almost a gentleman ( 1939 film )
southern gentleman: hatfield. he' s more gambler than gentleman, though .
16mm almost a gentleman robert kent helen wood robert warwick june clayworth - $ 69. 99 | picclick
16 mm almost a gentleman starring robert kent, helen wood, robert warwick 1939 film nice syndicated print no cue marks near mint condition print no vinegar smell mounted on two reels. winner pays postage costs .
hattie mcdaniel and clark gable in the 1939 film
gone with the wind .
let’s also not forget the film’s insistence that a gentleman may feel free to assert his conjugal rights .
democracy in action: mr. smith goes to washington (1939) – park ridge classic film
an old traditional family and a modern family battle over land in a small english village and almost destroy each other .
for almost seven decades prince philip has been at the queen’s side and a bedrock of the royal family .
in 1947 philip was given british citizenship, allowing buckingham palace to portray him as a thoroughly british gentleman .
it' s remarkable that after spending almost eight hours of my existence in front of this film, i can remember only two points vividly .
over almost 70 years spent as the queen’s other half prince philip has enjoyed proving the doubters wrong .
then church’s girlfriend, smitty (muriel hutchison), almost shoots nick, and his friend / servant dum - dum (abner biberman), almost stabs him. but nick escapes unscathed. you can watch it here .
the first scenes of oscar micheaux' s 1939 remake of his silent film birthright have been lost for years. courtesy of kino lorber inc. hide caption
historian piers brendon says: “they thought philip was not a gentleman. they thought he was rude, un - mannerly and arrogant .
13 minutes, the new film from the director of downfall, shows how close a lowly carpenter came to assassinating the führer in 1939. who was georg elser, and why did he fail ?
a young gentleman goes to australia where he reunites with his now married childhood sweetheart, only to find out she has become an alcoholic and harbors dark secrets .
the fox film corporation became the first american distributor to become involved in australian exhibition when it took controlling interest in hoyts theatres ltd. resigning as hoyts’s managing director, fw thring sold almost all his shares in the company and formed the production company efftee film productions .
many race films exist today only as fragments of decomposing film strips. some of the few film negatives and prints that are still intact are in an underground vault in culpeper, va. , where the library of congress stores almost 140, 000 cans of highly flammable nitrate film shot before 1951 — including the birth of a nation' s original negative .
the story on which the movie was based was titled
the gentleman from montana
, but the state is not specified in the movie .
more than a dozen of those movies, though, are now part of a film restoration project — pioneers of african - american cinema — by independent film distributor kino lorber .
future learning and skills – giving everyone the opportunity to build a lifelong relationship with film .
it will not seem ungracious, one hopes, to take issue with gentleman’s agreement on two points where insufficient knowledge seems to have misled its makers .
the first film to earn two best supporting actor oscar nominations. claude rains and harry carey were both nominated. both of them lost to co - star thomas mitchell for his role in stagecoach (1939) .
cathryn caviness plays the spirit of a dead woman in a scene from a remastered version of spencer williams' 1941 film the blood of jesus .
old - fashioned though it be, we confess a preference, when it comes to matters of public enlightenment, for the straightforward approach represented by gentleman’s agreement. this film is amazingly free of the latter - day propagandist’s bag - of - tricks .
in 1939, the film was released to near - universal acclaim. adjusting the box office figures for inflation, “gone with the wind” remains the highest - grossing film of all time. even now, the movie plays remarkably well. in scope, direction and especially acting, the film compares favorably with most of the best hollywood products of recent years .
news items ,
the gentleman from montana
( an unpublished story by lewis r. foster, alternately called
the gentleman from wyoming
by both contemporary and modern sources) was originally purchased by columbia as a vehicle for ralph bellamy, with harold wilson slated to produce. once frank capra became the director, the project, planned as a sequel to
stagecoach (1939) is a classic western from film auteur john ford. this film - his first sound western - was a return to his most - acclaimed film genre after a thirteen year absence following fox' s three bad men (1926) (and the iron horse (1924) ). in the meantime, he had produced the superb, oscar - winning drama about irish republicanism, rko' s the informer (1935) .
to those who have had great dreams for the “cinema, ” the unreeling of gentleman’s agreement holds a secondary drama. once more, against the scoffers both inside and outside hollywood, the film is attempting to show itself as something better than combination peep show and juke box. it has been a long drought since grapes of wrath —and it is exciting to see gentleman’s agreement demonstrate once again that the medium is there, and the talent, too .
