys when three of them move out of the family abode.
During the tensions of the strike, Huw saves his mother (Sara Allgood) from drowning and in so doing temporarily loses the use of his legs. As Gruffydd aids in Huw's recovery, insisting on a positive attitude, he suggests that it is only the first of many trials the boy will have to face. Other subplots are explored in the film, which concludes with the death of Gwilym Morgan in a mining accident.

Academy Award
The film was nominated for ten awards.[3]
Best Picture - Darryl F. Zanuck (won)
Best Director - John Ford (won)
Best Supporting Actor - Donald Crisp (won)
Best Black-and-White Cinematography - Arthur C. Miller (won)
Best Black-and-White Art Direction-Interior Decoration - Richard Day, Nathan H. Juran and Thomas Little (won)
Best Adapted Screenplay - Philip Dunne
Best Supporting Actress - Sara Allgood
Best Film Editing - James B. Clark
Best Music, Scoring of a Dramatic Picture - Alfred Newman
Best Recording Sound - Edmund H. Hansen


....More info at wiki (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_Green_Was_My_Valley_(film))

Trailer of the film


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7CV9SZovfU

[RAGHAVENDRA]

A Letter to Three Wives

http://movieart.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/full.alettertothreewives%20C%20TC%207918.jpg


A Letter to Three Wives is a 1949 film which tells the story of a woman who mails a letter to three women, telling them she has left town with the husband of one of them. It stars Jeanne Crain, Linda Darnell, Ann Sothern, Kirk Douglas, Paul Douglas in his film debut, Jeffrey Lynn, and Thelma Ritter. An uncredited Celeste Holm provides the voice of Addie Ross, the unseen woman who wrote the eponymous letter.
The movie was adapted by Vera Caspary and Joseph L. Mankiewicz from the novel Letter to Five Wives by John Klempner. It was directed by Mankiewicz, who went on to direct All About Eve the following year.
It won the Academy Awards for Best Director and Best Writing, Screenplay and was nominated for Best Picture.

from wiki...

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B00074DY0W.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg



Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Produced by Sol C. Siegel
Written by John Klempner (novel)
Vera Caspary
Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Starring Jeanne Crain
Linda Darnell
Ann Sothern
Kirk Douglas
Paul Douglas
Jeffrey Lynn
Music by Alfred Newman
Cinematography Arthur C. Miller
Editing by J. Watson Webb Jr.
Distributed by Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation
Release date(s) January 20, 1949
Running time 103 min.
Language English

more info at wiki (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Letter_to_Three_Wives)

Trailer of A Letter to Three Wives


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DojAgo1HbI8

[RAGHAVENDRA]

Cat People 1942

http://s1.moviefanfare.com/uploads/2011/05/CatPeople1.jpg



Cat People is a 1942 horror film produced by Val Lewton and directed by Jacques Tourneur. DeWitt Bodeen wrote the original screenplay which was based on Val Lewton's short story The Bagheeta published in 1930.[1] The film stars Simone Simon, Kent Smith, Jane Randolph and Tom Conway.
Cat People was followed by a sequel, The Curse of the Cat People, in 1944. A remake of the same name directed by Paul Schrader and starring Nastassja Kinski, Malcolm McDowell, and John Heard was released in 1982.

