Gentleman’s Agreement (1947)
82%RT Audience Score: 78%
Awards & Nominations: NA
It occasionally fails to live up to its subject matter — and is perhaps an ‘important’ film more than a ‘great’ one — but the performances from Gregory Peck and Dorothy McGuire are superb
Gentleman’s Agreement is a classic film that tackles the issue of anti-Semitism in a way that was groundbreaking for its time. While some critics may find fault with its approach, I found it to be a smart and engrossing drama that still feels relevant today. Plus, who doesn’t love a good old-fashioned Hollywood message movie? It’s like getting a history lesson and a morality tale all in one. So grab some popcorn and settle in for a film that will make you think and feel all the feels.
Production Company(ies)
Distributor
20th Century Fox
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Darien, Connecticut, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Not Rated
Year of Release
1948
-
Color:Color
Black and White -
Sound mix:Dolby
-
Aspect ratio:1.37 : 1
-
Runtime:1h 58m
-
Language(s):English
-
Country of origin:United States
-
Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Nov 11, 1947 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 2, 2004
Genre(s)
Drama
Keyword(s)
Gentleman’s Agreement, drama, Gregory Peck, Dorothy McGuire, John Garfield, Elia Kazan, Laura Z Hobson, Moss Hart, Darryl F Zanuck, 20th Century Fox, anti-Semitism, New York City, journalist, empathy, bigotry, Jewish friend, love, relationship, important film, great performances, critic reviews, box office performance, budget, MPAA rating, producer names, reviewed by, directed by, written by
Worldwide gross: NA
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): NA
US/Canada gross: NA
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend:
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Dorothy McGuire – Kathy Lacey
John Garfield – Dave Goldman
Celeste Holm – Anne Dettrey
Anne Revere – Mrs. Green
June Havoc – Ethel Wales, an Alias of Estelle Walofsky
Director – Elia Kazan
Producer – Darryl F. Zanuck
Writer – Laura Z. Hobson, Moss Hart
Director(s)
Elia Kazan
Writer(s)
Laura Z. Hobson, Moss Hart
Producer(s)
Darryl F. Zanuck
Film Festivals
Tribeca
Awards & Nominations
NA
Academy Awards
Oscar Best Picture Winners, Oscar Winners
All Critics (45) | Top Critics (11) | Fresh (34) | Rotten (11)
The film is great stuff throughout, and Is well worth seeing.
January 23, 2020
Erle Cox (The Chiel)
The Age (Australia)
TOP CRITIC
Here is a great and moving film — the best that has come from an American studio for several years.
January 23, 2020
SMH Staff
Sydney Morning Herald
TOP CRITIC
The words ring out with clarity from the Mayfair screen and there is no mistaking their meaning. They are not lost on the wind, but hit you full in the face, making you sit up and take notice of the force behind them.
February 17, 2015
Kate Cameron
New York Daily News
TOP CRITIC
Agreement was tame, cautious stuff even back then.
February 19, 2013 | Rating: C+
Ty Burr
Entertainment Weekly
TOP CRITIC
By dispassionate critical standards, Gentleman’s Agreement is not a success. It is a tract rather than a play and it has the crusader’s shortcomings.
February 6, 2013
Robert Hatch
The New Republic
TOP CRITIC
The movie is as powerful today as when it captured the Best Picture Oscar a few years after Hitler’s genocide ended in Europe.
August 17, 2010 | Rating: 3.5/4
James Berardinelli
ReelViews
TOP CRITIC
In the end (aided by a momentous parting shot), the human drama feels just as powerful as the morals.
August 5, 2020 | Rating: 8/10
Mike Massie
Gone With The Twins
Gentleman’s Agreement is the sort of film that contains the usual drama for a Zanuck movie but the subject matter is what makes the film so groundbreaking.
July 30, 2020 | Rating: 5/5
Danielle Solzman
Solzy at the Movies
Gentleman’s Agreement still comes across as a smart, incisive, and engrossing drama, and although times have changed since 1947, the subject it so boldly tackles remains timely and relevant to this day.
January 24, 2020
David Sterritt
Turner Classic Movies Online
The film’s tone towards anti-Semitism is not the harsh note of intellectual indignation, but the polite murmur of argument. The film reduces a grave problem to dialogue.