( 1939). by 1946 he was getting too old to continue working however and would be replaced in the sequels by another german shepherd named flame .
oscar micheaux staged a realistic lynching scene in his 1919 film within our gates, which some film scholars believe was made in response to d. w. griffith' s the birth of a nation .
the ballad of narayama
is a japanese film of great beauty and elegant artifice, telling a story of startling cruelty. what a space it opens…
directed by james whale. with louis hayward, joan bennett, alan hale us 1939, 35mm, b / w, 110 min. print from sony pictures
this movie picks up almost two years later just before the baby’s 1st birthday. we open with shots of new york city and the family’s labelled trunks: they’ve just arrived !
’s success guaranteed that universal would produce a sequel. wary of being seen exclusively as a director of horror films, whale balked at the idea. to secure his cooperation, the studio granted him almost complete freedom, and whale took advantage of the situation to create his most outlandishly perverse film. the resulting horror - comedy is widely considered his masterpiece and can be read as a darkly satiric assault on the institution of marriage. the film opens with a prologue featuring a
a gang of thieves gather at a safe house following a robbery, but a detective is on their trail .
clark gable unforgettably incarnates rhett, but this film would be nothing without scarlett .
the film was banned in nazi germany, fascist italy, soviet russia and falangist spain. according to frank capra, the film was also dubbed in certain european countries to alter the message of the film so it conformed with official ideology .
a change in the academy rules required that directors could be nominated for only one motion picture in a single year. frank capra, john ford, william wyler, and sam wood - all great directors for oscar - nominated films, couldn' t overcome the almost - total sweep of gone with the wind. best director winner victor fleming also directed another best picture nominee in 1939, the wizard of oz .
, and in 1952 columbia considered a remake of the original film starring jane wyman in stewart' s role .
offers an unsettling cautionary tale of scientific hubris run amok. the film’s story of a mild - mannered scientist transformed by his fantastical invention into a raving megalomaniac is less an ethical debate about man playing god than an existential allegory about the seductive nature of power. although whale cast claude rains as griffin because of rains' extraordinarily expressive voice, the actor was chagrined to learn that his face would remain unseen for almost the entirety of his first hollywood film. destined for a place in film history due to its special effects ,
the national historical film and speaking record library was founded as part of the then commonwealth national library. in 1984, the national film and sound archive was created as a separate commonwealth collecting institution .
the first came on november 8, 1939, two months after the war began, and the story behind it has now been made into 13 minutes, a gripping and thought - provoking film by oliver hirschbiegel, best known as the award - winning director of downfall (2004) .
1939 is undoubtedly the most celebrated year in american film history - the year produced more outstanding films than any other 12 - month period. it was bound to be difficult for the academy to nominate or honor all the rich, outstanding films of the year .
the film finished shooting eight days over schedule and $ 288, 660 over budget .
willy wolff was born in berlin in 1927. following the rise of the nazis in 1933, he fled with his family to amsterdam, and from there to london in 1939 .
but the studio couldn’t control everything, and the third sequel almost didn’t happen. first, powell’s fiancée jean harlow unexpectedly died from kidney failure in june of 1937. he was devastated. then about six months later, he was diagnosed with cancer just as production on another thin man was slated to begin. he immediately had surgery in early 1938, followed by treatment and a second operation in february 1939 .
yellow earth (1988) asin: 6302917050. color, widescreen, english subtitles. director: kaige chen. story: poetic and highly cinema graphic story of a the inspiring encounter between a young farm girl in 1939 and a communist soldier in search of folk songs to turn into propaganda for his regiment. the film gives a good look at the hardships faced by women in rural china .
in 1942, when a ban on american films was imposed in german - occupied france, the title theaters chose mr. smith goes to washington (1939) for their last movie before the ban went into effect. one paris theater reportedly screened the film nonstop for 30 days prior to the ban .
the battle of the next century, says gentleman’s agreement, will be fought out in the homes of america. that is more than a fourth of july orator’s flourish. extend it a bit to include churches and schools, and it is the plain truth .
the ever - popular film has also had its share of detractors, for its benign antebellum southern racial stereotypes (of happy slaves living on the plantation) - its overall portrayal of slavery and race. many forget that hattie mcdaniel and other black cast members were not allowed to attend the premiere of the film in racially - segregated atlanta in mid - december 1939. there were protests and boycotts by african - americans when the film opened in major cities .
this immortal classic - the definition of hollywood period epic - remains even today a splendorous spectacle that stands above most modern blockbusters with its astonishing production values and holds our full attention for almost four hours as we follow its two unforgettable characters .
