Rembrandt 1936 - A portrait of a genius - by a genius

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0028167/?ref_=fn_al_tt_3
IMDB rating: 7,1

Director: Alexander Korda
Main Cast: Charles Laughton, Gertrude Lawrence, Elsa Lanchester

"Looking uncannily like the real artist, Charles Laughton makes Rembrandt a memorable motion picture experience. Not that the film is without other assets. The script is literate (a bit too much so in places, bogging down in dialogue when it needs to soar a bit more), although it follows the grand cinema tradition of taking dramatic license with historical fact. And while it is hardly more than a series of vignettes, it does provide Laughton with the requisite big scenes and chances for character delineation. Director Alexander Korda and his cinematographers also do a fine job of giving the film a visual texture that is reminiscent of Rembrandt's work. And the supporting cast, especially marvelous Elsa Lanchester and the rarely-seen (on film) Gertrude Lawrence, are a definite plus. Still, the film rises or falls upon Laughton, and he is up to everything that is required of him. The tortured soulfulness that is underlie so much of Laughton's work - that feeling that there's an angel caught inside a monster's form - is given greater rein here. Laughton also perfectly captures the stubbornness (or determination, depending upon one's point of view), temperament, scorn and tenderness, and he takes full advantage of such showcase pieces as the declamations on the wonder of love and on the foolishness of humans that frame the film. Although the film could have used a more cohesive script, Laughton's performance alone makes it a not-to-be-missed classic." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/rembrandt-v40892/

DVD links:

The man who could work miracles 1936 - A parable on power and human conditions

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0029201/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
IMDB rating: 7,2

Director: Lothar Mendes
Main Cast: Roland Young, Ralph Richardson, Edward Chapman, Joan Gardner

"The Man Who Could Work Miracles is a cheerful excursion into somewhat whimsical science fiction - 'somewhat' because it is more the treatment than the subject matter itself that is whimsical. Indeed, the basic messages behind Miracles are familiar ones of H.G. Wells: that mankind must find some way to end its obsession with wars and pointless aggression, that the differences between people make it impossible for one point of view to always prevail, and that absolute power by itself cannot bring about a utopia. But director Lothar Mendes treats most of this with a very light touch, helping to keep some of the preachiness at bay and therefore rendering it all the more effective. The plot itself is rather delightful and the screenplay has a number of inventive elements, starting with the trio of gods that open the film. Miracles also benefits from the performance of Roland Young in the title role, who is perfect as the non-descript, average "little" man suddenly elevated to heights of unimaginable power. What may be a surprise to modern audiences is how well the special effects have held up. While not on par with today's computer-generated work, they are still quite impressive and add considerably to film's impact." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/the-man-who-could-work-miracles-v31099/

DVD links:

San Francisco 1936 - A major Hollywood spectacle from the 30's

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0028216/?ref_=nv_sr_1
IMDB rating: 7,4

Director: W. S. Van Dyke
Main Cast: Clark Gable, Jeanette MacDonald, Spencer Tracy, Jack Holt, Shirley Ross

"San Francisco had removed Miss MacDonald from the wooden Nelson Eddy and right into the arms of Clark Gable, with Spencer Tracy as her guardian angel, of sorts, to boot. MGM had assigned the dependable W.S. Van Dyke to direct this the company's second blockbuster of 1936. Nominated for both The Great Ziegfeld and San Francisco, Van Dyke ended up competing against himself at the Academy Awards, eventually losing to Frank Capra (Mr. Deeds Goes to Town). Perhaps that was fair enough. If Mr. Deeds stands as a testament to Capra's genius (and writer Robert Riskin's), both San Francisco and The Great Ziegfeld remain crowning achievements of the studio system, MGM-style. Quite a few writers worked on the screenplay to San Francisco, including Herman J. Mankiewicz and Anita Loos, but only the latter earned an onscreen credit. While Van Dyke obviously stood for the major portion of the direction, everyone from special effects designer James Basevi to, reportedly, D.W. Griffith had a hand in there, the latter often credited with helming MacDonald's rousing pre-earthquake rendition of Gus Kahn, Bronislau Kaper, and Walter Jurman's famous title song. Had there been an award for Best Special Effects in 1936, Basevi would almost certainly have won, San Francisco's earthshaking tremors remain far more effective than such later 'spectacles' as Earthquake (1974), Panavision and Sensurround notwithstanding. Then again, maybe not -  nominated for Academy Awards in four categories, San Francisco lost in all of them, including Spencer Tracy as Best Actor, an honor which instead went to Paul Muni of The Story of Louis Pasteur." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/san-francisco-v42760/

DVD links:

The story of Louis Pasteur 1936 - More fiction than fact

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0028313/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
IMDB rating: 7,4

Director: William Dieterle
Main Cast: Paul Muni, Josephine Hutchinson, Anita Louise, Donald Woods