January 23, 2020
Josephine O’Neill
Daily Telegraph (Australia)
It is brave in having something to say about a problem of living today and it is outspoken in the saying of it. It has been directed with rare understanding by Elia Kazan.
January 23, 2020
Harry MacArthur
Washington Star
Much of the ‘message’ is lost in a welter of words. Sentiment, too, is spread as thickly as we would like our rationed butter.
January 23, 2020
Nelson Burns (Te Pana)
Courier Mail (Australia)…
Plot
A journalist takes on an assignment about anti-Semitism and pretends to be Jewish in order to experience bigotry firsthand, leading to complications in his personal life.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Nothing to add here about Gentleman’s Agreement.
Elia-Kazan.jpg
The Red Shoes
The Red Shoes (1948)
89%RT Audience Score:
Awards & Nominations: NA
The Red Shoes is one of the best-looking movies ever, and blends multiple moods and styles with balletic grace
The Red Shoes is like a beautiful painting come to life, with its stunning Technicolor and breathtaking ballet sequences. It’s no wonder that it’s considered one of the greatest films about ballet ever made. And let’s not forget about those iconic red shoes – they’ve never been redder! Even if you’re not a fan of ballet, you can’t help but be swept away by the passion and artistry on display in this film. So sit back, relax, and let The Red Shoes transport you to a world of beauty and wonder.
Production Company(ies)
Universal Pictures, Studio Canal, Sidney Kimmel Entertainment,
Distributor
Criterion Collection, MCA/Universal Pictures [us]
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Hotel de Paris, Place du Casino, Monte Carlo, Monaco
MPAA / Certificate
Not Rated
Year of Release
1948
-
Color:Color
-
Sound mix:Dolby
-
Aspect ratio:1.37 : 1
-
Runtime:2h 13m
-
Language(s):English, French, Russian
-
Country of origin:United States
-
Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Sep 6, 1948 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 1, 2001
Genre(s)
Drama/Romance
Keyword(s)
starring Moira Shearer, Anton Walbrook, Marius Goring, Robert Helpmann, Leonide Massine, Albert Basserman, directed by Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger, written by Hans Christian Andersen, Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger, Keith Winter, Marius Goring, drama, romance, box office performance, budget, reviewed by George Campbell Dixon, Joe Morgenstern, Melissa Anderson, Jonathan F Richards, Anthony Lane, Derek Malcolm, Victor Pineyro, Michael Barrett, Brian Eggert, Matt Brunson, Jeff Beck, Christopher Kane, produced by Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger, MPAA rating, ballet, ballerina, composer, ballet company, producer, art direction, cinematography, Technicolor, Faustian bargain, Svengali relationship, instructor, tension, behind the scenes, supporting characters, dreamy, visual spectacle, theater stage, magical proportions, editing, Black Swan
Worldwide gross: $30,846
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $436,141
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,771
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 47,562
US/Canada gross: NA
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend:
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Anton Walbrook – Boris Lermontov
Marius Goring – Julian Craster
Robert Helpmann – Ivan Boleslawsky
Leonide Massine – Grischa Ljubov
Albert Basserman – Sergei Ratov
Michael Powell – Producer, Writer, Director
Emeric Pressburger – Producer, Writer, Director
Hans Christian Andersen – Writer
Keith Winter – Writer
Jack Cardiff – Cinematographer
Brian Easdale – Composer
Reginald Mills – Editor
Hein Heckroth – Production Designer
Arthur Lawson – Art Director
Dorothy Sinclair – Set Decorator
Ernest Irving – Musical Director
Gordon K. McCallum – Sound Recordist
A.W. Watkins – Sound Recordist
Harold V. King – Assistant Director
Joyce Broughton – Assistant Editor
Margaret Furse – Costume Designer
Charles E. Parker – Makeup Artist
George Blackler – Hair Stylist
John Cox – Special Effects
W. Percy Day – Special Effects
Les Bowie – Special Effects
Tom Howard – Special Effects Supervisor
George Blackwell – Stunt Coordinator
Director(s)
Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger
Writer(s)
Hans Christian Andersen, Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger, Keith Winter, Marius Goring
Producer(s)
Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
NA
Academy Awards
Oscar Nominees
All Critics (64) | Top Critics (17) | Fresh (62) | Rotten (2)
These faults, if faults they be, may well be outweighed by the beauty of the ballet sequences and music, by the skill with which Mr Powell always uses colour, and by Miss Shearer’s endearing charm.
