Yearly Archives: 2011

The Westerner

William Wyler’s “The Westerner,” made by the Samuel Goldwyn Company in 1940, stars Walter Brennan as hanging Judge Roy Bean, who was based on a real person that idolized British actress Lily Langtry.  Brennan’s Bean hangs horse thieves in a desolate … Continue reading

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Jean-Luc Godard

“Masculin Feminin,” a 1966 film directed by Jean-Luc Godard, plays around with the documentary style so much that I find it surprising that the film does not seem like a documentary at all.  Godard films young people in long static … Continue reading

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Mexican Cinema

Ninon Sevilla stars as Elena in “Aventurera,” a 1950 Mexican film that remains a fascinating example of Mexican cinema.  Sevilla reminds me of a Cuban Alice Faye, who famously played in the movie “Weekend in Havana,” which also stars Carman … Continue reading

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A Silent Opera

“La Boheme,” the final film shown at the San Francisco Silent Film Festival’s Winter Event, tells the story of a group of impoverished artists who share an apartment building in Paris.  The 1926 MGM movie stars Lillian Gish and John … Continue reading

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Wonderful Faces

The San Francisco Silent Film Festival’s presentation of “L’argent,” a French film from 1928 directed by Marcel L’Herbier (on Saturday, February 12, 2011 at the Castro Theater in San Francisco) provided a rare treat to all who saw it.  This … Continue reading

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Best Festival

Every year, the San Francisco Silent Film Festival presents a 4 day summer program in February and a 1 day winter program in July.  The festival presented an excellent program on Saturday, July 12, 2011, beginning with 3 Charles Chaplin … Continue reading

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tom thumb

I enjoyed a wonderful fantasy film from 1958 called “tom thumb.”  This title, left uncapitalized, stars Russ Tamblyn as the title character and Terry-Thomas and Peter Sellers as the villains who trick Tom into burglarizing the village treasury.  Alan Young,  better known as Wilber … Continue reading

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The Artist Film

In “Lust for Life,” Vincent Minnelli’s 1956 film about Vincent Van Gogh, Kirk Douglas gives a solid performance as the troubled painter, whose unstable mental condition provides the basis for the plot.  He starts out as preacher sent to a … Continue reading

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Italian Silent Festival

I want to spend the first 10 days of October 2011 in Pordenone, Italy, to see the 30th Pordenone Silent Film Festival.  Us fans of silent film wait eagerly for the posting of the program, as I do every year … Continue reading

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Country vs. City

When I watch films like “Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House,” (1948) and “The Egg and I,” (1947), I’m reminded of a lost world where there once existed a major difference between people from the city and people from the … Continue reading

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