Plot

At an American city zoo, Serbian-born fashion designer Irena Dubrovna (Simone Simon) makes sketches of a black panther. She catches the attention of marine engineer Oliver Reed (Kent Smith), who strikes up a conversation. Irena invites him to her apartment for tea. As they walk away, one of Irena's discarded sketches is revealed as a panther impaled by a sword.
At her apartment, Oliver is intrigued by a statue of a medieval warrior on horseback impaling a large cat with his sword. Irena informs Oliver that the figure is the [partly fictional] King John of Serbia and that the cat represents evil. According to legend, long ago the Christian residents of her home village gradually turned to witchcraft and devil worship after being enslaved by the Mameluks. When King John drove the Mameluks out and saw what the villagers had become, he had them killed. However, "the wisest and the most wicked" escaped into the mountains. Oliver buys her a kitten, but upon meeting her it hisses. They go to the pet shop to exchange it as they enter the animals go wild in her presence. The shopkeeper say that animals can sense things about people.
It gradually becomes clear that Irena believes she is descended from them, and that she fears that she will transform into a panther if aroused to passion. While she was growing up, the other children had called her mother a cat person and her father had died mysteriously.
Despite her odd beliefs, Oliver persuades her to marry him. However, during the dinner after their wedding at a Serbian restaurant, a woman walks over and asks Irena if she is "мојa сестрa" (moya sestra, "my sister"). Fearing something evil within her and dreading what could happen, Irena avoids sleeping with her husband. He persuades her to see a psychiatrist, Dr. Louis Judd (Tom Conway), who tries to convince her that her fears are of a more mundane nature. When she discovers that Oliver has confided their marital problems to his attractive assistant, Alice Moore (Jane Randolph), she feels betrayed. At work, Alice confesses to Oliver that she loves him.
One night, Irena sees Oliver and Alice seated together at a restaurant. She follows Alice as she walks home alone. Alice becomes increasingly uneasy, sensing an unseen someone or something behind her. Just as she hears a menacing sound, a bus pulls up; she hastily boards it. Soon after, several sheep are killed. The bloodied pawprints leading away turn into imprints of a woman's shoes.
Later, when Alice decides to take a dip in the basement swimming pool of her apartment building, she is stalked by an animal shown only by its shadow. She jumps into the pool, using the water to keep the creature at bay. When Alice screams for help, Irena turns on the lights and claims to be looking for Oliver. Alice emerges, wondering if she had imagined the whole thing, until she finds her robe torn to shreds.
After a talk with Dr. Judd, Irena tells Oliver she is no longer afraid, but it is too late; Oliver has realized that he loves Alice and is getting a divorce. Later, at work, he and Alice are cornered by a ferocious animal. Thinking quickly, he grabs his T-square (which is in the shape of a cross) and tells Irena to go away.
After it leaves, Alice calls Dr. Judd to warn him to stay away from Irena, but he hangs up when the woman shows up. Attracted to her, he makes the fatal mistake of kissing her. She transforms into a panther and kills him, though he manages to wound her in the shoulder with the sword concealed in his cane. Oliver and Alice arrive a few minutes too late. Irena slips away, back in her human shape, and goes to the zoo. There, she opens the panther's cage and allows herself to be killed.

Cast

Simone Simon as Irena Dubrovna Reed
Kent Smith as Oliver Reed
Tom Conway as Dr. Louis Judd
Jane Randolph as Alice Moore
Jack Holt as The Commodore
Elizabeth Russell as Serbian woman at restaurant (uncredited)
Alan Napier as Doc Carver (uncredited)
Theresa Harris as Minnie, waitress at Sally Lunds café (uncredited)
Elizabeth Dunn as Miss Plunkett, pet shop owner (uncredited)
Mary Halsey as Blondie, apartment house desk clerk (uncredited)

Directed by Jacques Tourneur
Produced by Val Lewton
Written by DeWitt Bodeen

Music by Roy Webb
Cinematography Nicholas Musuraca
Editing by Mark Robson
Distributed by RKO Radio Pictures Inc.
Release date(s) 6 December 1942 (NYC)
25 December 1942 (US)
Running time 73 minutes
Country United States
Language English


....info source wiki.....

TRAILER OF CAT PEOPLE


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ADPSaybusM

[tamizharasan]

Most of the biggest critics agree that Citizen Kane is the greatest movie ever made in hollywood. I watched it only once. I would like to watch again to understand to find out what is so great about the movie. According to critics cinematography is a revealtion in this movie and music and story narration. Anyone watched this movie?
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/citizen_kane/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citizen_Kane
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AFI%27s_100_Years..._100_Movies

[tamizharasan]

Citizen Kane is considered by many as the greatest film of all time, and I could see why, because the story, acting, music, and everything else is just so perfectly done and is just so incredible that its hard to believe that one man created this masterpiece. The plot is the best part, it tells the tragic and sad life of one man who wanted love but had none to give, and it just follows his mysterious life step by step an never tries to be boring and it never forgets what the point of the story is, possibly the greatest screenplay ever. Orson Wells is remembered for mostly one thing in his life, acting and directing the most critically acclaimed film in the history of cinema, and he pulls both off with flying colors in ways I cannot describe. The cinematography of the film is also incredible, its like every scene was on the perfect spot for the film. Citizen Kane is not my favorite movie of all time, but if a friend of mine came up to me and asked me "Is Citizen Kane the greatest film of all time?". I would ony respond with "yes, its not my favorite film but it is the best film."

August 15, 2011

Interesting review by one of the vistors of rottentomatoes.