March 9, 2015
George Campbell Dixon
Daily Telegraph (UK)
TOP CRITIC
The Red Shoes was shot in three-strip Technicolor, a process that’s no longer used because of expense and technical complexity, but one that yielded some of the most spectacular images in cinema history.
October 23, 2010
Joe Morgenstern
Wall Street Journal
TOP CRITIC
The greatest film about ballet ever made.
May 13, 2010
Melissa Anderson
L.A. Weekly
TOP CRITIC
The shoes have never been redder. The color of passion that drenches the Technicolor world of The Red Shoes has been restored to its original luster.
March 2, 2010
Jonathan F. Richards
Film.com
TOP CRITIC
No wonder Britain, still rationed in color, food, and feeling in the wake of an exhausting war, could not cope with what the movie proposed. Catch it here now, and you will not just be seeing an old film made new; you will have your vision restored.
February 1, 2010
Anthony Lane
New Yorker
TOP CRITIC
What a cast, and what superbly florid but controlled direction. Unequalled Technicolor photography from Jack Cardiff. too.
December 11, 2009 | Rating: 5/5
Derek Malcolm
London Evening Standard
TOP CRITIC
Black Swan wouldn’t exist without The Red Shoes, a film about the most primitive human emotions, through the most exquisite forms of art. Powell-Pressburger were absolute masters of their craft. Incredible film. Full review in Spanish
April 8, 2022 | Rating: 9/10
Victor Pineyro
Seventh Art Studio
Andersen himself achieved a dizzying worldwide success by pouring out his anguish in charming characters and, if we are to believe what we hear, it didn’t free him from his unhappy isolation.
March 23, 2022 | Rating: 10/10
Michael Barrett
PopMatters
Even the most cynical viewer cannot help but find themselves dazzled by the beauty of the production and the haunting nature of the narrative
March 20, 2022 | Rating: 4/4
Brian Eggert
Deep Focus Review
One of the premier films to ever examine the personal sacrifices an individual must make to excel at their art.
December 26, 2021 | Rating: 4/4
Matt Brunson
Film Frenzy
The Red Shoes stands out as a remarkable artistic experience, made even more memorable by the layers of art that went into telling this portrait of artists in pursuit of their passions.
December 13, 2021 | Rating: 4.5/5
Jeff Beck
The Blu Spot
The picture’s two and a half hours long, contains a full-length ballet, exquisite Technicolor, and superb performances by everyone concerned, including the great dancer Leonide Massine.
June 29, 2021
Christopher Kane
Modern Screen…
Plot
Under the authoritarian rule of charismatic ballet impressario Boris Lermontov, his proteges realize the full promise of their talents, but at a price: utter devotion to their art and complete loyalty to Lermontov himself. Under his near-obsessive guidance, young ballerina Victoria Page is poised for superstardom, but earns Lermontov’s scorn when she falls in love with Julian Craster, composer of “The Red Shoes,” the ballet Lermontov is staging to showcase her talents. Vicky leaves the company and marries Craster, but still finds herself torn between Lermontov’s demands and those of her heart.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
The Red Shoes features the great dancer Leonide Massine in a superb performance.
Michael-Powell.jpg
The Lady From Shanghai
The Lady From Shanghai (1948)
82%RT Audience Score:
Awards & Nominations: NA
Energetic and inventive, The Lady from Shanghai overcomes its script deficiencies with some of Orson Welles’ brilliantly conceived set pieces
The Lady from Shanghai is a wild ride that will leave you dizzy with its twists and turns. Orson Welles’ genius is on full display, from the convoluted plot to the outrageous finale in the hall of mirrors. And let’s not forget about Rita Hayworth, who is both fetishized and punished for our entertainment. Sure, Welles’ Irish accent is a bit silly, but who cares when you’re having this much fun? This film is a magnificent mess in the best way possible.