"Although there's a bit of fiction in The Story of Louis Pasteur, on the whole this is one of the more factually based of Hollywood's legendary biopics. Some incidents have been altered, others invented, and of course a great deal of telescoping of time has been employed, but Pasteur is still a valuable history lesson. Of much more importance, it's a thoroughly engaging dramatic experience, with a solid script that is filled with excitement, power, and suspense. True, some of the moments are a bit contrived, but one is more than willing to buy them for the payoff they bring. One of the more interesting aspects of the screenplay is that it doesn't spend much time bothering with Pasteur's early days. By the time we meet him, he has already created the process of pasteurization (which, ironically, he is probably most famous for among members of modern audiences), and the film concerns itself with his campaign for proper sterilization of medical equipment and for cures for anthrax and rabies. It sounds dry, but it's presented in a fascinating and involving manner by director William Dieterle, who also keeps things going at a rapid clip and doesn't let the film ever get bogged down. Pasteur's biggest asset, however, is its Academy Award-winning performance by the magnificent Paul Muni. It's a wonderful achievement, a flashy yet nuanced turn that brings life and vitality to the film while finding plenty of time for quiet, reflective moments. Muni finds a great foil in Fritz Leiber's perfectly played antagonist and gets beautiful support from Josephine Hutchinson." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/the-story-of-louis-pasteur-v47092/

Download links (Youtube with Spanish hardsubs):

Theodora goes wild 1936 - The turning point in Irene Dunne's career

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0028355/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
IMDB rating: 7,4

Director: Richard Boleslawski
Main Cast: Irene Dunne, Melvyn Douglas, Thomas Mitchell

"If Theodora Goes Wild falls just a little bit short of being a truly classic screwball comedy (like Bringing Up Baby or My Man Godfrey), it's certainly not for want of trying on the part of the actress assaying the title role. Recognizing her chance to break out in new directions, Irene Dunne grabs Theodora (the part and the movie) and runs with them for all they're worth. It's a delicious, irresistible star turn by a delicious, irresistible star, and the joy, the skill, and the humor that Dunne brings to the film make up for any of its deficiencies. There are a few problems, however, but most notably that the film is never as wild as its title indicates - and as its setup dictates it must be. It's not the fault of the extremely well-structured screenplay (although it could stand a few more laughs here and there) so much as it is of director Richard Boleslawsky, whose work is good but not as sharp and pointed as is needed to make a perfect screwball comedy. Fortunately, Dunne and the rest of the cast are so good that most viewers won't notice, let alone care, about this. Melvyn Douglas is the perfect partner for Dunne, Thurston Hall is blustery fun, and Spring Byington is dead-on as the town gossip. All in all, Theodora is enormously entertaining." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/theodora-goes-wild-v113178/

DVD links:

Our relations 1936 - What's better than Laurel and Hardy? Two of them!

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0028070/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
IMDB rating: 7,5

Director: Harry Lachman
Main Cast: Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy, Alan Hale, Sidney Toler

"Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy are two solid citizens, happily married and highly respected in their community. One morning, Hardy receives a letter from his mother, containing an old photo of himself and Laurel with their twin brothers, Alf Laurel and Bert Hardy. Mamma also reveals that Alf and Bert turned out to be 'bad lads' and ran off to sea, and that reportedly they'd been hanged for taking part in a mutiny. 'Isn't that calamitous!' remarks Hardy, who conspires with Laurel to hide the facts about their no-good brothers from their wives. Meanwhile, in another part of town, the S.S. Periwinkle pulls into port. Among the crew members are the selfsame Alf and Bert, who have decided to entrust their pal Fin (James Finlayson) with their month's salary. Fin has promised to invest the dough so that the boys will become millionaires 'before you can say Jack Robinson'. Alf and Bert are then summoned to the cabin of their captain (Sidney Toler), who orders them to pick up a valuable package for him, then meet him later at Denker's Beer Garden. While waiting for the captain at Denker's, Alf and Bert are captivated by a pair of waterfront floozies, Alice (Iris Adrian) and Lily (Lona Andre). Talked into buying the girls a huge meal for which they haven't the necessary funds, Alf and Bert decide to go back to Fin and reclaim their money, leaving the contents of the captain's package-a valuable pearl ring-with tough waiter Joe Groagan (Alan Hale) as security. Later, Laurel and Hardy take their wives Betty (Betty Healy) and Daphne (Daphne Pollard) to lunch-and, inevitably, they end up at Denker's Beer Garden, where the equally inevitable mix-ups begin to occur. Things snowball from bad to worse before both sets of twins, an angry captain, a disgruntled Fin, the wives, the floozies, a genial drunk (Arthur Housman) and a brace of smooth gangsters (Ralf Harolde and Noel Madison) all converge at the upscale Pirate Club. Several slapstick complications later, Laurel and Hardy are captured by the gangsters, who threaten to dump the boys in the river with their feet encased in cement if they don't cough up the pearl ring. Alf and Bert come to the rescue, and all is well, at least until the film's boffo punchline." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/our-relations-v36771

DVD links:

The prisoner of Shark Island 1936 - "Your name is mud!"