fox' s long - reigning production chief from the 30s onward was darryl f. zanuck and its finest film director was john ford, whose films in the 30s included the lost patrol (1934), drums along the mohawk (1939), the travelers - in - peril tale stagecoach (1939) (marked by ford' s first filming in his favorite monument valley, and john wayne' s break - out role as the ringo kid), and young mr. lincoln (1939). the success of max steiner' s composed musical score for ford' s the informer (1935) encouraged the future development of musical soundtracks and accompaniment .
life being what it is, last year’s publicity out of hollywood to the effect that twentieth century - fox was “lavishing its all” on its super - production of gentleman’s agreement could not help but arouse a certain apprehensiveness. in mr. zanuck’s wizard hands was one of the great human issues of our time. almost inevitably, some felt, there would emerge from the hollywood belt line another huge purring stratoliner of a film, in whose chromium - bright hollow interior we would be sky - borne, passive as packages, to be redeposited two hours later quite untouched, and only a little airsick .
[ note: by 1939, the western genre had fallen out of favor, but stagecoach helped reinvent the genre, providing for its rebirth. it must be remembered however, that 1939 also saw the release of other blockbuster westerns including union pacific, dodge city, the oklahoma kid, ford' s own technicolor drums along the mohawk, destry rides again and jesse james. ]
the tomatometer score — based on the opinions of hundreds of film and television critics — is a trusted measurement of critical recommendation for millions of fans. it represents the percentage of professional critic reviews that are positive for a given film or television show .
oscar micheaux staged a realistic lynching scene in his 1919 film within our gates, which some film scholars believe was made in response to d. w. griffith' s the birth of a nation. courtesy of kino lorber, inc. hide caption
the film' s subtle racism is insidious, going to great lengths to enshrine the myth that the civil war wasn' t fought over slavery - an institution the film unabashedly romanticizes .
the set for the senate chamber was constructed on two newly built adjoining stages at columbia, stage 8 and 9. the set was built almost to scale, and was at that time, the largest set built on a columbia sound stage .
this is a film adaptation of the cornish opera
the wreckers
( 1906) by ethel smyth, minus the music .
is, if not the definitive hollywood film, then certainly near the top of the list .
included among the american film institute' s 1998 list of the top 100 greatest american movies .
[ mitchell was the third performer to have three appearances in best picture - nominated films - in 1939: gone with the wind (1939), mr. smith goes to washington (1939), and stagecoach (1939). claudette colbert was the first to star in three best picture - nominated films in the same year, in 1934: cleopatra (1934), it happened one night (1934), and imitation of life (1934), and the second was charles laughton in 1935: mutiny on the bounty (1935), les miserables (1935), and ruggles of red gap (1935). the feat would be repeated by john c. reilly, in 2002: chicago (2002), the hours (2002) and gangs of new york (2002). ]
the german historical drama
13 minutes
opens with the sound of strenuous human grunting, accompanied by the regular ticktock of a mechanical timer. it' s nov. 8, 1939, several hours before an explosive device, planted by georg elser, is set to go off, almost killing adolf hitler, who, as history tells us, had left the building in which the bomb was planted mere minutes earlier (hence the film' s english title, which has been changed from the original, limply un - thrillerish
elser
) .
crossfire was the first, gentleman’s agreement is the second in hollywood’s film cycle against anti - semitism to reach the nation’s screens. elliot e. cohen wrote the “letter to the movie makers” published in the august commentary, in which he offered some reflections on the potential of crossfire, and of the film medium generally, for fighting prejudice. in this article mr. cohen appraises gentleman’s agreement, and speculates on the uses and limitations of present - day propaganda for democratic causes. mr. cohen is editor of this magazine. perhaps we should mention that he is here expressing his own views, which are in no sense official .
paul robeson and julia theresa russell star in this scene from a remastered version of oscar micheaux' s 1925 film body and soul .
the restoration project added new sequences to micheaux' s 1939 remake of his silent film birthright. the first two of the film' s nine reels have been missing for years. to replace about 20 minutes of those missing first scenes, restorers have added new title cards to introduce the story of peter siner (played by carman newsome) — a young black man who graduates from harvard university and returns home to the south to build a school for african - american children .
scarlett: sir, you are no gentleman. rhett: and you, miss, are no lady... don' t think that i hold that against you. ladies have never held any charm for me .