Production Company(ies)
Titanus Société Nouvelle Pathé Cinéma Société Générale de Cinématographie
Distributor
NA
Release Type
Theatrical, Theatrical (Limited)
Filming Location(s)
Playland at the Beach, San Francisco, California, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Not Rated
Year of Release
1948
-
Color:Color
Black and White -
Sound mix:Dolby
-
Aspect ratio:1.37 : 1
-
Runtime:NA
-
Language(s):English, Cantonese
-
Country of origin:United States
-
Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Jun 9, 1948 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 3, 2000
Genre(s)
Drama/Crime
Keyword(s)
The Lady from Shanghai, Drama, Crime, Mystery & Thriller, Orson Welles, Rita Hayworth, Everett Sloane, Glenn Anders, Ted de Corsia, Erskine Sanford, directed by Orson Welles, written by Orson Welles, produced by Orson Welles, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Geoffrey Macnab, Peter Bradshaw, David Parkinson, Glenn Heath Jr., Nigel Andrews, Tom Huddleston, MPAA rating, San Francisco, Acapulco, yacht, murder plot, hall of mirrors, shoot out, set pieces, tangled, ingenious, switchbacks, revelations, outrageously inventive, sinisterly sustained, amusingly varied, hyper-local flavor, cinema’s most iconic sequences
Worldwide gross: NA
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): NA
US/Canada gross: NA
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend:
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Orson Welles – Michael O’Hara
Everett Sloane – Arthur Bannister
Glenn Anders – George Grisby
Ted de Corsia – Sidney Broome
Erskine Sanford – Judge
Director(s)
Orson Welles
Writer(s)
Orson Welles
Producer(s)
Orson Welles
Film Festivals
Cannes
Awards & Nominations
NA
Academy Awards
All Critics (48) | Top Critics (18) | Fresh (40) | Rotten (8)
The film is as tangled and ingenious as any of Welles’s conjuring tricks. The shoot-out in the hall of mirrors is the most famous sequence, but there are other moments just as memorable.
July 24, 2014 | Rating: 5/5
Geoffrey Macnab
Independent (UK)
TOP CRITIC
It has an irresistible energy.
July 24, 2014 | Rating: 5/5
Peter Bradshaw
Guardian
TOP CRITIC
The plot’s pleasingly convoluted, the performances amusingly varied, the mood sinisterly sustained. But the set-pieces are the work of a genius.
July 24, 2014 | Rating: 4/5
David Parkinson
Empire Magazine
TOP CRITIC
Time proves this to be insanely ambitious and batty in the best sense.
July 24, 2014 | Rating: 5/5
Glenn Heath Jr.
Little White Lies
TOP CRITIC
The hall-of-mirrors shootout finale is a canonic classic.
July 24, 2014 | Rating: 4/5
Nigel Andrews
Financial Times
TOP CRITIC
A magnificent mess of switchbacks and revelations, climaxing with one of cinema’s most outrageously inventive sequences.
July 23, 2014 | Rating: 5/5
Tom Huddleston
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
Such it is with sharks and genius.
April 21, 2022 | Rating: 10/10
Ray Pride
Newcity
…fetishizes Hayworth and then punishes her for its own obsessions.
April 19, 2021 | Rating: 2.5/4
Josh Larsen
LarsenOnFilm
Welles’ Irish accent is a little silly, but he makes up for it by investing the film in a lot of hyper-local flavor, shooting on real locations and including a lot of the languages and cultures that loosely make up San Francisco.
December 8, 2020
Scott Nye
Battleship Pretension
The Boy Wonder is so busy playing with the tricks of the trade he forgets the trade itself.
September 4, 2019
Josephine O’Neill
Daily Telegraph (Australia)
[Welles] hurls restraint to the winds and when he is through with it, his poor little story is reduced to a dramatic pulp.
September 4, 2019
Jay Carmody
Washington Star
The storyline is almost incidental to the disorientating inventiveness of The Lady from Shanghai.
