1940s Films on My Movie Radar

The 1940s brought us two highly influencial films which have remained the only two to-date to top Sight & Sound's poll as the #1 film of all-time: Citizen Kane (1941) and Bicycle Thieves (1948). In between we had the war years, and the birth of film noir. And it was the decade of Bogie & Bacall, Tracy & Hepburn, and Abbott & Costello, too.

Here's the 1940s films that have managed to elude me so far, but they're on my radar:

The Sea Hawk- 1940

Blossoms in the Dust- 1941

The 49th Parallel/The Invaders- 1941

Day of Wrath- 1943

The House on 92nd Street- 1945

That Lady in Ermine- 1948

1910s-20s-30s Films On My Movie Radar

I saw many films from my 1910s-20s and 1930s lists from last year (plus scratching off Quo Vadis, Smouldering Fires, I Flunked But..., and The Scoundrel since they're not readily available), leaving quite a few slots for my now six films-to-see of this early period of feature filmmaking.

The 1910s and 20s brought us the Italian super-spectacle; the epics of Griffith; the comedies of Chaplin, Keaton, & Lloyd; the expressionist films of Germany; the prestige films of France; and the first Oscar winners. The 1930s is primarily known as Hollywood's Golden Age (from pre-code to its greatest year- 1939) however, internationally, several of the most important directors of the twentieth century made their first great films in this decade: Alfred Hitchcock (following some promising 20s films), Yasujiro Ozu, and Jean Renior, among others. Here are six films that have so-far managed to elude me from the early days of cinema, but they're on my movie radar:

The Child of Paris - 1913

Children's Faces - 1925

Chang - 1927

Charlie Chang in Shanghai - 1935

Algiers - 1938

Port of Shadows - 1938

1990s Films On My Movie Radar

I saw four films off last year's list which leaves me with a full list of six (I'm continuing to bring my ten films-to-see lists down to six), but I'm scratching off Truly, Madly, Deeply and The Dreamlife of Angels for now since they're not readily available, leaving two open slot. The 1990s brought back the western, launched Pixar, and gave us the biggest moneymaker of the century-- Titanic. Here's a list of six modern classic 1990s films that have managed to elude me so far, but they're on my radar:

Quick Change - 1990

Cool Runnings - 1993

Exotica - 1994

Citizen Ruth - 1996

Central Station - 1998

Pi - 1998

1980s Films On My Movie Radar

The decade of blockbusters and sequels; the rise of the independent film; the last gasp of many of the classic Hollywood directors; and such popular genres as: slasher films, raunchy comedies, and films of teenage angst. I saw four films off last year's list which leaves me with a full list of six (I'm continuing to bring my ten films-to-see lists down to six). Here's a list of the classic 1980s films that have managed to elude me so far, but they're on my radar:

Absence of Malice— 1981

Das Boot— 1981

The Pope of Greenwich Village— 1984

A Room with a View— 1986

The Last Temptation of Christ— 1988

Valmont— 1989

1970s Films On My Movie Radar

The decade that introduced the Hollywood blockbuster; the rise of "new" Hollywood: Allen, Altman, Ashby, Coppola, Scorsese, etc.; the maturation of several European greats: Bergman, Fellini, Truffaut, to name a few; plus Blaxploitation, disaster flicks, and outer-space! Having seen four of the ten from my list from last year, I'm left with six-- filling up this year's list (as with my '60s list from August, I'm continuing the reduction to a half dozen). These classic 1970s films that have managed to elude me so far, but they're on my radar:

The Conformist - 1970

Sweet Sweetback’s Baad Assssss Song - 1971

Bite the Bullet - 1975

Smile - 1975

Assault on Precinct 13 - 1976

The Tin Drum - 1979

1960s Films On My Movie-Radar

The 1960s in film was the decade influx internationally. Particularly in the US, when the Hollywood studio system crumbled and "new Hollywood" entered the fray. Here's a list of six classic 1960s films (making the change from ten as in blog entries past) that have managed to elude me, but I've got them on my radar:

Sons and Lovers— 1960

David and Lisa— 1962

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance— 1962

Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow— 1963

Repulsion— 1965

A Man and A Woman— 1966

Top Ten 1950s Films On My Movie-Radar

The 1950s was the era of Technicolor, VistaVision, 3-D,... and samurais. The musical was one of the most popular genres in Hollywood. Other genres exploited by Hollywood auteurs included: melodrama, Nicholas Ray's territory; western, a favorite of Anthony Mann, and sci-fi, notoriously explored by Ed Wood. Internationally, the beginnings of the French New Wave put Godard, Truffaut, etc. on the map. I caught six films off of last year's list. Here's a list classic 1950s films that have managed to elude me so far, but they're on my radar:

The Gunfighter - 1950

Above and Beyond - 1952

Ikiru - 1952

The Earrings of Madame de... - 1953

Ugetsu Monogatari - 1953

The High and the Mighty - 1954

Robinson Crusoe - 1954

The Rose Tattoo - 1955

The Burmese Harp - 1956

The Nights of Cabiria - 1957

Top Ten 1940s Films on My Movie Radar

The 1940s brought us two highly influencial films which have remained the only two to-date to top Sight & Sound's poll as the #1 film of all-time: Citizen Kane (1941) and Bicycle Thieves (1948). In between we had the war years, and the birth of film noir. And it was the decade of Bogie & Bacall, Tracy & Hepburn, and Abbott & Costello, too.

