Few ’30s classics have held up as well as this MGM blockbuster, a costume thriller that in spirit is quite faithful to the great Charles Dickens novel. Heroes don’t come more sophisticated or noble than Ronald Colman’s Sydney Carton, nor as vile as Basil Rathbone’s Marquis St. Evrémonde. David O. Selznick’s impeccable production hits all the right notes and even downplays the ‘save the royals’ sentiments. This is the one where the Bastille gets stormed and a chortling hag cheers every drop of a guillotine blade. The show even has a connection to producer Val Lewton. Just remember that activities like capitol-storming and public executions need to stay back in the 18th century where they belong.
A Tale of Two Cities
Blu-ray
Warner Archive Collection
1935 / B&w / 1:37 Academy / 126 min. / Street Date February 9, 2021 / available through the WBshop / 21.99
Starring: Ronald Colman, Elizabeth Allan, Edna May Oliver, Donald Woods,...
A Tale of Two Cities
Blu-ray
Warner Archive Collection
1935 / B&w / 1:37 Academy / 126 min. / Street Date February 9, 2021 / available through the WBshop / 21.99
Starring: Ronald Colman, Elizabeth Allan, Edna May Oliver, Donald Woods,...
- 2/6/2021
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Now for a real treat for musical fans, a core MGM dazzler with top stars, fully restored and looking incredibly good. Vincente Minnelli’s snappy, funny 1948 show isn’t ranked among producer Arthur Freed’s best but it ought to be. Silly farce gets a high-toned, technically amazing workout as Judy Garland’s demure señorita secretly lusts after the ruthless corsair of the title, Mack the Black! Gene Kelly’s slippery carny womanizer impersonates her piratical fantasy sex object, and it all ends in clowning and killer musical numbers. Cole Porter’s smart songs attest to the great orchestrators and arrangers in MGM’s world-class music department; the new full digital restoration makes the movie look and sound better than I’ve certainly ever seen it.
The Pirate
Blu-ray
Warner Archive Collection
1948 / Color / 1:37 Academy / 102 min. / Street Date November 24, 2020 / available through the WBshop / 21.99
Starring: Judy Garland, Gene Kelly, Walter Slezak,...
The Pirate
Blu-ray
Warner Archive Collection
1948 / Color / 1:37 Academy / 102 min. / Street Date November 24, 2020 / available through the WBshop / 21.99
Starring: Judy Garland, Gene Kelly, Walter Slezak,...
- 11/24/2020
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
This story appeared in OscarWrap: Director/Best Picture/Screenplay/Animation. What was it that Leo Tolstoy said? “Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” But what may be true about happy families is not so true about happy –which is to say, good — screenplays. Even Leo would have to see that Tom Stoppard’s screenplay for last year’s adaptation of Tolstoy’s “Anna Karenina” (the book from which that quote came) was good in a wildly different way from the S.N. Behrman/Clemence Dane/Salka Viertel screenplay for the 1935 Greta Garbo version.
- 12/13/2013
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
Greta Garbo, Queen Christina Queen Christina (1933). Director: Rouben Mamoulian. Cast: Greta Garbo, John Gilbert, Ian Keith, Lewis Stone, Elizabeth Young, C. Aubrey Smith, Reginald Owen, David Torrence. Screenplay: H.M. Harwood and S.N. Behrman. (Salka Viertel was also credited, though reportedly was not an actual contributor.*) One of the most ambitious productions of the early ’30s, the Greta Garbo star vehicle Queen Christina remains surprisingly modern in its execution thanks in large part to director Rouben Mamoulian’s classy, assured touch. Those looking for historical accuracy in the film, however, will be greatly disappointed, for credited screenwriters H.M. Harwood and S.N. Behrman kept themselves busy concocting [...]...
- 6/25/2012
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Blu-Ray Rating: 4.0/5.0 Chicago – It might be a generational thing, but I’ll never understand why people watch movies on smaller and smaller screens like their laptop, cell phone, or iPod. Maybe it’s because I grew up thinking of classic movies as epic adventures that should be larger than life. Movies were arguably never “bigger” than they were in the era of “Quo Vadis,” now available on Blu-Ray.
Based on the novel by Henryk Sienkiwicz, “Quo Vadis” has already been made three times before as a silent film (and would be made two times after as a mini-series), but the massive MGM version from 1951 is the classic take on the legendary story of Nero and Rome.
Quo Vadis was released on Blu-Ray on March 17th, 2009.
Photo credit: Warner Brothers
The film was nominated for eight Oscars, including Best Picture, two for Best Actor in a Supporting Role, and Best Cinematography.
Based on the novel by Henryk Sienkiwicz, “Quo Vadis” has already been made three times before as a silent film (and would be made two times after as a mini-series), but the massive MGM version from 1951 is the classic take on the legendary story of Nero and Rome.
Quo Vadis was released on Blu-Ray on March 17th, 2009.
Photo credit: Warner Brothers
The film was nominated for eight Oscars, including Best Picture, two for Best Actor in a Supporting Role, and Best Cinematography.
- 3/23/2009
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
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