it is a pleasure to report that for once in a lifetime mr. zanuck is even better than his billing. the plain fact is that gentleman’s agreement is a moving, thought - provoking film, which dramatically brings home the question of anti - semitism to precisely those people whose insight is most needed—decent, average americans. in honesty and reality, it is immensely superior to a film like the best years of our lives, hollywood’s machine - made slicky on postwar gi problems. if there is any justice, it should win at least half as many oscars .
new scores have been commissioned for the silent movies, including micheaux' s within our gates. the new soundtrack aside, restorers plan to restore the 1919 film closer to micheaux' s original vision. one of the shots in a lynching scene was upside - down originally, according to charles musser, a co - curator for the collection who also teaches film at yale university. but he says previous film restorers who worked on the film turned it right - side up .
nominated for eleven academy awards, mr. smith goes to washington is one of the standout films from that magical year of 1939. with frank capra directing and james stewart starring, how could there not be magic? mr. smith may not have been popular with politicians at the time, but the public embraced it. it’s a film of universal truths that is as relevant today as it was when it was released seventy - five years ago. there is a fundamental decency at its heart, and it is a film with a heart and soul .
so that’s another thin man! it was in production under the working title the thin man returns from mid - july to late august, 1939, and quickly premiered in november. like the previous films in the series, it was a hit .
this race film material presents an extremely important chapter in the long history of african - american participation behind the camera ,
says jacqueline stewart, a film professor at the university of chicago who helped curate the films in the restoration project .
the hollywood version almost feels obsessed with race. with the notable exception of hattie mcdaniel’s academy award - winning portrayal of mammy, the black characters in the film are even more offensive than those of the novel, particularly prissy, portrayed in the film by butterfly mcqueen, whose panicked wail “i don’t know nothin’ ’bout birthin’ babies” has become a famous laugh line — although prissy seems, in the equivalent scene in the novel, less panicky than sly. the film’s slaves are, for the most part, stupid but loyal. in the postwar scenes, the freedmen are fat and arrogant .
it is an epic, almost operatic, saga set throughout the civil war and tells the tale of kittenish southern belle scarlett o’hara, a girl so pampered that even to put her face in the sun is considered too tiring. she is in love with the self - consciously chivalrous gentleman ashley wilkes and near destroys the lives of those around her for his love when really she is more in love with the idea of being in love with him. and even that is with the ideal version of him .
pike, a & cooper, r 1998, australian film 1900–1977, 1st edn, rev. oxford university press, melbourne, p 186 .
in november 1939, georg elser’s attempt to assassinate adolf hitler fails, and he is arrested. during his confinement, he recalls the events leading up to his plot and his reasons for deciding to take such drastic action .
it was a star - making role for him. stewart knew he had been given a great opportunity. if playing second fiddle to joan crawford at mgm in the ice follies of 1939 seemed like an inauspicious start to 1939 for him, mr. smith certainly turned things around. he would appear in another hit that same year when destry rides again premiered in december. stewart was nominated for best actor in mr. smith. though he lost to robert donat, he would win the following year for the philadelphia story .
according to contemporary sources, capra and his crew went to washington, d. c. to film background material and to study the senate chamber, which was replicated, full scale, in precise detail on the columbia lot. james d. preston, who was capra' s technical advisor for the senate set and political protocol, was a former superintendent of the senate press gallery. a july 1, 1939
an interview with writer / director boots riley about his incendiary new film ,
sorry to bother you .
frank capra received many letters over the years from individuals who were inspired by the film to take up politics .
with the onset of the second world war, film stock shortages were experienced as resources were directed to newsreels and propaganda films. from june 1942 film distribution exchanges provided free film prints to troops in new guinea and remote parts of australia. from late 1940, many australian commercial producers began making propaganda films for the commonwealth department of information .
i had no idea of the acting talent and great humour he was to bring to the film, not to mention his rabbinical knowledge. willy wolff was an absolute godsend for the film. although he was only a secondary figure, he achieved the impossible, and employed his unique blend of wit, charm and intelligence to speak about death, bereavement and the concept of the afterlife. as soon as the film premiered at the 2011 berlin film festival, the rabbi became an audience darling .
gone with the wind, margaret mitchell’s pulitzer prize - winning novel, is one of the bestselling books of all time, with at least 28 million copies having been published in nearly every language. its immortality was however secured by david o. selznick’s 1939 film adaptation - winner of 11 academy awards, including the first for a black actor, hattie mcdaniel… although her character isn’t exactly… progressive .
this revolutionary, influential film - a story of redemption - is considered a landmark quintessential film that elevated westerns from cheaply - made, low - grade, saturday matinee
b
films to a serious adult genre - one with greater sophistication, richer western archetypes and themes, in - depth and complex characterizations, and greater profitability and popularity as well .