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0028141/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
IMDB rating: 7,4

Director: John Ford
Main Cast: Warner Baxter, Gloria Stuart

"The team of director John Ford, screenwriter Nunnally Johnson, and producer Darryl F. Zanuck was best remembered for its work on the classic The Grapes of Wrath (1940). Four years earlier, the same three men crafted the excellent The Prisoner of Shark Island (1936), memorable as Ford's only foray into docudrama. While much of the depiction of Dr. Samuel Mudd (Warner Baxter)'s relationship with his crusading wife (Gloria Stuart) was probably invention, the adherence to a mostly accurate historical viewpoint was unusual for Ford. The director's most successful forays into historical storytelling, such as Young Mr. Lincoln (1939) and My Darling Clementine (1946), liberally blended fact with fiction in films that bore little resemblance to reality. The Prisoner of Shark Island was the first of three Hollywood efforts to exonerate Mudd, the Maryland physician who was probably falsely accused of participating in the conspiracy to assassinate Abraham Lincoln in 1865; the other films were Hellgate (1952) and, for television, The Ordeal of Dr. Mudd (1980). In real life, Mudd earned an 1869 pardon from his valiant efforts to save fellow prisoners and captors during a yellow fever epidemic at the remote island fort in the Dry Tortugas where he was in captivity. However, Mudd, whose name gave birth to the insulting expression, 'your name is mud', was not pardoned for the crime he allegedly committed until nearly a hundred years after his death. That pardon owed no small debt to the trio of popular films that uniformly depicted him as an innocent victim of justice gone wrong." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/the-prisoner-of-shark-island-v106712/

Download links:

The Prisoner of Shark Island by crazedigitalmovies

The petrified forest 1936 - "Bogart's breakthrough picture"

Imdb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0028096/
Ratings (imdb + allrovi): 4* out of 5*

DVD LINKS ARE IN THE STORE!

Director: Archie Mayo
Main Cast: Leslie Howard, Humphrey Bogart, Bette Davis, Genevieve Tobin, Dick Foran


Description:

Humphrey Bogart had been in quite a few movies before getting his first juicy role in this 1936 classic. He had played the gunslinger villain in the Broadway production of the Robert E. Sherwood play, and his co-star Leslie Howard insisted that Warner Bros. cast him in the film instead of Edward G. Robinson, who was a more bankable star. The movie was a breakthrough for Bogart, though it typecast him as a heavy. Bette Davis and Howard had teamed up two years earlier in Of Human Bondage, and the chemistry between them is important to making this quirky Western plausible. Some of the dialogue is heavy-handed, and Archie Mayo's direction tends to be predictable, but The Petrified Forest is still a fine example of vintage Hollywood melodrama that was starting to allow villains like the Bogart character to be more well-rounded and interesting.
The film proved to be just the break that Bogart needed; years later, he expressed his undying gratitude to Howard by naming his daughter Leslie Bogart. One year after The Petrified Forest, Humphrey Bogart and Leslie Howard co-starred in The Stand-In.

Download links:

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Hitori musuko (The only son) 1936 - "Ozu's first talkie picture of maternal sacrifice"

Imdb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0027752/
Ratings (imdb +allrovi): 4* out of 5*

Director: Yasujiro Ozu
Main Cast: Choko Iida, Shin'ichi Himori, Masao Hayama, Chishu Ryu


Description:

Yasujiro Ozu's first "talkie" of the 1930s, The Only Son, begins with an epitomizing and foreshadowing quote by author Rynosuke Akatagawa that would continually resurface later in his most revered work. "Life's tragedy begins with the bond between parent and child" serves as a preface for the film depicting mother Otsune's sacrifice to ensure financial security and quality of life for her only child, Ryosuke. The Only Son manages the situation in a unique and remarkable way, balancing point of view through the central premise of supporting family and, as film scholar Tony Rayns puts it, "investing more than one could afford in getting a good education." To understand the film's core issue, examination of the era's wealthy background is required, but its wealth can only be measured in the capacity of dilemmas. Pre-WWII Japan in 1936 was plagued by social injustice, mutinies, resource shortages, and poverty. Instead of manufacturing an environment for the film, Ozu captures that grim reality of Tokyo with its barren fields, lower income housing and industrial factories on the outskirts of the city. While The Only Son is dedicated to a specific time period for a majority of its duration, the film remains the lone work in Ozu's filmography with notated time gaps; their importance is fundamental to establishing emotional links in the characters' journeys through educational and personal aspirations, topics that resonate as true today as they did seventy-five years ago.
 Though overshadowed by Ozu's lengthier and more complex Late Spring (1949) and Tokyo Story (1953), at a slim eighty-three minutes, the film absolutely remains of one of Yasujiro Ozu's most notable works.

