Remembering the Movies, Apr. 22 - 28

 Every Friday, we look back at films released 10-100 years ago this week.

Visit Remembering the Movies to further peruse the past

Some weeks are busier than others. This week sees three hugely popular films, any of which could take the top picture spot. Amelie is probably the most popular among the general public, while Yojimbo would have the lead among cinephiles, but my personal pick would be the iconic screen-cap from The Public Enemy. Ultimately the Amelie image, with its heroine sitting engrossed in front of the silver screen, proved too apt to resist yet I couldn't bear to part with the rain-soaked gangster's grin, so Cagney appears below. Yojimbo, along with the other seven other films (including Oliver Stone's first movie, and the recently deceased Elizabeth Taylor playing a young mother), appears after the jump.

On another note, the visual tribute has returned this week, though from now on it will be on Wednesdays rather than Thursdays. Next week's is one of my more imaginative ones, so stay tuned. On with the show...

Remembering the Movies, Apr. 15 - 21

Every Friday, we look back at films released 10-100 years ago this week.

Visit Remembering the Movies to further peruse the past

Yesterday I announced a return to visual tributes along with a line-up of fresh pictures. Check it out here if you missed it.

This week, a classic or two alongside some definite oddballs, including Ringo Starr in a fur toga and Phoebe Cates' creepy imaginary friend. Also, on a more serious note, an utterfly fascinating - and blistering - attack on Holocaust dramatization by Jacques Rivette.

Remembering the Movies, Apr. 8 - 14

Every Friday, we look back at films released 10-100 years ago this week.
Visit Remembering the Movies to further peruse the past

This week, I revised The Dancing Image. You can read about the changes here if you missed the announcement.

I haven't seen any of the films highlighted in the series this week, so I'm particularly interested in your take on them. Excalibur's a bit of a cheat, but since its UK release date is unavailable I'm using the stateside premiere. Anyway, it deserves to get its due since it has hovered around the top of my Netflix queue for years now without making it to my door - even Arthur couldn't pry it from that resting spot...

Remembering the Movies, Apr. 1 - 7

Every Friday, we look back at films released 10-100 years ago this week.

Visit Remembering the Movies to further peruse the past

As you may notice, I made a few changes around the blog yesterday. The sidebar is now more visual, and the idea is to encourage new readers to explore the archives. Especially at a time when I am posting lightly (even as the audience share keeps growing) I want to keep the site's backlog alive. More on that tomorrow.

For now, we're highlighting a film that I actually haven't seen; nonetheless, the Powell-Pressburger operatic adaptation is probably the most renowned movie on this list and deserves its picture at the top. The Tales of Hoffmann is joined by two drug movies, two on/offscreen romances, and an early Murnau.

Remembering the Movies, Mar. 25 - 31

Every Friday, we look back at films released 10-100 years ago this week.

Visit Remembering the Movies to further peruse the past

I couldn't complete Remembering the Movies at its regularly scheduled time this week, as I was working in Philadelphia. An explanation of the delay was scheduled to appear but, as always seems to be the case when I'm not at my computer, the announcement didn't go up on time, leaving this spot vacant on Friday morning. So rest assured that the series continues, regardless of blogging snafus. This week we have Marlon Brando's directorial debut, an early American picture from Milos Forman, and a kids' film which might serve as a nostalgic touchstone for some of our younger readers (that very notion might make some other readers feel rather old). Next week, the entry will appear on Friday morning, as usual. In movie-related news, I got to run up the "Rocky steps" in Philly.

Remembering the Movies, Mar. 18 - 24

Every Friday, we look back at films released 10-100 years ago this week.

Visit Remembering the Movies to further peruse the past

After acknowledging Stallone's remake last fall, this week we return to the roots of Get Carter (I missed the actual release date a few months ago, but seek to make amends with the anniversary of the U.S. premiere). Another first-timer pops up too: the first adaptation of a classic play, eventually gender-bent into His Girl Friday (and then remade again under its original title). Meanwhile, Italian comedians spoof Fellini and Mastroianni, while Jeff Bridges and John Heard team up with an exiled Czech New Waver. All in all, this week sees a number of cult favorites, solid classics, and intriguing oddities. Nonetheless, a ridiculous film, striking a nostalgic chord, steals the top spot. So scroll down to view Edward G. Robinson at sea, Fred Astaire on the ceiling, and yes, Vanilla Ice kicking it on stage...

Remembering the Movies, Mar. 11 - 17

 Every Friday, we look back at films released 10-100 years ago this week.