( 1945) and the success of that film gave him wider exposure. donaldson would be the only cast member from
the u. s. senate interior as shown in the film was an extremely accurate reproduction of the real thing .
after georg (christian friedel) has been arrested while trying to slip across the swiss border with a pocketful of bombmaking plans, the film flashes back to 1932, when we are introduced to elser several years before he has become radicalized. the movie is, as it turns out, less a white - knuckle drama about the nuts and bolts of a failed political assassination than it is a psychological portrait of resistance, made all the more timely - and creepily, almost offensively, unsettling - given the current political climate in the united states .
in his autobiography, capra states that after the film' s general release, he and harry cohn received a cablegram from joseph p. kennedy, the u. s. ambassador to great britain, saying that the film would damage
america' s prestige in europe
and should therefore be withdrawn from european distribution. in response, they mailed favorable reviews of the film to kennedy, and, while in a letter to capra, kennedy stated that he maintained doubts about the film, he did not pursue the matter any further. according to
the washington press corps was highly indignant at the way it was portrayed in the film. consequently, a great deal of the initial reviews from the capitol were very negative. one of their chief objections was that the film made them all out to be drinking too much .
writer sidney buchman didn’t think the ending worked. he believed capra oversimplified things, citing the melodramatics of senator paine trying to commit suicide. but everything works within the context of the film. the 1939 audience wanted to see paine get what was coming to him. in real life, i don’t think any politicians would make an admission of guilt on the senate floor, but jefferson smith stirred paine’s conscience. the plot points might not be “realistic” but the film’s convictions are genuine .
in this film - actually a morality play, each of the characters are representative, archetypal character types, divided initially between respectable and disrespectable social outcasts. however by film' s end, the disreputable members of society prove to be the most noble, virtuous, and selfless .
the internet movie database pike, a & cooper, r 1998, australian film 1900–1977, 1st edn, rev. oxford university press, melbourne, p 181 .
slut shaming: dallas is on the receiving end of this in both versions of the film, ringo disagrees with this .
micheaux and other race - film directors worked outside of hollywood, forging indie filmmaking at its earliest stages with low budgets .
it does appear that additional footage was shot for mr. smith goes to washington. i found this production still (below) from the film which depicts guy kibbee’s governor hopper visiting jefferson early in the film. when you watch the released version, the governor arrives and enters the home filled with kids. almost immediately beulah bondi (playing jeff’s mother) closes the door. the film then jumps to the “star - spangeled” reception where we see jefferson smith for the first time, appearing out of place at a banquet table. it never really felt like that was his first appearance. if capra had cut out the earlier scene due to time constraints, it most likely depicted smith at ease in his natural element as a boy ranger leader. this would’ve been a nice contrast to the following scene at the banquet hall. there was also an alternate ending to the film that was removed after its preview. originally, jefferson and saunders return to his hometown in an extended denouement. (in the film’s trailer, you can see them riding in a parade. )
democrats could learn a lot from republicans these days. republicans know what it is like to sleepwalk into a government shutdown without an exit strategy while sacrificing core elements of their brand in the process. they know how frustrating it can be to have their rights as a minority party curtailed simply for exercising them. they know that having an enthusiastic base of true believers is a double - edged sword; they’re great for winning elections but almost contemptuous of tactics .
restored' race films' find new audiences: code switch some of the earliest movies by african - american filmmakers from the 1910s through 1940s languished in film archives over the years on poor - quality film prints. now some have been digitally restored .
james stewart (with his first nomination) for one of his best, quintessential roles as innocent, crusading senator jefferson smith in mr. smith goes to washington. [ stewart won the best actor oscar the following year, often considered a consolation prize for his loss for this great performance in 1939. ]
america, if i read the old documents aright, was not meant to be a country club for people “just like us. ” the “exclusiveness” of the gentleman’s agreement, collusive or legal, was no part of the picture; nor was the genteel pattern, native or acquired, the prescribed ticket of admission. it was to be a free land for all kinds of people .
whale was a man of striking contrasts. although the war left him an abiding antipathy towards germany, his filmmaking was profoundly influenced by weimar cinema: the sly wit of lubitsch, murnau’s mobile camera, and the visual stylization of german expressionism. born into poverty, he projected the air of a proper british gentleman that barely concealed the wicked sense of humor so important to his films .