Here's the 1940s films that have managed to elude me so far, but they're on my radar:

My Little Chickadee- 1940

The Sea Hawk- 1940

Blossoms in the Dust- 1941

The 49th Parallel/The Invaders- 1941

Day of Wrath- 1943

Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man- 1943

House of Frankenstein- 1944

The House on 92nd Street- 1945

Crossfire- 1947

That Lady in Ermine- 1948

Top Ten 1930s Films on My Movie Radar

The 1930s is primarily known as Hollywood's Golden Age (from pre-code to its greatest year- 1939) however, internationally, several of the most important directors of the twentieth century made their first great films in this decade: Alfred Hitchcock (following some promising 20s films), Yasujiro Ozu, and Jean Renior, among others. Here's the 1930s films that have managed to elude me so far, but they're on my radar:

I Flunked But...- 1930

The Threepenny Opera- 1931

Smilin' Through- 1932

Charlie Chan in London- 1934

Manhattan Melodrama- 1934

David Copperfield- 1935

The Scoundrel- 1935

Libeled Lady- 1936

In Old Chicago- 1937

Beau Geste- 1939

Top Ten 1910s/20s Films on My Movie Radar

I've seen more silent films that I care to admit, yet, of course, there are still some I'd like to see. Two of the most exciting releases this past year were the Abel Gance silents J'ACCUSE and LA ROUE. I watched J'ACCUSE on TCM, but didn't quite get to LA ROUE. I thereby didn't see any of the silent films-to-see on my list from last year! But, I'm switching it from silent to 10s/20s and so one slot will be open as I move I FLUNKED BUT... (1930) to the 30s list. Here are the 1910s/20s films on my movie radar:

Quo Vadis?— 1912

The Squaw Man— 1914

Hamlet— 1921

The Wildcat— 1921

La Roue— 1922

When Knighthood Was in Flower— 1922

Children's Faces— 1925

Smouldering Fires— 1925

Mother— 1926

Chang— 1927

Movies I'm Most Looking Forward to: 2009

There are a lot of promising releases this year... I kind of expected the recent union strikes to have ruined 2009, but it doesn't seem so.

The decade-end years seem to be among the best in movies: 1919, 1939, 1959, 1969, 1989, 1999 for sure, with 1929, 1949, and 1979 at least being better-than average. 1999 gave us AMERICAN BEAUTY, AMERICAN PIE, BEING JOHN MALKOVICH, THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT, BOYS DON'T CRY, THE CIDER HOUSE RULES, ELECTION, FIGHT CLUB, GALAXY QUEST, THE INSIDER, MAGNOLIA, THE MATRIX, OFFICE SPACE, THE SIXTH SENSE, THE TALENTED MR. RIPLEY, TOY STORY 2... and I could go on. Now, unfortunately '09 is off to a really bad start, however, here are the ten films I've got high hopes for....

1. INGLORIOUS BASTERDS: I know Tarantino is just poised to "go too far" one of these days, but I've liked all of his movies and I'll be the first one in line for this one.

2. TERMINATOR SALVATION: I'm a big fan of the franchise... just hoping they get it right a fourth time (and yes, I do like the 3rd one).

3. BRUNO: Poised to be the funniest film of the year.

4. AVATAR: Basically this movie is in a four-way-tie with the above two movies; Cameron's big push for 3-D.

5. WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE: If it's good, it'll be great.

6. STAR TREK: Never a fan of the franchise at all, but J.J. Abrahms trailer has ramped up my expectations (unlike the WOLVERINE trailer which moved that film from "must see" to "must I?")

7. SHERLOCK HOLMES: I bet it'll be good despite the age of the source material (although there's a comic in between); and Robert Downey, Jr. is an interesting choice (Jude Law, the safer bet as Watson).

8. MONSTERS VS. ALIENS: Really looks fun... a welcome relief for grandparents, parents, aunts, and uncles the world round.

9. JULIE AND JULIA: The still photo of Meryl Streep as Julia Child is priceless.

10. THE FANTASTIC MR. FOX: I really liked THE DARJEELING LIMITED-- stock in Wes Anderson is up.

Some "will most probably see" titles include: WATCHMEN, UP, HARRY POTTER, THE WOLF MAN, THE A-TEAM, THE TAKING OF PELHAM 123, SHUTTER ISLAND (Scorsese), and A CHRISTMAS CAROL.