Visit Remembering the Movies to further peruse the past

Several interesting films make an appearance this week, as the release schedule picks up a bit. The early Lucas picture - arguably his most impressive formal achievement - is one, but it stands alongside a couple French films from the past few decades, a live-action Disney classic, an ambitious John Huston production, and a very early adaptation of Dante. Additionally, we shine a spotlight on a Latin Dracula and the Aesop-influenced antics of Bugs Bunny.

Remembering the Movies, Mar. 4 - 10

Every Friday, we look back at films released 10-100 years ago this week.

Visit Remembering the Movies to further peruse the past

Rudolph Valentino makes his breakthrough in a week mostly filled with interesting obscurities. An acclaimed Catherine Breillat film and a Swedish epic are the other relatively well-known films on display; otherwise we have a two-person political psychodrama, a feminist documentary,  a Finnish policier, and an orangutan - which I only just learned how to spell correctly - dubbed the "Charlie Chaplin of the Jungle." Happy March...

Note: The Friday @ 8am schedule remains in force, despite this week's 12-hour delay, an inadvertent mishap. Apologies for the inconsistency; expect "Remembering the Movies" at the usual time next week and every week thereafter.

Remembering the Movies, Feb. 25 - Mar. 3

Every Friday, we look back at films released 10-100 years ago this week.

Visit Remembering the Movies to further peruse the past

This week, we finally take a break from 1931 (which has dominated the past few weeks) and skip forward for a screwball from Sturges. There are several classics in the lineup this week, as well as an interesting back-and-forth between Siskel and Ebert (as well as a Tom & Jerry cartoon from the fifties - hard to say which duo is more contentious).

This might also be the place to the mention for those who missed it that Blog 10, the year-end round-up, finally made its debut last week. Check it out for some great links, images, and excerpts...

Remembering the Movies, Feb. 18 - 24

Every Friday, we look back at films released 10-100 years ago this week.

Visit Remembering the Movies to further peruse the past

The shark has pretty teeth, dear - and with the above image the "bad guy" theme continues for yet another week. I've cheated this week too: as happens occasionally, I overlooked a movie a few weeks ago when it would have been eligible. Usually I'm able to include a given film on the date of another premiere/wider release if I accidentally miss it on its very first screening date. In this case, however, there was nothing I could do. So for hopefully the last time, the 1951 film is actually several weeks old but has been included because it deserved a spot on February 7. Apologies to all the anal Remembering-the-Movie-watchers out there. I promise to get it right next time.

Remembering the Movies, Feb. 11 - 17

Every Friday, we look back at films released 10-100 years ago this week.

Visit Remembering the Movies to further peruse the past

Concerning the above picture, a trend continues and another resumes today. Firstly, we have the second 1931 film in a row. I like to change the highlighted year week to week, just to spice things up. But this week, as with last week, a pick from the Great Depression seems inevitable (and this particular image seems oddly appropriate for Valentine's Day). Meanwhile, after the lovable Little Tramp topped last week's entry, we return to the villainous focus which has characterized 2011 up to now: as with every other week of the year so far, a fascinating bad guy steals the top spot.  It's also nice to bring things full circle, because back in November I used Bela Lugosi's hypnotic image to solicit blog links for a year-end round-up. This Monday, after many delays, that round-up will finally be unveiled. In the mean time...

Remembering the Movies, Feb. 4 - 10

Every Friday, we look back at films released 10-100 years ago this week.

Visit Remembering the Movies to further peruse the past

This week, it's two of everything. Two gritty New York pictures back to back (one of which incited a fierce protest movement), two films about fascism (one for, one against) released exactly ten years apart, and two Chaplin classics - one following the other on this list. There's also a bit of cheating going on: since I missed some of these films on the true first screenings, I'm allowing several by on technicalities (either using their wider release date or a particular premiere as the benchmark), including a film I saw in theaters almost exactly two decades ago - my memories of that occasion will appear below. Finally, we've got a connection to the previous post, as you'll see right away. A week later, but ten years older, a certain doctor is stopping by for dinner once again...

Remembering the Movies, Jan. 28 - Feb. 3

Every Friday, we look back at films released 10-100 years ago this week.

Visit Remembering the Movies to further peruse the past

It's a colorful week: eighteenth-century French martial artists, shrinking women, and a liver-munching serial killer rub shoulders as we transition into the second month of the year. Actors include Fatty Arbuckle, Marilyn Monroe, and the very first film star, while a strong directorial field ranges from Hitchock to Huston to Sam Fuller. On another note, opinions are like assholes, and this week I happen to have one (an opinion, that is). So by popular request I offer my (brief) thoughts on the film highlighted above, alongside a memorable "Siskel & Ebert" exchange on the same movie. Break out the fava beans...