Download links:

http://rapidshare.com/files/97940357/Hitori_Musuko_The_Only_Son_-Yasujiro_Ozu_1936_.part1.rar 
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Le roman d'un tricheur (Confessions of a cheat) 1936 - A very charming movie from Guitry

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0028201/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
IMDB rating: 7,8

Director: Sacha Guitry
Main Cast: Sacha Guitry, Marguerite Moreno, Jacqueline Delubac

"The Story of a Cheat (Le Roman d'un Tricheur) is widely regarded as one of French writer/director Sacha Guitry's best and most personal films. Guitry himself stars as a charismatic cardsharp who survives solely through the auspices of Lady Luck. The story is told almost completely in pantomime; the only voice heard is the narrator's (Guitry, but of course). Among the film's many highlights is the opening sequence, in which the young Guitry misbehaves and is banned from a family picnic - where his parents and siblings all die from eating toadstools. This segues into a side-splitting 'black' gag in which an exhausted priest huffs and puffs as he tries to keep pace with the long line of coffins! It has sometimes been suggested that Sacha Guitry was telling his own life story in Story of a Cheat, equating the ins and outs of the film industry with the chicanery of the cardsharp." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/le-roman-dun-tricheur-v111840

Download links:

(rar, 728 MB):

http://depositfiles.com/files/rdsdcib16

Or:

(avi, 700 MB):

https://mega.co.nz/#!B9EzGZyL!EZ3vJCAWUFHiXEERlM7YUGODbEA1fHpR-JzKoq0iChs

subtitle:
https://mega.co.nz/#!QsUz0RRQ!dk4Uz0z9jg7-oN4CxUjb4lLpd3BsbIjExMv1MJNixWo

Gion no shimai (Sisters of Gion) 1936 - An early Mizoguchi masterpiece

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0027672/?ref_=fn_al_tt_2
IMDB rating: 7,7

Director: Kenji Mizoguchi
Main Cast: Isuzu Yamada, Yoko Umemura, Benkei Shiganoya, Eitaro Shindo

"Along with Osaka Elegy (1936), Sisters of the Gion is widely considered one of Kenji Mizoguchi's finest prewar films. The movie takes a realistic look at the life of a geisha in Kyoto's Gion district. Omocha is a geisha with 'modern girl' sensibilities; she resents the way that men callously treat women, and she is inclined to ignore the traditions and expectations of her profession. She sets out to beat men at their own game, jumping from patron to patron (a no-no in the geisha business) in order to attain money, nice clothes, and fancy meals. In the process, she deceives and ruins a bumbling, though sincere, store clerk. Her sister Umekichi, on the other hand, possesses all the qualities of the legendary geisha. In spite of Omocha's mockery, she remains devoted to her bankrupt former patron. Eventually, the wronged store clerk exacts revenge against Omocha, landing her in the hospital, while Umekichi's patron abandons her, returning to his wife.
As in much of his oeuvre, Mizoguchi shows a deep sensitivity towards the plight of women in society and, as in much of his postwar work, he emphasizes the inevitability of fate. Neither Omocha's guile nor Umekichi's loyalty can do much to alter their cruel predicaments; however, this acknowledgement of their fate yields little of the transcendence seen in such later films as Life of Oharu (1955)." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/sisters-of-the-gion-v44923

DVD links:

Swing time 1936 - Heavenly dancing from Astaire & Rogers

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0028333/?ref_=nv_sr_1
IMDB rating: 7,7

Director: George Stevens
Main Cast: Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Victor Moore, Helen Broderick, Betty Furness

"Perhaps the perfect example of the Fred Astaire-Ginger Rogers appeal, Swing Time is a charming romantic-fantasy that's almost impossible to resist when its musical set pieces are in motion. The plot, however minimal, only distracts from the classic melodies and entertaining dance sequences. Directed by the venerable George Stevens, Swing Time was the fifth Astaire-Rogers film, and came out during the peak of their popularity; it's of a piece with the duo's other successes, and in fact markedly resembles their earlier hit, 1935's Top Hat. Perhaps the most cherished dance number is "Bojangles of Harlem," during which Astaire dances with shadows and pays tribute to famous dancer Bill Robinson. The Jerome Kern-Dorothy Fields score also includes such standards-to-be as 'Pick Yourself Up', 'A Fine Romance', 'The Way You Look Tonight', and 'Never Gonna Dance. The peerless supporting cast of Swing Time includes Helen Broderick, Victor Moore, Eric Blore, and Landers Stevens, the actor-father of the film's director, George Stevens." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/swing-time-v48170/