has edited images for documentaries, commercials and feature films since 1998. since then the successful cinematographer now even shoots his own film material
four race films, including birthright and williams' 1946 film dirty gertie from harlem, u. s. a. , are returning to the big screen at new york city' s film forum for special screenings on sunday and monday. the entire collection of restored race films will be available for streaming online and as a five - disc set in july .
near the beginning of the film, when smith is appointed a senator, a joyful crowd sings
auld lang syne
for james stewart. the same song is sung for him by another joyful crowd at the end of
it' s a wonderful life
( 1946). [ note that neither film specifically references the other, and there is no appropriate category under
movie connections
. ]
if gentleman’s agreement effectively drives home the social dimensions of anti - semitism to a wide audience and points out a direction, this is perhaps contribution enough for one film. we trust that future films—and novels, the radio, and journalism—will not content themselves with covering the same ground. further exposes are not likely to be very useful; anti - semitism hardly needs more publicity; and there are even dangers in repetitive advertising of the phenomenon, unless we add to the public’s knowledge and insight into its mechanism and its role .
james ellison stars as a man who saves a german shepherd from the city pound, only to have the dog implicate him in a murder .
it' s a shame that it' s taken almost 100 years to get these films back out ,
says miller, who also composed new scores for within our gates, body and soul and other silent films .
they should be well - known, and they should be part of the basic premise of early american cinema, period .
john wayne had previously appeared in some 80
b
pictures; most studio executives were vehemently opposed to giving him top billing in a major film, but ford (whose first sound western this was to be) insisted on casting wayne as the ringo kid. (notably, the actor was paid far less than any of his co - stars except for john carradine .) ford, well known for abusing his cast and crew, reportedly brutalized wayne to screw an effective performance out of him — and succeeded. this film also marked the first time that ford would shoot in monument valley, utah, the site that would become his favorite setting and almost a trademark of his films .
all reprints are free of charge for reporting purposes on rabbi wolff and must bear the copyright: ©
uli holz, britzka film
.
chips rafferty appeared uncredited as a man in the crowd in come up smiling, also known as ants in his pants, which premiered at the strand theatre in hobart on 3 november 1939. born john goffage in 1909, the lanky rafferty became a star in forty thousand horsemen (1940) and pursued a successful career in australia and hollywood. the epitome of the' dinkum aussie bloke’, rafferty crowned his career with a superb performance as the country police officer in wake in fright (1971) .
in his autobiography, frank capra states that after the film' s general release, he and harry cohn received a cablegram from u. s. ambassador to great britain joseph p. kennedy saying that he felt the film would damage
america' s prestige in europe
and should therefore be withdrawn from european distribution. in response, they mailed favorable reviews of the film to kennedy, which persuaded him not pursue the matter any further, even though he still maintained his doubts .
just as whale set the standard for horror with frankenstein, he created in the old dark house a classic of the horror subgenre named for this very film that announced whale’s distinctive blend of horror, satire, camp and farce. the typical “old dark house” film features innocents who stumble upon a sinister mansion; here, in a typically perverse whale touch, the heroes are a flighty, cynical quintet who are hardly wholesome themselves. still, they are no match for the freakish femm family that inhabits the house. perversely, whale cast aging actress elspeth dudgeon as the femm patriarch – she is credited in the film as “john dudgeon, ” a secret joke that was not revealed until 1975 .
lives as a freelance cinematographer in berlin. he works with eric ferranti, arndt von rabenau, victor holand and david sieveking to name a few. following study at the german academy of film and television in berlin (dffb), he began his cooperation with britta wauer for her documentary berlin – a square, a murder and a famous communist in 2005. rabbi wolff is their sixth movie together .
the blue kite (1994) asin: 630342063x. color, widescreen, english subtitles. director: zhuangzhuang tian. story: banned in china for its scathing indictment of mao zedong' s policies, this is a almost documentary look at the impact of the cultural revolution on chinese society as seen through the eyes of one child and through the hardships faced by his own family .
elser returned to the bürgerbräukeller in april 1939 and took exact measurements of the column where he intended to hide his device. he tested the prototype of his bomb that summer in a remote orchard, then returned to munich in the autumn and, having tried and failed to get a job at the beer hall, he broke in one night and began working on his hands and knees to hollow out a space in the column where he could install his device .
