Pic of the Day: “How tall are you, private?” “Sir, five-foot-nine, sir.” “Five-foot-nine, I didn’t know they stacked shit that high!” (30th Anniversary)
Mike’s Top Ten of 1942
You’d think maybe there’d be a bit of a drop off, the year after Citizen Kane. But no, we come right back with Casablanca. And about five or six other really iconic and incredible movies. (I mean like, all-time iconic and not just regular iconic.)
The big thing to discuss for 1942 is that it’s the first year of World War II. The U.S. entered the war at the end of 1941, and this was the first year you start to see incredibly pro-war effort films start to come out there. That is really the main trend for the year.
Outside of that, the year is full of terrific biopics and classy dramas. And one film that is one of the most entertaining and underrated hidden gems out there, that almost nobody knows about today. (more…)
Mike’s Top Ten of 1941
Don’t let anyone tell you the 30s and the 40s weren’t the greatest era for American film. Look at this. It’s year after year of just amazing stuff.
I guess what we need to talk about for 1941 is that the consensus greatest movie ever made was released this year. Or, I guess, for contrarians, the most influential film ever made. No matter how you slice it, Citizen Kane is on the Mount Rushmore of movies. And then you have a bunch of other really amazing stuff. The “official” beginning of the noir genre, with The Maltese Falcon. Classic comedies like The Lady Eve and Sullivan’s Travels. Cultural classics like Sergeant York. This year is just stacked with incredible films.
This is one of those years where I could swap out half the top ten for the 11-20 and it would still look like a formidable top ten list. That’s the 40s. They churned out incredible stuff on a consistent basis. (more…)
Mike’s Top Ten of 1940
You’d be hard pressed to find a bad choice in 1940’s list. Straight up, nine of them are legitimately among the biggest classics in cinema history. And the other (if you’ve seen it) is just incredible.
I feel like there’s gonna be a lot of this coming up in the future. A lot of top ten lists with mostly classics that we all agree are great. The real interest is gonna come in all the hidden gems below the line. The 40s is a decade full of amazing films that aren’t as well known simply because not everything can be.
One thing I like about this year in particular is how it has a nice pairing of films. You’ll see several times where two films are akin, either because they share the same director and stars, or are similar in story. Or they’re two of the greatest animated films ever made. (more…)
Pic of the Day: “The whole thing has been as inevitable as in a nursery rhyme. When the boat arrives from the mainland, there will be ten dead bodies, and a riddle no one can solve on Indian Island.”
Pic of the Day: “Name?” “WALL-E.” “WALL-E? EVE.” “Eeee…” “EVE.” “Eeeee… aah.” “EVE! EVE!” “Eeeee… va?”
Mike’s Top Ten of 1939
There’s a reason 1939 is referred to as one of the greatest individual years in the history of cinema. Legitimately half this list is among the greatest films of the decade and all time. And it’s not just the choices on top. This year goes deep.
You have one of the greatest westerns ever made, perhaps Frank Capra’s finest achievement, and one of the most uplifting movies ever made, an all-time classic that is one of the most beloved films ever made and has become so iconic that it’s become part of the lexicon and a cultural touchstone for every single person. Oh, let’s not also forget the landmark achievement of 1939, what still may be the finest achievement in the history of American moviemaking.
The important thing about this year isn’t just to fete the classics, it’s to talk up all the other great stuff that got released alongside them. There’s gonna be some great stuff here you haven’t heard of. (more…)
Mike’s Top Ten of 1938
1938 is the first year where Technicolor really burst off the screen. The first all-color film was in 1935. And for the next two years, Hollywood was still getting used to telling stories with a full palette. There’s a whole interesting lesson to be told about how it all worked, but the quick version is — for a while they felt that people might get overwhelmed if they put too much color out there, so they muted themselves for the first couple of years. You see a lot of the movies of 1936 and 1937, and all the colors are very subdued and made to look utterly realistic, to the point of falling into the background in a lot of cases.
But you get to 1938, and Hollywood just let loose. The color bursts out on the screen the way it was intended to. The colors are vibrant and pop off the screen in ways they never really would again. (Unless of course you were Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger.) It’s a fun time. First they mute them, then they go all out, and then everything settles down into a balanced norm.
The other great thing about 1938 is that this is the era where the screwball comedy is firmly entrenched and they’re just churning them out. So there’s a bunch of great ones all over the late 30s. This year has what might be the greatest one ever made. (more…)
Mike’s Top Ten of 1937
1937 is a peaks and valleys kind of year. There’s a lot of really solid stuff there, but the very top of the list has some really heavy hitters. Particularly the big one, which was a landmark in the history of cinema and still holds up as one of the greatest accomplishments ever put to the screen.
Otherwise, a lot of cool things here. Like 1936, I’m gonna be doing some talking up of a film that I don’t think gets its proper regard as one of the greatest films ever made. Besides those — some classic comedies, iconic screen stories and another film generally regarded as one of the 50 greatest films ever made.