July 25, 2014
Eithne Farry
Electric Sheep…
Plot
Michael O’Hara, against his better judgement, hires on as a crew member of Arthur Bannister’s yacht, sailing to San Francisco. They pick up Grisby, Bannister’s law partner, en route. Bannister has a wife, Elsa, who seems to like Michael much better than she likes her husband. After they dock in Sausalito, Michael goes along with Grisby’s weird plan to fake his (Grisby’s) murder so he can disappear untailed. He wants the $5000 Grisby has offered, so he can run off with Elsa. But Grisby turns up actually murdered, and Michael gets blamed for it. Somebody set him up, but it is not clear who or how. Bannister (the actual murderer?) defends Michael in court.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
No goofy or funny or odd comments were found in the Fresh Kernels database for The Lady from Shanghai.
Orson-Welles.jpg
Rope
Rope (1948)
91%RT Audience Score: 90%
Awards & Nominations: 2 wins & 4 nominations
As formally audacious as it is narratively brilliant, Rope connects a powerful ensemble in service of a darkly satisfying crime thriller from a master of the genre.
Hitchcock’s “Rope” is a technical masterpiece that showcases the director’s ability to manipulate his audience. While the story may not be top-tier Hitchcock, the queer undertones and James Stewart’s ambiguous performance make it worth a watch. Plus, the party guests are performed deliciously and the panorama of Manhattan’s skyline is spectacular. Overall, “Rope” is a fun and entertaining exercise in technique that will leave you questioning your own participation in the art of film.
Production Company(ies)
Atticus Group Vision Quest Productions,
Distributor
Warner Bros., Universal Home Entertainment, MCA/Universal Pictures [us]
Release Type
Filming Location(s)
Warner Brothers Burbank Studios – 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Approved
Year of Release
1948
-
Color:Color
-
Sound mix:Dolby
-
Aspect ratio:1.37 : 1
-
Runtime:1h 20m
-
Language(s):English
-
Country of origin:United States
-
Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Aug 24, 1948 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 4, 2005
Genre(s)
Crime/Drama
Keyword(s)
starring James Stewart, John Dall, Farley Granger, Joan Chandler, Cedric Hardwicke, Constance Collier, directed by Alfred Hitchcock, written by Patrick Hamilton, Hume Cronyn, Arthur Laurent
Worldwide gross: $10,590
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $149,735
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,978
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 16,329
US/Canada gross: NA
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend:
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
James Stewart – Rupert Cadell
John Dall – Brandon Shaw
Farley Granger – Phillip Morgan
Joan Chandler – Janet Walker
Cedric Hardwicke – Mr. Kentley (as Sir Cedric Hardwicke)
Constance Collier – Mrs. Atwater
Director(s)
Alfred Hitchcock
Writer(s)
Patrick Hamilton, Hume Cronyn, Arthur Laurents, Ben Hecht
Producer(s)
Sidney Bernstein, Alfred Hitchcock
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
2 wins & 4 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (51) | Top Critics (12) | Fresh (48) | Rotten (3)
Hitchcock examines his and his audience’s participatory roles in a centuries-old circuit of art production and reception. —Guest post by Michael Joshua Rowin
June 10, 2022
Keith Uhlich
(All (Parentheses))
TOP CRITIC
In photographing the action, Director Hitchcock brought off a tour de force.
February 9, 2019
TIME Staff
TIME Magazine
TOP CRITIC
The trickery is still distracting, but there are hints in this 1948 film of the perversity that will yield Psycho, Strangers On A Train, Vertigo and Rear Window, so it’s a must for Hitch collectors.
February 9, 2019 | Rating: 4/5
David Parkinson
Empire Magazine
TOP CRITIC
Hitchcock liked to pretend that the film was an empty technical exercise, but it introduces the principal themes and motifs of the major period that would begin with Rear Window.
February 9, 2019
Dave Kehr
Chicago Reader
TOP CRITIC
Rope is an interesting experiment which largely succeeds.
February 9, 2019
Bob Thomas
Associated Press
TOP CRITIC
This still underrated masterpiece is both a brilliant technical experiment and a perverse manifesto, with James Stewart in typically ambiguous form as the lads’ intellectual mentor.
October 19, 2018
Jake Wilson
The Age (Australia)
TOP CRITIC
An entertaining exercise in technical prowess, if not exactly suspense. The queer undertones alone make it worth a watch, though.
August 16, 2021 | Rating: 3.5/5
Trace Thurman
Horror Queers Podcast
“Rope” is a wonderful exercise in technique and the party guest characters are performed deliciously. Pay attention to the spectacular panorama of Manhattan’s gleaming skyline.