DVD links:

Cesar 1936 - The third and final part of Pagnol's Fanny trilogy

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0027489/?ref_=fn_al_tt_2
IMDB rating: 7,9

Director: Marcel Pagnol
Main Cast: Raimu, Pierre Fresnay, Fernand Charpin, Orane Demazis, Paul Dullac

"The final film in Marcel Pagnol's Marseilles trilogy (following Marius and Fanny), this drama follows Cesariot (Andre Fouche), an 18-year-old who has recently been led to believe that his father, Honore (Fernand Charpin), is not really his father at all. Honore dies without telling Cesariot about his true parentage, but after the funeral, his mother Fanny (Orane Demazis) breaks the news that Cesar (Raimu), who he had always been told was his godfather, is in fact his grandfather. Cesariot asks Cesar for the truth; the old man tells him that his real dad is Marius (Pierre Fresnay), an auto mechanic, and tells him how to find the garage where Marius works. Cesariot sets out to meet Marius, but when he stops by the garage, Marius isn't in. His boss, Fernand (Doumel), decides to have some fun and tells Cesariot that Marius is a notorious outlaw; the boy buys it hook, line, and sinker and returns home heartbroken. When Marius finds out what happened, he realizes that he must find the boy and see if the damage can still be repaired. While any of the three films in Pagnol's trilogy can be enjoyed separately, Cesar in particular is best appreciated when seen alongside the other two films." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/cesar-v8774

DVD links:

Fury 1936 - Two lovers... victims of mob violence!

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0027652/?ref_=fn_al_tt_9
IMDB rating: 7,9

Director: Fritz Lang
Main Cast: Sylvia Sidney, Spencer Tracy, Walter Abel, Bruce Cabot

"Not long after he fled Nazi Germany rather than produce films for Hitler, Fritz Lang made his American debut with this powerful drama that it made clear that mob violence was not confined to his homeland. At a time when lynching was still a grim fact of life in America, Fury tackled this social evil head-on; even if MGM seems overly cautious in making both the mob and their victim white, the film's unflinching willingness to look dead-on at the ugly side of the American character is as impressive (and troubling) today as it was in 1936. Spencer Tracy delivers a typically strong 'everyman' performance as the wrongfully accused Joe Wilson, and he doesn't shrink from Joe's less pleasant side in the second and third act, while Sylvia Sidney is genuinely affecting as his tormented fiancée. As Kirby and a band of local rabble trap Joe in his jail cell and then set the building alight, Lang takes the average folks of the American heartland, the sort of people that Frank Capra's populist visions were made of, and shows that a gruesome thread of hatred can be found inside them, waiting for the opportunity to come out. Sadly, this message may remain as pertinent today as it was when Fury first hit screens." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/fury-v18992/

DVD links:

Camille 1936 - Garbo's greatest triumph on screen

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0028683/
IMDB rating: 7,6

Director: George Cukor
Main Cast: Greta Garbo, Robert Taylor, Lionel Barrymore, Elizabeth Allan

"Camille is one of the most romantically-atmospheric films ever made. It is a tearjerker classic - a well-known, lavish, luxuriously-mounted, melodramatic love/tragedy of Hollywood's Golden Age. Director George Cukor's film, his first with Greta Garbo, was also the first talking version of the content. It was adapted by Zoe Akins, Frances Marion, and James Hilton from Alexandre Dumas Fils' 1852 novel/play (La Dame aux Camelias) of the doomed romance of a tubercular courtesan/demimonde of ill repute in 19th century Paris.
Camille is also among MGM's most lavish productions of the 1930s, and features what many critics consider to be Greta Garbo's greatest film performance. Garbo's portrayal of the beautiful but sickly Parisian courtesan, who fatefully falls in love with a young French nobleman (25 year-old Robert Taylor), is widely considered the definitive version of the Camille story. Among the last of the projects overseen by studio production chief Irving Thalbeerg, (who died shortly before filming ended) the film boasted MGM's customary collection of behind-the-camera all-stars, including director George Cukor, whose patient attention to Garbo helped her to find just the right tone for her role. The supporting cast is similarly solid, highlighted by standouts Henry Daniell and Laura Hope Crews. They help to deflect attention from the film's weaker scenes, most of which involve Lionel Barrymore as the father of the frustrated suitor (Taylor). Despite spending the latter part of the film succumbing to illness, Garbo looks radiant, thanks to her Adrian gowns and William Daniels' loving cinematography.
Cukor - who had already directed the classic Dinner at eight (1933), and would go on to make further screen greats such as The Philadelphia story 1940 and My fair lady 1964 - captured the most exquisite, poetic, restrained performance of the great screen actress. In her most popular and luminous film, Garbo was recognized for her performance with the film's sole Academy Award nomination, but she lost to Luise Rainer who won for another, heavily-promoted MGM classic, The Good Earth."

