Broads… They say that you can’t live with them and you can’t kill them… or can you? Anyway, so goes Billy Wilder’s supremely taut tale of murder and insurance fraud that has tritely (though, very appropriately) been called one of the earliest classic examples of film noir, with its dark style of filmmaking and even darker story tone. Yes, I must admit that I had never seen the film, until recently. There are always going to be “classics” that are missed with all the thousands of films available for consumption, and being a “slightly younger” gentleman, there was a time that getting my hands on—let alone making time for—movies from the ‘40s was a bit tough for me. So, that’s the excuse (as lame as it may be) that I’m going to go with for never viewing the moody thriller, Double Indemnity, until now. Furthermore, I’m not all that familiar with the work of Mr. Wilder (though, I love The Apartment), but that’s something soon to be remedied since I tend to gravitate towards films dealing with grim and controversial subject matter (even when they’re comedies), and Wilder thankfully didn’t seem to shy away from such topics. After all, James M. Cain’s novella of the same name from which the film is based is certainly rife with nasty business, making the project incredibly tough to greenlight due to the rigidity of the era. Wilder was definitely a brave man who deserves credit for thumbing his nose at authority and venturing to make one of the most daring films of the ‘40s (and possibly the best of its kind?) even in spite of stern and conservative opposition. Read More »
Pack your bags and prepare to join Ghouly Irv for a terrifying tour through some of filmdom's most frightening places! We all know how scary it is to take a shower. We know the water can be a horrible hazard...just when you thought it was safe. But there are a few other locales that reliably give film fans the willies:
Before there was House and Gray’s Anatomy Americans got their Hollywood medical drama from watching Dr. James Kildare. Not the 1960s television series starring Richard Chamberlain, but a series of MGM short feature films from the 1940s.
It doesn’t take much to turn medicine into drama. The doctor who stands between life and death is a hero made for the movies, and Hollywood has known it for a long time. Classic films with plots based on period science and technology are fun to watch, and MGM’s Dr. Kildare films, based on the stories of Max Brand, present characters that are still well-known today.
The young Dr. James Kildare, son of a country doctor and fresh out of medical school, was played by Lew Ayres. Ayres won acclaim for his role as Paul Bäumer in All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) and worked steadily throughout the 1930s. Unfortunately, studios cast him as a tough guy or rich dilettante, and the roles never quite suited him. It wasn’t until he played the alcoholic younger brother of Katharine Hepburn in Holiday (1938) that he was able to demonstrate the complex mixture of gentle charm and brutal honesty that exhibited his talent.
After directing three acclaimed documentaries on boxing (the Oscar-nominated Against the Ropes), film producer Robert Evans (The Kid Stays in the Picture) and teenagers (American Teen), director Nanette Burstein was finally ready to make the leap to helming a feature film.
Burstein, 40, an NYU film school grad, looked over a bunch of scripts before she settled on Going the Distance, a romantic comedy about a long distance relationship between an aspiring West Coast-based newspaper reporter and a New York City music promoter.
Playing a hand in her decision were the words of her one-time subject, super-producer Evans. “Robert Evans is all about show business himself,” says Burstein, during a stop in Philadelphia, about the former Paramount studio head behind such films as The Godfather and Marathon Man. “He’s told me all kinds of great things that are true pearls of wisdom about how the business works. I called him after American Teen screened the Sundance Film Festival and told him I wanted to make a feature. He said, ‘You have to make a love story, kid.’ He’s a big fan of love stories--after all, he did produce Love Story!”
If there's one thing missing from contemporary movies, it's bombastic soundtrack songs. When was the last time you watched a film that featured a ditty that made you want to pump your fists and start some serious aerobics training? It just doesn't happen anymore. In my opinion, no other band could craft a rocking soundtrack tune better than Survivor. Back in the 1980s, the band's music was seemingly in every film after "Eye of the Tiger" rocketed them to the top of the charts. So for this installment of Movie Music Video, we turn our eyes to the group's most notable soundtrack contributions. Above you see the clip for their Rocky III megahit. It comes complete with the most laughable self-seriousness this side of Billy Squier's epic "Rock Me Tonite" and plenty of determined walking. And if there's one surefire way to master the art of becoming a music video tough guy, it's finely crafting a walk of determination.