Top Ten 00s Films on My Movie Radar

The 00s are turning out to be the year of the documentary and the emergence of new voices in world cinema: Park Chan-wook, Alfonso Cuaron, Guillermo del Toro, Michael Haneke, Hou Hsiao-Hsien, Fernando Meirelles, and Corneliu Porumboiu-- to name a few. Not to mention the decade of The Lord of the Rings and The Dark Knight... Here's a list of ten contemporary films that I missed, but they're on my radar:

Yi Yi - 2000

Ali G Indahouse - 2002

The Transporter - 2002

12:08 to Bucharest - 2006

Black Book - 2006

The Fountain - 2006

Alien Vs. Predator: Requiem - 2007

This Is England - 2007

Wendy and Lucy - 2008

Zack and Miri Make a Porno - 2008

Top Ten 1990s Films on My Movie Radar

The 1990s brought back the western, launched Pixar, and gave us the biggest moneymaker of the century-- Titanic. Here's a list of ten modern classic 1990s films that have managed to elude me so far, but they're on my radar:

Truly, Madly, Deeply - 1991

The Man in the Moon - 1991

Sleepless in Seattle - 1993

Exotica - 1994

Clueless - 1995

Citizen Ruth - 1996

Central Station - 1998

The Dreamlife of Angels - 1998

Pi - 1998

Free Money - 1999

Top Ten 1980s Films On My Movie-Radar

The decade of blockbusters and sequels; the rise of the independent film; the last gasp of many of the classic Hollywood directors; and such popular genres as: slasher films, raunchy comedies, and films of teenage angst. Here's a list of ten classic 1980s films that have managed to elude me so far, but they're on my radar:

Absence of Malice— 1981

Das Boot— 1981

The Year of Living Dangerously— 1983

The Pope of Greenwich Village— 1984

A Room with a View— 1986

Empire of the Sun— 1987

Evil Dead II— 1987

The Last Temptation of Christ— 1988

Mississippi Burning— 1988

Valmont— 1989

Top Ten 1970s Films On My Movie-Radar

The decade that introduced the Hollywood blockbuster; the rise of "new" Hollywood: Allen, Altman, Ashby, Coppola, Scorsese, etc.; the maturation of several European greats: Bergman, Fellini, Truffaut, to name a few; plus Blaxploitation, disaster flicks, and outer-space! Here's a list of ten classic 1970s films that have managed to elude me so far, but they're on my radar:

The Conformist - 1970

The Hospital - 1971

Sweet Sweetback’s Baad Assssss Song - 1971

What's Up Doc? - 1972

Lenny - 1974

Bite the Bullet - 1975

Smile - 1975

Assault on Precinct 13 - 1976

Harlan County, U.S.A. - 1977

The Tin Drum - 1979

Top Ten 1960s Films To See

The 1960s in film. It was the decade-in-flux internationally; in America, the decade when the Hollywood studio system crumbled and "new Hollywood" entered the fray. The old masters were still hard at work though, as movies reinvented themselves. Here's a list of ten classic 1960s films that have managed so far to elude me, but I've got them on my radar:

Sons and Lovers— 1960

Yojimbo— 1961

David and Lisa— 1962

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance— 1962

Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow— 1963

The Night of the Iguana— 1964

Repulsion— 1965

A Man and A Woman— 1966

In Cold Blood— 1967

Playtime— 1967

Top Ten 1950s Films To See

A couple months ago, I composed my silent era films-to-see list. Catching up on a few classic films from the 1950s over the last couple days, I decided to put together a top ten of films I haven't yet-seen from this decade of Technicolor, VistaVision, and samurais. Here's my list of movies I've yet-to-see, 1950s (quite a few biggies out there!):


The Gunfighter - 1950

Ikiru - 1952

Gate of Hell - 1953

The Moon Is Blue - 1953

Picnic - 1955

The Rose Tattoo - 1955

The Nights of Cabiria - 1957

Throne of Blood - 1957

I Want To Live! - 1958

A Night To Remember - 1958

Top Ten Silents To See List

Well since I've been on a silents kick lately I wanted to assemble my top ten silent films to see list (listing them by year of release). It'll be handy when checking the listings on TCM.

Silents To See:
Quo Vadis? (1912/ It./ d. Enrico Guazzoni) [photo above]
The Squaw Man (1914/ US/ d. Cecil B. DeMille, Oscar C. Apfel)
Hamlet (1921/ Den./ d. Sven Gade, Heinz Schall)
La Roue (1922/ Fr./ d. Abel Gance)
When Knighthood Was in Flower (1922/ US/ d. Robert G. Vignola)
Children's Faces (1925/ Fr./ d. Jacques Feyder)
Smouldering Fires (1925/ US/ d. Clarence Brown)
Mother (1926/ Rus./ d. Vsevolod Pudovkin)
Chang (1927/ US/ d. Merian C. Cooper, Ernest B. Schoedsack)
I Flunked But… (1930/ Japan/ Yasujiro Ozu)