the musical score was by dimitri tiomkin, who had scored capra’s lost horizon. capra told him he wanted to hear america in the score and tiomkin delivered. throughout the film you hear many musical motifs right out of the american folk songbook– songs like “yankee doodle” and “my country ‘tis of thee. ” the film evokes that pioneer spirit. just listen to the scene where saunders finds a disillusioned smith at the lincoln memorial, ready to leave town after being tarred and feathered. that’s all americana in the background. the musicality of the film is often overlooked with all the standout performances, but it’s another aspect that makes the film work .
the structure of the film is very formal, divided neatly into eight episodes (four scenes of action alternating with four scenes of character interaction) .
director frank capra' s film mr. smith goes to washington (with eleven nominations and only one win - best original story) of lewis foster' s story about a naive and innocent junior senator
james ellison stars as a man who saves a german shepherd from the city pound, only to have the dog implicate him in a murder. (less )
angarano’s film credits include kyle patrick alvarez’s the stanford prison experiment; craig zisk' s the english teacher; dito montiel’s empire state; steven soderbergh' s haywire; kevin smith’s red state; gavin wiesen' s the art of getting by; and max winkler' s ceremony. additional credits include music of the heart, almost famous, the brass teapot, gentleman broncos, snow angels, the forbidden kingdon, and lords of dogtown. angarano can be seen in steven soderbergh’s series the knick opposite clive owen and eve hewson. he appeared in a four - episode arc on fox' s hit drama 24 opposite kiefer sutherland and guest starred on nbc' s emmy® - winning comedy will and grace as elliot, the son of jack mcfarland (sean hayes). additional television credits include e. r. , csi, less than perfect, summerland, and kevin hill .
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if the story had been cut short and tidied up at the point marked by the interval, and if the personal drama had been made subservient to a cinematic treatment of the central theme, then gone with the wind might have been a really great film .
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we also learn in the original that rhett dishonored a woman back in charleston and killed her brother in a duel. except for a brief early hint of scandal, this tale, too, does not make it into the hollywood version. we further learn in mitchell’s novel that the unmarried rhett may have a son in new orleans. the film leaves out this detail .
film is a physical artifact. it can fade. it can shrink. it can crumble to dust in less than a lifetime, and it' s a race against time around here ,
explains mike mashon, who heads the moving image section of the library of congress .
it' s genuinely a miracle that those [ race ] films survived .
gentleman’s agreement is advertised for what it is; it respects itself and its audience’s intelligence; and it has enough faith in what it has to say to risk saying it plainly and with some of its complications, rather than relying on shock, or trapping the unconscious, or sneaking up on its public from behind the ambush of soap opera dramas, fast - shooting detectives, noble hackdrivers, and the kid kourages of the comic books. it does not try to fight stereotypes with stereotypes; or slogans with slogans. whatever its shortcomings, it chooses the open road of thought and art. in a word, it is not manipulative. gentleman’s agreement is a soberer picture than crossfire, and it may lack its thrills, but in the end it is both less preachy and more convincing .
view one of the movies on the film list below and write a response paper detailing how this work adds to our understanding of chinese culture. see your instructor' s syllabus for further information and due dates .
crouching moron, hidden badass: doc boone is a rambling, semi - comic drunkard for most of the film, until he has to sober up to deliver mrs. mallory' s baby. following this he takes a major role in defending the stage from apaches and even stares down a dangerous gunfighter while completely unarmed .
rhett' s last words in the novel :
my dear, i don' t give a damn .
in the film :
frankly my dear, i don' t give a damn .
[ contrary to popular belief, it was not the film with the first use of the word' damn' (the expletive had been said a year earlier in pygmalion (1938) and variations, such as' damned', were heard in other earlier films ]
a scotland yard undercover detective is on the trail of a saboteur who is part of a plot to set off a bomb in london. but when the detective' s cover is blown, the plot begins to unravel .
now it can be told that out of the pages of a magnificent book has leaped a magnificent motion picture .
the story of james whale’s rise and fall in thirties hollywood illustrates the high stakes risks and rewards of filmmaking in the studio era. whale’s early successes earned him only a brief freedom, and the subsequent decades have been unkind, with some of his best films remaining little - seen and the story of his life and career increasingly encrusted with myth, rumor and speculation. associated most vividly with universal’s horror films, whale in fact distinguished himself in almost every genre prominent in 1930s hollywood: the musical, the melodrama, the war film, costume drama and screwball comedy .
life on a string (1991) asin: 6302664829. color, widescreen, english subtitles. story: this is truly an
art
film with beautiful landscapes of northwest china, haunting folksongs, long poetic silences, and vivid imagery. the main character is a blind singer who devotes his life to music, eventually becoming a saintly old man. while not for those who need action and adventure, this film does capture the essential chinese spirit of the interconnectedness of all things .