DVD links:

Mr. Deeds goes to town 1936 - A light-hearted classic Capra screwball comedy

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0027996/
IMDB rating: 8,0

Director: Frank Capra
Main Cast: Gary Cooper, Jean Arthur, George Bancroft

"Frank Capra built his career around the themes that he explores in Mr. Deeds goes to town. For the populist Capra, the battle lines are clearly drawn; he makes his points (sometimes heavy-handedly) by pitting small-town simplicity, selflessness, and idealism against big-city sophistication, greed, and cynicism. Capra raised the 'little guy' to iconic status, stereotyping him as effortlessly as he stigmatized the corrupt city slicker. Gary Cooper's Longfellow Deeds often looks as if he is visiting from a different era, an errant knight guided by an anachronistic code of chivalry. He is not afraid to resort to violence if words don't get the job done, although his impassioned speeches tend to get him in more trouble than they get him out of. He is looking for a 'damsel in distress' and he is guided by an archaic and romantic notion of 'noblesse oblige'. Jean Arthur makes her first of three Capra appearances as this damsel, the hard-nosed reporter who exposes Mr. Deeds to ridicule. Her nasally, pointed line delivery is sharp and precise, and Cooper's trademark laconic delivery is also perfect for the role. Playing the part as if born to it, Cooper is at the top of his game, imbuing Deeds with just the right blend of empathy and intelligence.
Nominated for five Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor, Mr. Deeds goes to town won Capra his second of three Best Director trophies." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/mr-deeds-goes-to-town-v33624/

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My man Godfrey 1936 - One of the landmark screwball comedies of the 30's

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0028010/
IMDB rating: 8,1

Director: Gregory La Cava
Main Cast: William Powell, Carole Lombard, Alice Brady, Gail Patrick, Eugene Pallette

"My Man Godfrey is one of the 1930's most delightful, classic screwball comedies. It was directed by Gregory La Cava for Universal and is now considered the definitive screwball comedy, with its social commentary on life during the 30s. The film, filled with marvelous character actors (Alice Brady, Eugene Pallette, Gail Patrick, and Mischa Auer), resonated with Depression era audiences for its statements on morality and class. [On a side note, the real-life divorced couple of Powell and Lombard were married previous to the film's making, from 1931 to 1933.] The screenplay by Morrie Ryskind - a co-screenwriter for the Marx Bros.' A night at the opera (1935) - and Eric Hatch was based on Hatch's own short novel 1011 Fifth Avenue.
The film displays the mad-cap personalities of a wildly rich, eccentric family. One of its members - a flighty socialite/heiress, finds a down-and-out 'forgotten man' tramp in a hobo colony during a scavenger hunt, and hires him as the family's butler. The bum teaches them the realities of life, ultimately regenerates their confused, scattered lives, and reverses the nobility of rich and poor.
The entertaining film was both a commercial and critical success, with six Academy Award nominations (but no wins), including Best Actor (William Powell), Best Actress (Carole Lombard with her sole Oscar nomination), Best Supporting Actor (Mischa Auer), Best Supporting Actress (Alice Brady), Best Director, and Best Screenplay. However, it set a milestone as the first film to receive nominations in all four acting categories and it remains one of the few films with that distinction in addition to not being nominated for Best Picture.
In the same year, another William Powell film - The Great Ziegfeld - won the Best Picture and Best Actress awards, and Powell also appeared in Libeled Lady (1936) and After the Thin Man (1936). The film was remade in 1957 with David Niven as the 'forgotten man' and June Allyson (in her next-to-last film) as the Lombard character."

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Modern times 1936 - The farewell performance of the Tramp

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0027977/
IMDB rating: 8,6

Director: Charles Chaplin
Main Cast: Charles Chaplin, Paulette Goddard

"This episodic satire of the Machine Age is considered Charles Chaplin's last 'silent' film, although Chaplin uses sound, vocal, and musical effects throughout. The film hilariously satirizes Depression-era social ills through the Tramp's disastrous encounters with the industrial age. Chaplin turns his factory worker's nervous breakdown into comic set pieces involving an automated feeding machine, an inability to stop tightening bolts, and, most famously, his entrapment in machinery gears. In a potent satire of authoritarian idiocy, Chaplin repeatedly ends up in jail for stumbling into worker riots and 'Communist' protests, yet his ability to quell a prison break while accidentally hopped up on cocaine (!!) earns him the sheriff's respect. Paulette Goddard's fetching Gamin helps Chaplin find work as a singing waiter, but police intervention leaves their togetherness as their only hope. Accompanied by a Chaplin-composed score (including Smile) and synchronized sound effects, numerous bits of business showcase Chaplin's silent gift for physical comedy, including a department store roller skate and maneuvers with a food tray. In a send-up of talking pictures and technology's dehumanizing effects in general, the only voices heard in the movie (save for Chaplin's gibberish song and his fellow waiters' warbling) come from the factory's Orwellian telescreen P.A. system, a phonograph, and a radio. Three years in production, Modern times became another international success for Chaplin (though it was banned in Germany and Italy) and one of the signature works of his career." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/modern-times-v33029

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She 1935 - "She who must be obeyed!"

