"Now Listen to Me..."
Just some thoughts on current happenings:
Classic film screenings from around the world this month include:
In theatres across the U.S., TCM and Fathom Events are presenting When Harry Met Sally… (1989, in celebration of this film’s 30th Anniversary) Sunday, December 1 and Tuesday, December 3 and Meet Me in St Louis (1944, in celebration of this film’s 75th Anniversary) Sunday, December 8 and Wednesday, December 11.
Click on the respective image for more information. To see this month’s entire schedule, click on The Fathom Events banner above.
In theatres across the U.S. Flashback Cinema is presenting Home Alone (1990) Sunday, December 1 and Wednesday, December 4, White Christmas (1954) Sunday, December 8 and Wednesday, December 11, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989) Sunday, December 15 and Wednesday, December 18 and It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) on Sunday, December 22 and Tuesday, December 24.
Click on the respective image for more information. To see the entire month’s programming, click on The Flashback Cinema banner above.
In Los Angeles, California The Beverly Cinema will present The Night of the Hunter (1955, a 35mm print) on Wednesday, December 4 at 2pm only, L.A. Confidential (1997, a 35mm print) Monday, December 9 at 2pm only, A Christmas Story (1983, a 35mm print) Saturday, December 14 and Sunday, December 15 with both screenings at 2pm only, The Thing (1982, a 35mm print) Friday, December 20 at 2pm only and Singin’ In the Rain (1952, a 35mm print) on Saturday, December 28 and Sunday, December 29 with both screenings at 2pm only.
Click on the respective image for more information. To see the rest of December’s schedule, click on The Beverly Cinema banner above.
In London, United Kingdom The Prince Charles Cinema will present The Shop Around the Corner (1940, a 35mm print) Thursday, December 5, The Apartment (1960, a 35mm print) Friday, December 13 and Wednesday, December 18, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969, and celebrating the film’s 50th Anniversary) Thursday, December 19 and Saturday, December 28, Enter the Dragon (1973, an “uncut” 35mm print) Monday, December 30 and The Warriors (1979, a 35mm print and celebrating the film’s 40th Anniversary) on Monday, December 30.
Click on the respective image for more information. To see December’s complete programming, click on The Prince Charles Cinema banner above.
In Seoul, South Korea The KBS Symphony Orchestra along with violinist Joshua Bell will present The Red Violin (1998) with live musical accompaniment featuring John Corigliano’s superb score on Friday, December 6.
Click on the image for more information.
Our Blushing Brides
Footlight Parade
Backfire
Lawrence of Arabia
In Hollywood, California, The American Cinematheque Egyptian Theatre will continue with their series “The Style of Sin: Pre-Code Film with Kimberly Truhler.” A double bill of Our Blushing Brides (1930, a 35mm print) and Footlight Parade (1933, a 35mm print) will be shown on Sunday, December 8. This programme will begin at 1pm PST with an illustrated presentation by historian Kimberly Truhler. The film noir Backfire (1950, a 16mm print from the personal collection of Joe Dante and Jon Davison at the Academy Film Archive) will be presented Saturday, December 21. Lawrence of Arabia (1962, a 70mm print) will be shown on Sunday, December 29.
For more information specifically on each of these programmes, click on the corresponding above image. To see the entire month of December’s programming for both The Egyptian and Aero Theatre (the latter in Santa Monica) click on the American Cinematheque banner.
In Auckland, New Zealand Academy Cinemas will present Gone With the Wind (1939, celebrating the film’s 80th Anniversary) Sunday, December 8 and It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) on Wednesday, December 11.
For more information specifically on each of these programmes, click on the corresponding above image. To see the entire month of December’s programming click on the banner above.
Throughout various locations in Australia, Event Cinemas will host Hollywood Classics On the Big Screen. This month's showings will include It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) Monday, December 9.
For a list of the theatres hosting this film, click on the image above.