capra was making this film for penny - pinching harry cohn at columbia, who wanted less takes of scenes printed. to work around this dictum, capra would simply let the camera roll continuously in order to record the best of several takes shot together. he discovered that more times than not, the second take was almost always better than the first. his cameraman was joseph walker, who was a mainstay in capra’s productions. the stellar work of cinematographers like walker should make modern audiences appreciate the value and quality of black and white photography. the scenes at the lincoln memorial are exceptionally well - lit. one of the most striking scenes in the film is the one in which saunders finds jefferson in tears and in the shadows .
if you loved ace the wonder dog in the rookie cop (1939), you' ll probably like this low budget furball drama from rko that sees the clever pooch arrested and tried for... ...... .... murder. go check out ace in the monster maker (1944) .
for over three years, director britta wauer and her team followed rabbi wolff through his professional and personal life. over 100 hours of conversations with willy wolff have produced not only a film but also a book full of reminiscences, reflections and insights. through anecdotes and conversations, willy looks back on his eventful life and talks about his childhood in berlin and amsterdam, about his career as a political journalist in the uk and about his lifelong desire to become a rabbi. the book includes many stories that didn' t make it into the film .
meanwhile, church and his cronies take a late train back to new york. nick’s chat with church worked–crisis averted! (or is it ?) but when the trio arrive at smitty’s apartment, another creep named diamond back vogel (don costello) shows up with a message from smitty’s husband. her hubby has been in prison for almost their whole marriage, so she has moved on to church. but add vogel to the list of criminals and creeps involved in the case .
20th century fox was known for its musicals (especially in the 40s with betty grable), and prestige biographies (such as young mr. lincoln (1939) ). fox studios also capitalized on its association with shirley temple after the mid - 30s - singlehandedly, she made over $ 20 million for fox in the late 30s .
it' s filmmaking that should not stay sitting in film archives, according to paul miller, also known as dj spooky, the project' s executive producer .
gentleman’s agreement is neither streamlined nor glib. as a matter of fact, in its beginnings it is awkward and groping, like an earnest, unpracticed speaker struggling with a complex subject. but this is not altogether inappropriate: we are going to look at that curious, archaic aberration, anti - semitism—as it exists not in darkest naziland, nor among our own lunatic fringe, but among americans of good will—the nice lady in the next seat—yes, one suspects uneasily, even oneself .
man on the run from a murder charge enlists a beautiful stranger who must put herself at risk for his cause .
jack conway directed viva villa! (1934) (co - directed with howard hawks), tarzan and his mate (1934), a tale of two cities (1935), libeled lady (1936), saratoga (1937) (harlow' s last film), and too hot to handle (1938). before coming to hollywood, german director fritz lang' s first' talkie' was the chilling m (1931), with peter lorre' s film debut as a deviant serial killer (child murderer) who whistled grieg' s peer gynt while stalking his next victim. sam wood' s best 30s films were goodbye, mr. chips (1939) and two marx brothers films, a night at the opera (1935) and a day at the races (1937). king vidor directed the champ (1932) and stella dallas (1937) - among others .
michael angarano is making his mark on hollywood with diverse roles that have established him as a respected and sought - after actor. angarano marks his film directorial debut with avenues, in which he wrote and stars. the film also stars nicholas braun, ari graynor, and juno temple. angarano will star in sun dogs alongside melissa benoist, jennifer morrison, allison janney, and ed o’neill .
greer garson (with her first nomination) in her film - debut performance as katherine ellis - mr. chips' sweet and vivacious wife in goodbye, mr. chips
nominated for 11 academy awards, and winning only one for best original story, it became the first film to lose at least 10 awards (in nine categories).
almost a gentleman is a 1939 american drama film directed by leslie goodwins from a screenplay by david silverstein and jo pagano , based on the story by harold shumate . the film stars james ellison , helen wood and robert kent , and was released by rko radio pictures on march 31 , 1939 . 
almost a gentleman is a 1939 american drama film directed by leslie goodwins from a screenplay by david silverstein and jo pagano, based on the story by harold shumate. the film stars james ellison, helen wood and robert kent, and was released by rko radio pictures on march 31, 1939.
almost a gentleman is a 1939 american drama film directed by leslie goodwins from a screenplay by david silverstein and jo pagano, based on the story by harold shumate. the film stars james ellison, helen wood and robert kent, and was released by rko radio pictures on march 31, 1939.