I like to go to plays. Not Broadway extravaganzas, but community and university theater productions. Unfortunately, my spouse doesn’t share this interest -- which cuts back on my dramatical attendance, except when our daughter comes home for a visit. Fortunately, stage plays find their way onto the silver screen, even moreso in the '30s and '40s than today. Modern examples of the play-on-film would be Bug (2007) and Doubt (2008), which I have reviewed. Unfortunately, we are not living in the age of Eugene O’Neill, Thornton Wilder, and Tennessee Williams, except insofar as revivals and remakes allow us to do so. With all due respect, John Patrick Shanley, Tony or no Tony, is no Kaufman or Hart, the two who wrote the play from which The Man Who Came to Dinner (1942) derives, via the Epstein twins’ screenplay. (The Epsteins of Casablanca fame). Read More »
A lot has been made about this year being the 50th anniversary of Psycho and Jean-Luc Godard’s Breathless, especially with the latter embarking on a cross-country tour, courtesy of a newly-struck 35mm print. But two other incredibly important, immeasurably influential films are also celebrating their golden anniversaries – Michelangelo Antonioni’s L’Avventura and Frederico Fellini’s La Dolce Vita. And what all of this has stirred in me is not a sort of wistful yearning for movies of this caliber to be made today, nor a desire to trace the many, many ways these four films changed cinema (though I won’t be considering Psycho for this), but rather a simple question – what happened to all the cool art films? Read More »
This week's new releases are all about classic TV shows and theatrical hits. Let's see what hot hits and cool flicks are now available on DVD and Blu-ray!
It's close to midnight and something evil's lurking in the dark. Wait, wrong Thriller! Elements of horror, mystery, and the supernatural were combined in this creepy series, which ran from 1960-1962 and was hosted by Boris Karloff. Focusing on ordinary people caught in extraordinary--and often frightening--situations, the show featured fine, young actors, top genre writers, and notable directors like Arthur Hiller, Ida Lupino, and Mitchell Leisen. All 67 episodes of the series--including "The Twisted Image," "Well of Doom," "Dark Legacy," "What Beckoning Ghost?," and "The Specialists"--are collected in a 14-disc set.
Have you ever wanted to be a guest blogger on Movie FanFare? Here's your shot! We are currently seeking guest contributors to have their views on movies featured on our site -- along side of such regular features as First Time Watch, Ghouly Irv and Poster Doppelgangers. Here's the submission guidelines:
Posts and Articles That Will Be Accepted
Informative posts that offer readers some benefit.
Posts with pictures are highly desirable.
Posts that discuss favorite movies, old movies, rare movies, favorite actors or actresses, movie memories and or anything movie related are welcome.
Movies Unlimited will accept submissions ONLY via email or on our Blog.
The subject line MUST be "Blog Story Submission".
The text of your email MUST include either your FIRST NAME or your username, and please tell Movies Unlimited what name you prefer us to use for the "written by" tagline.
Posts may be edited for spelling, grammar, content, and length - if something is missing that you feel is important, you can always add it back via a comment.
Not every submission will get posted. Please don't get upset if your submission is not accepted; likewise, we might hold a submission for a short time before posting (especially if it's a busy day). If something is extremely interesting but we need more details or info, you may receive a reply email.
Posts will follow a simple format: 2-5 paragraphs in length, (1000 words max) 1-2 pictures max (but not required), all website/URLs provided in the text (no retail websites) Read More »
Broads… They say that you can’t live with them and you can’t kill them… or can you? Anyway, so goes 
It doesn’t take much to turn medicine into drama. The doctor who stands between life and death is a hero made for the movies, and Hollywood has known it for a long time. Classic films with plots based on period science and technology are fun to watch, and MGM’s Dr. Kildare films, based on the stories of 
September 1, 1902
Recent Comments