As we cruise farther along our Michael Curtiz journey, today we’re pulling over to a little jazz club to discuss, YOUNG MAN with a HORN (1950). At this point, we have explored a variety of film genres that Curtiz not only explored but excelled in directing. Now let’s look at a film that is not only a biopic, but a musical biopic. American novelist Dorothy … Continue reading To jazz up your day… YOUNG MAN with a HORN (1950)
THE UNSUSPECTED (1947) was the very first film Michael Curtiz made under his new production company, Michael Curtiz Productions. As such, it’s an important pit stop in our Curtiz journey. In the end, it was a mix of hits and misses; but overall, an important lesson in his life as a filmmaker. With Hal Wallis’s post-CASABLANCA disgruntled exit at Warner Brothers and with Curtiz’s maiden … Continue reading A Little Noir Gem, THE UNSUSPECTED (1947)
I’m shocked, shocked to find any evidence of a cinematic soul that isn’t in love with the film we’re discussing today, CASABLANCA. It’s not only a film that many a classic film fan would describe as their favorite, but it’s easily a film that could be described as an essentially perfect film. In many ways, with the experience of working within a wide variety of … Continue reading A Film Study: CASABLANCA (1942)
Warner Brothers’ house style during the 1930s embraced gangster films, along with the occasional big production musicals. During the Pre-Code years of the early 1930s, those gangster films were gritty and violent and made James Cagney (THE PUBLIC ENEMY, 1931) and Edward G Robinson (LITTLE CEASAR, 1931) big stars. But once the production code became enforced during the second half of the 1930s, the studio … Continue reading A Gangster Morality: ANGELS with DIRTY FACES (1938)
We venture forth in our Michael Curtiz adventure with our next film, THE ADVENTURES of ROBIN HOOD (1938). To pivot from 2-strip color Pre-Code horror with cannibalistic themes to the Technicolor swashbuckling men in tights of Robin Hood is a perfect example of the Curtiz versatility. As a reminder, the Pre-Code era (late 1929 – summer of 1934) has ended, and as such Joseph Breen … Continue reading The ADVENTURES of ROBIN HOOD: A Technicolor Dream in Tights
A hodge podge mix of tones – and colors- unexpected in a Pre-Code horror flick. Michael Curtiz’s DOCTOR X remains a stand-out, even more nine decades later. As we explore the filmography of director Curtiz, let’s begin early in his Hollywood years with a Warner Brothers rarity, a horror film. Based on the play “The Terror” by Howard W Comstock and Allen C Miller, the … Continue reading Ice Cream Colors Splash of Horror in DOCTOR X
A Film Study of MICHAEL CURTIZ One of Hollywood’s greatest directors of its pinnacle ‘golden era’ is a name you’ve possibly never heard of. Michael Curtiz directed an impressively prolific filmography, from silents to the early sixties, including popular classics that endure to this day. And yet, his is not a household name. Directors like Alfred Hitchcock, John Ford, and Steven Spielberg are well-known names- … Continue reading “ONLY CURTIZ SPOKEN HERE”
We have arrived at the final film in this Bette Davis film study series. The opportunity for WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE came nearly twelve years after our last film, ALL ABOUT EVE. She continued working in those dozen years, but the golden era of Oscar nominated romantic lead roles was rapidly fading away. Now fifty-six years old, Davis was entering the last chapter in … Continue reading WHAT EVER HAPPENED to BABY JANE?
Today we are in for a real treat. Many have rightfully described Joseph L Mankiewicz’s ALL ABOUT EVE as one of cinema’s most remarkable films, and specifically as the most literate and intelligent scripts in all of Hollywood’s golden era. Based on a short story in Cosmopolitan magazine in 1946, author/actress Mary Orr (1910 – 2006) scribed, “The Wisdom of Eve,” in 1946 of an … Continue reading A Real Hollywood Comeback: ALL ABOUT EVE (1950)
In today’s stop along our grand Bette Davis adventure, we are studying NOW VOYAGER (1941). It is undoubtedly a dramatic tale of romance, but also rooted in a theme of psychiatry and mental health. As a bonus, we are treated to a character makeover. This is a coming out tale. Who doesn’t love a dazzling ‘before and after’ reveal? NOW VOYAGER is based upon a … Continue reading The Background Story: Bette Davis in NOW VOYAGER
Outspoken & Freckled 