Remembering the Movies, Jan. 21 - 27

Every Friday, we look back at films released 10-100 years ago this week.

Visit Remembering the Movies to further peruse the past

On schedule this week (finally! - and from now on, I promise), we've got devils, werewolves, masked wrestlers, and Cruella De Vil. And the Disney's not the only cartoon; there's also a Suess-authored short with an imaginative soundtrack. Add in one of Bogart's best tough-guy roles, and it's a surprisingly strong field this Friday, perhaps breaking the January doldrums. Then again, there's a fair share of critical grumbling to be savoured, and early Oscar winners are not exempt...

Remembering the Movies, Jan. 14 - 20

Every Friday, we look back at films released 10-100 years ago this week.

Visit Remembering the Movies to further peruse the past

This entry was completed on January 12, but was inadvertently saved as a "draft" by Blogger, even after I scheduled it for Friday morning. So much for getting a head start...

This week, the macabre takes the screen, with exploding heads, serial killers, disfigured psychopaths, and abominable snowmen. I also have a little more input than usual here, including a personal recollection of the 1991 film and an excerpt from an earlier review of the 1911 pick. Warning to the faint-hearted: the eighties entry features a graphic, and memorable, screen-cap.

Remembering the Movies, Jan. 7 - 13

Every Friday, we look back at films released 10-100 years ago this week.

Visit Remembering the Movies to further peruse the past

Sorry for the delay; as of this weekend, I'm making certain that "Remembering the Movies" will appear promptly every Friday at 8am. This week, we've got Edward G. helping to invent the gangster film, two Looney Tunes, and multiple responses to the controversial Not Without My Daughter, released on the eve of the Gulf War.

Remembering the Movies, Dec. 31 - Jan. 6

Every Friday, we look back at films released 10-100 years ago this week.

Visit Remembering the Movies to further peruse the past

With the aftermath of Christmas, New Year's Day, vacations, and the slow return to the yearly grind, this week tends to be one of the weakest/slowest in any film year. So this Friday we've got an (almost) straight-to-video, several shorts, and (luckily) some interesting obscurities in the lineup (as well as a few more well-known but still relatively unheralded films, like a Walter Huston crime pic and an award-winning Hindi musical drama). Looking over the options, I almost wound up with a porno and a Christian inspirational flick - which would have been an interesting double feature to kick off the new year! At any rate, we've got a Three Stooges program, which is apropos on this day: but it's not even a Curly, sadly. Ah well, see you next week...

Remembering the Movies, Dec. 24 - 30

Every Friday, we look back at films released 10-100 years ago this week.
Visit Remembering the Movies to further peruse the past

Despite the holiday season, there is not much Yuletide spirit on display this week - only drug lords, gangsters, and mad scientists, as well as a dumb blonde and brunette Ginger. As with last week, we must reach back 100 years ago to find something Christmas-themed (also as with last week, there's no capsule by me; I'm hoping to be able to resume the full-fledged approach in the new year). If you're looking for something in the spirit of the season, check out yesterday's visual tribute to A Charlie Brown Christmas. Otherwise, follow the Ghost of Christmas Past through the jump...

Remembering the Movies, Dec. 17 - 23

Every Friday, we look back at films released 10-100 years ago this week.
Visit Remembering the Movies to further peruse the past

We've got quite a few classics this week (camp or otherwise). As we get within a few days of the big holiday, surprisingly there is only one Christmas selection - and it's the oldest of the bunch. Again, as with last week, I'm unable to offer a capsule review but I do have some recollections surrounding the 10- and 20-year-old films, both of which I saw in theaters.

Remembering the Movies, Dec. 10 - 16

Every Friday, we look back at films released 10-100 years ago this week.
Visit Remembering the Movies to further peruse the past

As the man above taught us, simplicity is a virtue. With this excuse in mind, there's no personal review this week, even though that's a feature I intend to continue down the line (truthfully, I was unexpectedly busy, and I did not have as much time as usual to prepare the post). As always, plenty of pictures, several videos, some quotes, and a wide variety of choices: everything from a saintly pacifist to a squadron of bloodthirsty teenagers - with room for a spinach-guzzling muscleman, an Israeli freedom fighter, and Cher. As for the biggest hit of this week's history - contra the man from Assisi, who probably would have said love meant humility and a recognition of simple virtues and submergence in the divine glow of God, Ryan O'Neal and Ali MacGraw tell us what love really means. (Cue the hankies and/or barf bags, though I'll diplomatically forswear both, never having seen Love Story...)