In Vancouver, British Columbia, The Cinematheque will be presenting Viva Varda! The Films of Agnès Varda, beginning Thursday, December 12. For more information about the titles and showtimes, click on the top image above. For these and other films scheduled this month at The Cinematheque, click on the theatre banner above.
In Bergen, Norway The Cinemateket i Bergen will present The Wild Bunch on Tuesday, December 17.
Click on either of the above images for more information including December’s calendar.
In San Francisco, California The Film Noir Foundation with Eddie Muller in person and The Castro Theatre will host Noir City Xmas with a special screening of La Otra aka The Other (1946) on Wednesday, December 18.
Click on the above image for more information.
In Strasbourg, France The Orchestre philharmonique de Strasbourg will present Beauty and the Beast (2017) with live musical accompaniment featuring Alan Menken’s magical score on Sunday, December 22.
Click on the image for more information.
There are 20 recommended films to watch on Turner Classic Movies in the U.S. this month:
A criminal's mother-fixated pathology and the undercover cop trying to catch him are the topics of an undisputed film noir White Heat, a previous recommendation here. TCM's screen will heat up Thursday, December 5 at 8:30am PST.
Also starring Cagney is the pre-code charmer Blonde Crazy Hidden Gem #63 and a previous recommendation here, with TCM’s “Star of the Month” Joan Blondell as his partner in crime. The 'con' is on Thursday, December 5 at 8pm PST.
James Cagney, Joan Blondell
A sterling example of how to present complex and enthralling characters all of whom develop naturally while still holding our intense fascination is Citizen Kane, a previous TCM recommendation here. This American film masterpiece, the only U.S. film represented on our Top Ten: World Cinema Treasures, will begin Friday, December 6 at 7:30am PST.
Orson Welles, Dorothy Comingore
"Complaining about the far-fetched circumstances in films noir is like objecting to the lack of realism in a Picasso painting. What I mean is that lovers of these criminally rich cinematic delights oughtn’t to bother picking out the implausibilities, since they are practically a hallmark of noir's style."
I wrote this when introducing Split Second, a film noir that presented some unlikely occurring situations, and it certainly applies to my next recommendation starring Humphrey Bogart: Dark Passage. This wildly engrossing yarn combines the best of romance with the best of noir in the best location for both: San Francisco. Previously endorsed as a Blu-Ray release here, Bogart will make his dark passage on TCM Friday, December 6 at 11:45am PST.
That's San Francisco's Coit Tower on top of the hill behind Bogart
My next three recommendations all feature TCM’s “Star of the Month” Joan Blondell.
Gold Diggers of 1933 is a brilliant extravaganza of romance, comedy, catchy tunes and outrageous pre-code show numbers, especially 'Pettin' in the Park' with its strange, sexual undertones that even Freud would have struggled to explain. This film was previously recommended here. The fun will begin Thursday, December 12 at 6:15pm PST and again Sunday, December 22 at (early morning) 3:30am PST
Joan Blondell, Warren William
Later in the evening, Joan pairs with James Cagney for another pre-code delight, Hidden Gem #76: He Was Her Man appearing Thursday, December 12 at 11:45pm PST.
Joan Blondell, James Cagney
Finally on Thursday, Joan again stars with Cagney in Footlight Parade, a previous recommendation here and taking place Thursday, December 12 at (late evening) 2:30am PST.
Joan Blondell, James Cagney
Another prior TCM recommendation is Robert Siodmak's expert 1949 film Criss Cross with Burt Lancaster and Yvonne De Carlo imbuing their characters with passion and complex individuality. Criss Cross was previously reviewed here and will wend its way into Noir Alley Saturday, December 14 at 9pm PST and again on Sunday, December 15 at 7am PST.
Along with The Shop Around the Corner later this month, TCM is presenting another top Christmas Holiday classic, Remember the Night, previously recommended here. The stars of this delightful cinematic charmer re-teamed for Double Indemnity. The night to be remembered is Sunday, December 15... at 7pm PST.