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0026983/?ref_=fn_al_tt_3
IMDB rating: 6,6

Directors: Lansing C. Holden, Irving Pichel
Main Cast: Helen Gahagan, Randolph Scott, Helen Mack, Nigel Bruce

"Containing many of the ingredients that would award the later Lost Horizons legendary status, 'She' just misses that elevated spirit. Where Lost Horizons' Shangri La remains a source of inspiration and dreams, 'She''s hidden civilization of Kor is rather more mundane, emerging just this side of ridiculous. Much of the blame should perhaps go to Broadway actress Helen Gahagan's rather lifeless portrayal of the supposedly enticing queen, but Irving Pichel was no Frank Capra and his direction is sometimes downright leaden. In her first - and, as it turned out, final - screen performance, Gahagan did her best, but the role seems to have been beyond her much-vaunted capacities and the blame for the film's loss of more than $180,000 at the box office was placed squarely at her feet. Apparently producer Merian C. Cooper's only choice for the role, Gahagan proved a better politician in real life than as ruler of Kor: she was later elected to two terms in the United States Congress on the Liberal ticket. In 1950, she ran for the United States Senate but was defeated by future president Richard Nixon. Opposite Gahagan's title character, Randolph Scott and Helen Mack perhaps lack the extra sparkle that Cooper's first choices, the husband-and-wife team of Joel McCrea and Frances Dee, may have added. Despite these caveats, 'She' fully deserves its rediscovery.
Filmed at least four times in the silent era (including a 1925 British production starring American femme fatale Betty Blythe), 'She' was remade twice by low-budget Hammer Films, in 1965 starring Ursula Andress and as The Vengeance of She in 1967." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/she-v109763/

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The clairvoyant 1935 - "The evil mind" of Claude Rains!

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0024989/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
IMDB rating: 6,7

Director: Maurice Elvey
Main Cast: Claude Rains, Fay Wray

"Claude Rains is a phony psychic who makes a good living fleecing the suckers with his wild prognostications. But after Rains is plagued by severe headaches, he discovers that he truly does have "visions". Suddenly his predictions begin to come true, and Rains is elevated to a position of prominence in European social and political circles. Despite the protestations of his loving wife (Fay Wray), Rains becomes intoxicated by his own power, which leads to disaster. Also known as The Evil Mind, The Clairvoyant is an elaborate British-made cautionary fable, with an excellent performance by Claude Rains and a remarkably good one from Fay Wray." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/the-clairvoyant-v87378

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Mississippi 1935 - A rare Crosby classic

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0026723/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
IMDB rating: 6,9

Director: A. Edward Sutherland
Main Cast: Bing Crosby, W. C. Fields, Joan Bennett, Gail Patrick

"In this comedy with musical numbers set in the Old South, Bing Crosby plays a singer from Philadelphia named Tom Grayson, who has fallen in love with Southern heiress Elvira Rumford (Gail Patrick). Tom wants to marry Elvira, but a man called Major Patterson (John Miljan) has announced his desire to do the same, and he challenges Tom to a duel to decide who will have Elvira's hand. Tom is not at all agreeable to this idea, which leads Elvira's father (Claude Gillingwater) to proclaim Tom to be a coward and deny him permission to wed his daughter. Elvira's sister Lucy (Joan Bennett), who is infatuated with Tom, thinks that he's merely being sensible, but Tom thinks that Lucy is too young for a serious relationship. In need of work and not especially welcome in the Rumford's community, Tom takes a job performing on a riverboat piloted by the blustery Commodore Orlando Jackson (W.C. Fields). One night, Tom finds himself in a barroom brawl with a man named Captain Blackie (Fred Kohler), who dies accidentally from a shot fired by his own gun. Hoping that his infamy will draw crowds, Jackson begins billing Tom as 'The Singing Killer'. Tom comes to realize that Lucy may be the right woman for him after all, but Lucy is not interested in a man with blood on his hands, and now Tom must convince her that he's not a killer at all. Noted gambling aficionado Fields has a hilarious poker-playing bit, and he steals most of his scenes from the rest of the cast. Mississippi was loosely based on the play 'Magnolia' by Booth Tarkington." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/mississippi-v102575/

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A Midsummer Night's dream 1935 - A quite satisfying Shakespearean adaptation

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0026714/?ref_=fn_al_tt_2
IMDB rating: 7,1

