Yearly Archives: 2011

Buster Keaton

A few years ago, I met Buster Keaton’s granddaughter at the San Francisco Silent Film Festival.  During a catered get-together for festival patrons, she approached me and asked me how I got to love silent film.  I told her about … Continue reading

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Miracle on 34th Street

Even though the fans love it and reviewers call it a Christmas classic, I haven’t seen “Miracle on 34th Street” that many times.  But each time I’ve watched the 1947 movie directed by George Seaton, I feel better about the … Continue reading

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Pandora’s Box

Ava Gardner made a film in 1951 called “Pandora and the Flying Dutchman,” a color extravaganza that also starred James Mason and Nigel Patrick.  The story concerns a 500 year-old seaman floating alone on a ghost ship who meets his … Continue reading

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Good Christmas Film

A very charming Christmas film from 1947 called “It Happened on Fifth Avenue” stars Victor Moore as a homeless man (Aloysius T. McKeever) with a brilliant idea.  When millionaires board up their summer mansions in New York City for the … Continue reading

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Things to Come

I watched an enjoyable science fiction film from 1936 called “Things to Come.”  William Cameron Menzies directed the film, which stars Raymond Massey, Ralph Richardson and Margaretta Scott.  Since H. G. Wells wrote the screenplay from his own story, the … Continue reading

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Top Hat

Years ago, one of the local TV stations in Pittsburgh (my home town) screened the 1935 film “Top Hat,” starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rodgers.  During the opening credits, the titles say “A Pandro S. Berman Production” after the credit … Continue reading

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Hugo

It happens every year.  The studios wait until the end to release the best movies.  I find no exception this year, although Terrance Malick’s “The Tree of Life,” released in May, could qualify as the best movie of the year. … Continue reading

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The Artist

A wonderful new silent film just opened called “The Artist.”  Directed by Michel Hazanavicius, the film tells the fictional story of silent film star George Valentin (played by Jean Dujardin), who rejects talking pictures.  Despite Valentin’s immense popularity as an … Continue reading

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About the Student Prince

I started going to the San Francisco Silent Film Festival in 2007, when I saw a film called “The Student Prince in Old Heidelberg,” a film directed by Ernst Lubitsch in 1927.  This glorious film stars Ramon Navarro as the … Continue reading

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The Old Dark House

“The Old Dark House,” a 1932 film directed by James Whale, tells a story about a couple who must take refuge in a spooky mansion in the Welsh countryside.  A fierce rainstorm washes out the road, leaving them no choice … Continue reading

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