Another fun fact: this top ten list features the first full Technicolor entry thus far. To this point, only two full color films have appeared as top ten films, and both were two-strip Technicolor. (more…)
Pic of the Day: “With the world so set on tearing itself apart, it don’t seem like such a bad thing to me to want to put a little bit of it back together.”
Mike’s Top Ten of 1936
1936 makes me happy. This is the first top ten list where I can honestly give a resounding thumbs up to all of the films. I look at this list and I feel actual excitement at the films that are on it.
The one thing that jumps out at me for this list in particular: William Powell. He’s in four films in this top ten. And Myrna Loy is in three of them too! Which, honestly… that pretty much sums me up as a film goer.
Otherwise — a lot of the standard stuff appears, both in terms of my taste and the classics. The big thing about this year in particular for me is that it contains one of the great hidden gems of all time, one of those films that I am constantly shouting about as one of the greatest films ever made that has never fully gotten its due. (more…)
Pic of the Day: “I really hope you’ve found happiness, and if you’re ever in need of anything, like someone to love you, don’t hesitate to call me.”
Mike’s Top Ten of 1935
There’s a marked overall increase in quality in 1935. I attribute it to Hollywood finally finding its footing in the Production Code era, finally figuring out how to perfect the motion picture and now getting the assembly line up and running. And they’re just cranking out product.
There’s not a whole lot to say about this except it’s got a cool set of choices with genres ranging all over the place. Romance, comedy (slapstick and screwball), horror, drama, musical.
There’s a couple of real hidden gems in this year, one in particular I think people should check out. (more…)
Pic of the Day: “Dawlish, Shacklebolt, you will escort Dumbledore to Azkaban to await trial for conspiracy.” “Ah, I thought we might hit this little snag. You seem to be laboring under the delusion that I am going to – what is the phrase? – come quietly.”
Mike’s Top Ten of 1934
So now we’re firmly in the era of the Production Code, and the subject matter’s gotten a lot less fun. But that doesn’t mean anything, since it’s almost a good thing. Maybe it would have happened anyway, but the minute they put restrictions on, they busted out with some real classics.
For me, 1934 is always gonna be known for two things. First, it’s the year my favorite film of all time was made. And second, it’s the year where Hollywood established its “classic” formula. It Happened One Night is the benchmark film of the studio era. You could watch it and see the progression of just about any film made for the next thirty years.
Otherwise, a lot of other things began in this year: Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, Shirley Temple and William Powell and Myrna Loy. We’re hitting the ground running, and it’s only gonna get more fun from here. (more…)
Pic of the Day: “Just remember, Fievel – one man’s sunset is another man’s dawn. I don’t know what’s out there beyond those hills. But if you ride yonder… head up, eyes steady, heart open… I think one day you’ll find that you’re the hero you’ve been looking for.”
Mike’s Top Ten of 1933
1933 is the end of the party. Hollywood finally went too far and crossed too many lines. For the past few years, all the Pre-Code films had to pass through state censors in order to be shown in theaters. Certain films weren’t shown in certain states for various reasons. (If you ever go back and read all the different reasons states refused to screen certain movies, you’ll be very amused.) Finally, after the government threatened to step in, Hollywood got serious.
The Production Code was technically around since 1922. After the William Desmond Taylor murder and the Fatty Arbuckle scandal, the government was trying to clean up on the “immorality” of the town, and Hollywood, rather than have the hammer come down, self-policed. It’s like when colleges self-impose bans to keep the NCAA from dropping the hammer on them. But no one really took it seriously. Then in 1927, they put out a list of “Don’ts and Be Carefuls.” Which was basically a list of “Don’t show white slavery. Don’t show miscegenation, be careful how you use the flag.” Shit like that. Again, generally adhered to, but with anything, people start bending the rules after a while. (more…)
Mike’s Top Ten of 1932
You definitely start to see an overall increase in quality when you get to 1932. Previous sound years have really good films, but you can’t really go 20 deep with films most people would want to watch. Here, you’re starting to be able to do that. It’s exciting to me to see Hollywood growing up. To put this into terms you young people who don’t know anything before 2002 can understand: Hollywood in the silent era was a full-sized Groot. And then sound happened and the whole thing got blowed up. And now, we’re dealing with a Baby Groot, slowly coming into its own again. We’re watching it get back to form.
1932 and 1933 are also the two years where Hollywood started really pushing the envelope, subject matter-wise, which lead to the creation of the Production Code. There are a couple of those here. You get your smatter of sex, violence and social problems. And then other cool stuff, like what might be the most bizarre film Hollywood made in the studio era. (more…)
Pic of the Day: “Mr. Cogburn, did you find a bottle with a hundred and twenty-five dollars in it?” “Objection your Honor, Leading.” “Sustained. Rephrase the question.” “What happened then?” “I found a bottle with a hundred and twenty-five dollars in it.”
B+ Movie Blog 