Directors: William Dieterle, Max Reinhardt
Main Cast: Dick Powell, Ross Alexander, Olivia de Havilland, Jean Muir, Verree Teasdale, James Cagney, Joe E. Brown, Anita Louise

"Max Reinhardt's legendary Hollywood Bowl production of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream was transferred to the screen by Warner Bros. in 1935. Like most of Shakespeare's comedies, the story contains several seemingly unrelated plotlines, all tied together by a single unifying event, in this instance the impending wedding of Theseus and Hippolyta. Although it is not without flaws, the 1935 version of A Midsummer Night's Dream is by and large a delight. Given the casting, it's inevitable that there would be some grumblings with this Dream; for one thing, there's an awful lot of Hollywood in here and very little English. But, surprisingly, some of those Hollywood names turn in exceptional performances. Top of the list is the thoroughly delightful James Cagney as Bottom, leader of the mechanicals. His enthusiastic, audacious, ultimately captivating turn brings abundant life to the film and makes one forget that, really, this man shouldn't be so at home with Shakespeare. As one of Cagney's cronies, Joe E. Brown is also a surprising pleasure, making up for the misfire of fellow mechanical Hugh Herbert. An extraordinarily young Olivia de Havilland is fetching and entirely winning as Hermia, and Victor Jory is just about perfect as Oberon. On the down side, there's Dick Powell, entirely out of his depth as Lysander. Most controversial is the Puck of Mickey Rooney, which some find charming and appealing and others find busy and annoying; suffice it to say that while he admirably captures the feeling of youthful and irreverent mischief that is at the heart of the character, he does so in a manner that is often forced. Although the direction is a tad uneven, the art direction and special effects (especially the nocturnal dance of the fairies) are breathtakingly beautiful. Mendelssohn's 'Midsummer Night's Dream' incidental music is masterfully orchestrated by Erich Wolfgang Korngold, while the cinematography by Hal Mohr earned the first write-in Academy Award in Hollywood history (Mohr had not been nominated due to hostilities arising from a recent industry strike). Considered a brave failure at the time of its first release, on a purely visual level A Midsummer Night's Dream is one of the more satisfying Shakespearean cinemadaptations of Hollywood's golden age." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/a-midsummer-nights-dream-v32585/

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Alice Adams 1935 - Hepburn as Tarkington's loveliest heroine

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0026056/?ref_=nv_sr_1
IMDB rating: 7,1

Director: George Stevens
Main Cast: Katharine Hepburn, Fred MacMurray, Fred Stone, Evelyn Venable, Hedda Hopper, Hattie McDaniel

"Alice Adams does a credible job of transferring Booth Tarkington's popular Pulitzer Prize-winning novel to the screen, even if it adds a happier ending than the one in the book. A significant part of the credit belongs to director George Stevens, who keeps the film briskly paced without sacrificing character development and atmosphere. Filmed during the Great Depression, Alice Adams takes a satirical view of the 1920s, reminding 1935 audiences of some of the shallowness of those 'better days'. Hepburn's performance dominates the film, and the supporting cast functions mostly as props, though Fred MacMurray, Hepburn's nominal co-lead, manages to shine in moments. The film received two Oscar nominations, for Best Picture and for Hepburn's performance. Alice Adams was the first major directorial assignment for George Stevens, as well as one of the few Katharine Hepburn vehicles of the 1930s to score a hit with the public." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/alice-adams-v1471/

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G-men 1935 - Cagney on the side of law this time

IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0026393/?ref_=nv_sr_3
IMDB rating: 7,2

Director: William Keighley
Main Cast: James Cagney, Margaret Lindsay, Ann Dvorak, Robert Armstrong, Barton MacLane, Lloyd Nolan

"In G Men, Warner Bros. 'bad boy' James Cagney plays James 'Brick' Davis, a young lawyer whose education has been financed by soft-hearted racketeer McKay (William Harrigan). When Cagney's best pal, detective Eddie Buchanan (Regis Toomey), is killed in a gangland shooting, James decides to become a G-Man. Though scrupulously honest, Davis is looked upon with suspicion by his fellow agents because of his association with the crooked McKay. He proves he's a 'good guy' when his former girlfriend, Jean (Ann Dvorak), now the wife of mobster Brad Collins (Barton MacLane), tips him off to a 'Little Bohemia'-style gangster hideaway. Jean later sacrifices her own life to help James rescue his new girl, nurse Kay McCord (Margaret Lindsay), from the vengeful Collins.
Based on Gregory Miller's book Public Enemy No. 1, G-Men was reissued in 1949, with an added prologue featuring David Brian as an FBI trainer who advises his students not to laugh at the old-fashioned costumes and slang in the 1935 film; seen today, it is Brian's superfluous opening comments that seem hopelessly dated, while the film itself is as exciting and entertaining as ever." - http://www.allmovie.com/movie/g-men-v19031/

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