Barbara Stanwyck and Fred MacMurray
A different kind of character metamorphosis will occur on TCM early the next morning: in Victor Fleming's 1941 take on Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. This was previously reviewed here and will transform again on Monday, December 16 at (early morning) 3am PST.
Cinematograpy by Joseph Ruttenberg
"And then I saw her - coming out of the sun. And I knew why Whit didn't care about that 40 grand."
Out of the Past, is one of film noir's finest and most highly recommended here. She will arrive Tuesday, December 17 at 3:15pm PST.
Alfred Hitchcock was a distinctive cinematic storyteller known for his intensified first-person perspective, embellished sense of mystery, flamboyant set pieces, dynamic, often theatrical displays of physical conflict and occasional comic relief. All of these traits are, however, largely absent in the legendary filmmaker’s 1953 uncommon offering I Confess.
(From left) Montgomery Clift, O.E. Hasse
What we have instead is a solemn and brooding character study of consciousness, guilt, sacrifice and honour. Father Logan is told of a murder during a confessional, so is thereby forbidden by Catholic law to divulge the culprit to authorities. Complicating matters, the murder victim was blackmailing Logan’s former lover making the priest a number one suspect. The director and actor playing Father Logan clashed during filming… (for one, Hitch didn’t appreciate the thespian’s “method” approach). More importantly, the results are suitably less stylised, accounting for Hitchcock’s genuine focus and atypical restraint, and a performance of deep sincerity and subtle authenticity from the actor portraying the afflicted priest: Montgomery Clift. Clift’s ability to wordlessly convey such conflicting feelings and thought processes is astonishing. Hitchcock additionally secures honest performances from his entire cast including the lovely Anne Baxter as Logan’s prior romantic interest (who adds her own emotionally-charged confessional to the mix), Karl Malden as the chief investigator and O.E. Hasse as the tormented killer. Even though many of Hitchcock’s stylistic trademarks are M.I.A., there are enough of the famed auteur’s filmmaking characteristics evident by way of his meticulously planned (storyboarded) shot composition, frequent collaborator Robert Burks’ evocative cinematography, the atmospheric on-location surrounds (in this case Québec City) and the highly immersive, not to mention suspenseful, fate of the wrongly accused central protagonist. I Confess will be unveiled at TCM (updated) Sunday, June 16 (2024) at 1:30 am PDT.
Anne Baxter, Montgomery Clift
TCM's current monthly schedule can be confirmed by clicking on any of the above TCM related images. For those who live in parts of the U.S. other than the western region, the time zone can be adjusted in the upper right-hand corner of TCM's programme.
I Confess is also December’s Blu-ray pick of the month. See the last entry in this column for more details.
‘Noiristas’, seeking a Christmas-themed film noir this time of year, need look no further than Hidden Gem #35 Cash on Demand, a slick and twisty little British neo noir from Hammer Studios released in 1961. This grippingly intense psychological crime thriller features a Scrooge-like bank manager played by Peter Cushing about to get his comeuppance after being introduced to a most superior officer (André Morell). Cash will indeed be demanded in Eddie Muller’s Noir Alley Saturday, December 21 at 9pm PST and again on Sunday, December 22 at 7am PST.
(From left) Peter Cushing, André Morell
The caper film first laid its roots in The Asphalt Jungle previously reviewed here. The depth of its characters and their fascinating interactions as the drama builds to a cathartic resolution, is why this film has become one of America's finest cinematic achievements. The 'planning' will start Monday, December 23 at 1:30pm PST.
(From left) Sterling Hayden, Brad Dexter, Louis Calhern, Sam Jaffe
Later on Monday, there is a more light-hearted but still highly recommended romantic cinematic story: Ernst Lubitsch's The Shop Around the Corner.
