Our second dose of Shame! As usual, if anyone would like to know what a Shamedown is, the deets can be found on CinemaShame's website. All righty, then, here we go... The 1958 film, The Hidden Fortress is rather notorious because of its pedigree as a Kurosawa film and being one of George Lucas's inspirations for … Continue reading Shamedown #2: The Hidden Fortress
Shamedown #10: Monster From the Ocean Floor
Happy Halloween! Can't believe we're on our tenth Shamedown of 2022. As always, if anyone is coming in late and wants to know what this Shamedown business is all about, the details can be found here. Onward... Roger Corman has quite the reputation and quite the filmography. The man has been producing since the early … Continue reading Shamedown #10: Monster From the Ocean Floor
It’s All About the Drapes
We all know that so many Hollywood stars got their start on the stage, Broadway or otherwise, and one of the most famous is Vincente Minnelli. Among the things Minnelli did so well in his films was communicate emotion without beating an audience over the head, and one of his lesser-known films is 1955's The … Continue reading It’s All About the Drapes
If I Were A Broadway Musical
Here we go... Guys and Dolls is quite the show. I first heard the music in college when my voice teacher showed us clips from the 1992 revival starring Peter Gallagher, Faith Prince, Nathan Lane, and Josie de Guzman and liked it so much I bought the soundtrack album. However, I've never seen the 1955 movie … Continue reading If I Were A Broadway Musical
Stage To Screen: What A Girl Wants
When I heard that 2003's What A Girl Wants was based on a play, my first thought was, "Really?" For those who haven't seen it, the movie follows Daphne Reynolds (Amanda Bynes), who leads a rather bohemian existence with her mom, Libby (Kelly Preston) in a fifth-floor walkup in New York's Chinatown. Libby is a wedding … Continue reading Stage To Screen: What A Girl Wants
Shamedown #6: I Want You
Is it June already? Yep. For another day, anyway. If anyone is coming in late and wants to know what a Shamedown is, please click here. The Korean War is often called "the forgotten war," and to a large extent it is, although it is significant for everyone in that it was one of the … Continue reading Shamedown #6: I Want You
Beauty On A Budget
Let the strangeness begin... Roger Corman liked the out-of-the-ordinary to say the least, and 1959's The Wasp Woman is no exception. It's a quick movie and very straightforward, so we're going to dive right in. The movie starts with a guy collecting wasps from a hive in the woods, because of course it does. His name is … Continue reading Beauty On A Budget
MGM In Space
Who here has seen 1956's Forbidden Planet? While it's definitely not the first sci-fi flick, this movie's one of the game-changers and a pretty unusual film for MGM. Even people who don't usually care for older films should watch this one because it's chock-full of tried-and-true tropes. The real buffs will no doubt notice more … Continue reading MGM In Space
Stage To Screen: Pal Joey
OK, so I know I said I was going to do a Stage To Screen about The Sign of The Cross, but once I started researching everything I decided to scrap it and write about Rodgers and Hart's Pal Joey instead. This decision was made for two reasons. First of all, there's not enough verified information … Continue reading Stage To Screen: Pal Joey
Five Reasons To See “Vertigo”
Hello, Miss Kim... Vertigo is, of course, one of Alfred Hitchcock's iconic films. It's got James Stewart. It's got a blonde. Two, actually, because it also features the wonderful Barbara Bel Geddes as the loyal but passed-over Midge. It's got twists. It's got turns. It's got a gorgeous score by Bernard Herrmann. It's based on a … Continue reading Five Reasons To See “Vertigo”
A Date And A Movie Which Live In Infamy
The attack on Pearl Harbor happened eighty years ago today. Eighty years ago, America discarded its temporary neutrality and entered the war in a dramatic fashion, although we weren't exactly prepared. And yet few movies have been made about the actual event, beyond Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970) and Michael Bay's awkwardly inaccurate 2001 boom-fest. Most of … Continue reading A Date And A Movie Which Live In Infamy
Five Reasons To See “The Day the Earth Stood Still”
Hello, Mr. Herrmann... OK, I know I just did one of these "Reasons" posts, but 1951's The Day the Earth Stood Still is another classic movie that deserves to be discovered or re-discovered. The film starts out pretty basic, with a flying saucer, a Cylon-ish robot named Gort, and a spaceman in a silver suit saying he … Continue reading Five Reasons To See “The Day the Earth Stood Still”
Hammer Tries Singing the Blues
Hammer, meet Amicus. Amicus, meet Hammer... Hammer and Amicus films might seem like they're mostly pulpy horror movies, but they managed to work in quite a variety of subjects. Naturally, there has to be blood somewhere, and in the case of 1954's The Black Glove, the blood belongs to a doomed blues singer named Maxine. American … Continue reading Hammer Tries Singing the Blues
Five Reasons To See “Them!”
I don't know about anyone else, but 1950s sci-fi and horror have really grown on me lately, especially sci-fi, and 1954's Them! is pretty infamous. It feels quick, it's just creepy enough, and it's fun. For those who aren't familiar with the plot, it's simply this: Giant ants are attacking mankind, and it's all the fault of … Continue reading Five Reasons To See “Them!”
A Matter of Hormone Activity
Mr. Lawford's back... It's always nice to unearth a treasure or two in the movie blogging business, and it can be fun to find some turkeys, too. Then there are those movies that straddle both sides, like 1952's You For Me. A straight-ahead rom com, it's nothing if not ambitious. The tone of this movie is set … Continue reading A Matter of Hormone Activity
Too Many Mikes
Van's back, y'all... Who else thinks air travel is fascinating? I do. I like learning about the history of commercial travel because it's interesting to see how things have changed or not changed over the years. Add in a fun romantic story, though, and it's even better. 1951's Three Guys Named Mike is that kind of movie. … Continue reading Too Many Mikes
That’s Entertainment
One of the distinctive things about the Freed Unit at MGM was that they didn't just mine Broadway for film material; Arthur Freed brought Broadway talent to Hollywood. One of these was Tony-winning actor, dancer, and choreographer Michael Kidd. Born Milton Greenwald to Russian Jewish refugees on August 12, 1915, Brooklynite Kidd briefly studied engineering … Continue reading That’s Entertainment
Taking Up Room 