James Stewart, Margaret Sullavan
Beneath an inventive situation comedy veneer, however, there is a serious underlying message concerning relationships and how concepts often get in the way of a more fulfilling union based on care and concern for one another. The Shop Around the Corner, previously praised here, will open Monday, December 23 at 5pm PST and again on Wednesday, December 25 at 1pm PST.
Umberto D. is a previous TCM recommendation here. Carlo Battisti provides a heart-wrenching portrayal of a Government pensioner in Rome as he desperately struggles to survive his impoverished circumstances. The scheduled showtime is Wednesday, December 25 at (late evening) 1:45am PST.
Carlo Battisti
When affairs of the heart are so well integrated with thoughts of murder as they are in the Humphrey Bogart starrer Conflict, we have the makings of an exceptional film noir. This is because the emotional cause behind the former infuses motive into the latter and thus absorbs the viewer on a deeper level. Besides, adding a greater sense of "why" people are driven to extreme acts of criminal activity is what the best of film noir is all about. Conflict, previously reviewed here, and a former visitor to Eddie Muller's Noir Alley, will present itself (updated) Friday, December 27 at 1:30pm PST.
Humphrey Bogart
Casablanca is a film I've often recommended in the past. Occasionally, however, I catch some flack for not being as enamoured with this adored classic as the vast majority of viewers. For those who consider Casablanca to be one of the finest motion pictures ever made, just the inclusion in my series entitled Top Ten “All that Glitters…”: The Overrated can be objectionable enough to completely ignore my critique. In my defence, there are many qualities attributed to the motion picture contained in my review. In any event, please have a look at both the film and my write-up to see for yourself if my appraisal has merit. Casablanca is on TCM's itinerary for Friday, December 27 at 3:15pm PST.
Ingrid Bergman, Humphrey Bogart
Film lovers have an opportunity to continue on their romantic journey in the light-hearted, almost make-believe world of a Princess' Roman Holiday. One can indulge in this delightful fairy tale, previously reviewed here, Sunday, December 29 at 9am PST.
Audrey Hepburn, Gregory Peck
Raoul Walsh's Colorado Territory is the impassioned director's artistically superior western remake of his previous film noir High Sierra. Readers can discover why I make this claim here, and for those familiar with the earlier Humphrey Bogart vehicle, decide for themselves when Colorado Territory is explored Monday, December 30 at (late evening) 2:30am PST.
Virginia Mayo, Joel McCrea
TCM's current monthly schedule can be confirmed by clicking on any of the above TCM images. For those who live in parts of the U.S. other than the western region, the time zone can be adjusted in the upper right-hand corner of TCM's programme.
A Happy Birthday shout-out to the gifted and lovely British born actress Sarah Miles, who turns 78 on December 31st.
She is probably best known for her Oscar nominated role as Rosy in David Lean’s sumptuous production of Ryan’s Daughter (1970). Other films graced by her deep commitment and sincerity include Term of Trial (1962), The Servant (1963), Blow-Up (1966), Lady Caroline Lamb (1972), The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing (1973), White Mischief (1987), Hope and Glory (1987) and her latest Interlude City (2016).
My Soundtrack recommendation for the month of December is composer Miklos Rozsa’s monumental score to William Wyler’s 1959 epic Ben-Hur.
This limited (2000 units only) 5-CD set issued by Film Score Monthly, contains not only every note of music as heard in the film but every outtake, alternative and additional cue preserved by the studio, mastered from the original six-track recordings. Additionally, all three LP recordings released by MGM Records in conjunction with the film, can be enjoyed here as well. Rozsa’s score may be this film’s most integral asset and as thrilling and exceptional as the famous chariot race featured within. As of this date, copies of this extraordinary collection can be obtained from Screen Archives Entertainment by clicking on the accompanying image.
December’s recommended Blu-ray is to the above reviewed I Confess on the Warner Archive label (North America Region Free). For more information including ordering from Amazon.com, click on the accompanying image.
A.G.