November 11, 2020
Michael Calleri
Niagara Gazette
Hitchcock manages to keep everything light and humorous, but not without taking a couple of shots at a callous society actively choosing not to hear what they don’t like.
July 30, 2020 | Rating: 3.5/5
Michael J. Casey
Boulder Weekly
The resultant study of high class homicide is revolutionary, which, spectacular though the word may sound, does not mean that Rope is Hitchcock’s best screenplay.
August 13, 2019
Jay Carmody
Washington Star
Although the story of this verbose film is intriguing, it’s not top-drawer Hitchcock.
February 9, 2019 | Rating: 3/5
TV Guide Staff
TV Guide
A disappointing addition to the great director’s canon of work.
February 9, 2019 | Rating: 3/5
Robin Karney
Radio Times…
Plot
Brandon and Philip are two young men who share a New York City apartment. They consider themselves intellectually superior to their friend David Kentley, and as a consequence, decide to murder him. Together they strangle David with a rope and placing the body in an old chest, they proceed to hold a small party. The guests include David’s father, his fiancée Janet, and their old schoolteacher Rupert, from whom they mistakenly took their ideas. As Brandon becomes increasingly more daring, Rupert begins to suspect.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
There is no goofy or funny or odd comment about the film Rope on Fresh Kernels.
Alfred-Hitchcock.jpg
Hamlet
Hamlet (1948)
88%RT Audience Score:
Awards & Nominations: NA
A well-executed labor of love from star and director Laurence Olivier, Hamlet not only proved that Shakespeare could be successfully adapted to the big screen, it paved the way for further cinematic interpretations
Hamlet is a wild dark poem of the mind, but Sir Laurence Olivier’s film adaptation is a masterpiece that will make you forget all other versions. With a cast that is equal to each role, Olivier’s Hamlet is a striking achievement that brings more energy, more voice, and more virility to Shakespeare’s hero. It’s no less than an Expressionist film noir version of the play, with stunning photography and a superb musical score that frames the drama in terms of its own dimension. Olivier’s personalized version of the troubled Prince of Denmark is highly atmospheric and intriguing, and it’s peerless proof that the screen can treat great literature, theatre, and art in a way that does not corrupt great thought nor stultify cinema.
Production Company(ies)
Deblokada Produkcija Coop99 Filmproduktion, Digital Cube
Distributor
Criterion Collection, Universal Pictures
Release Type
Filming Location(s)
Blenheim Palace, Woodstock, Oxfordshire, England, UK
MPAA / Certificate
Rated PG-13 for some violent images and sexuality
Year of Release
1948
-
Color:Color
-
Sound mix:Dolby
-
Aspect ratio:NA
-
Runtime:2h 33m
-
Language(s):English
-
Country of origin:United States
-
Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Sep 28, 1948 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 19, 2000
Genre(s)
Drama
Keyword(s)
starring Laurence Olivier, Jean Simmons, Basil Sydney, Eileen Herlie, Felix Aylmer, Stanley Holloway, directed by Laurence Olivier, written by Laurence Olivier, William Shakespeare, drama, box office performance, budget, reviewed by SMH Staff, Erle Cox, Kate Cameron, TIME Staff, David Parkinson, Geoff Andrew, Mildred Norton, MPAA rating, Criterion Collection, Universal Pictures, Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, Ophelia, Daughter of Polonius, Claudius, The King, Gertrude, The Queen, Polonius, Lord Chamberlain, Gravedigger, Shakespearean adaptation, tragedy, revenge, European dryness, theatrical histrionics, episodic structure, repetition, production design, cinematography, isolation, tension, charisma, soliloquies, music, angles, faithful rendition, Branagh’s version
Worldwide gross: $4,770,222
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $9,105,140
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,991
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 992,927
US/Canada gross: $4,708,156
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $8,986,672
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,648
US/Canada opening weekend: $90,684
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $173,093
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,718
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $18,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $34,357,419
Production budget ranking: 1,073
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $18,501,470
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): -$43,753,749
ROI to date (est.): -83%
ROI ranking: 1,903
Jean Simmons – Ophelia, Daughter of Polonius
Basil Sydney – Claudius, The King
Eileen Herlie – Gertrude, The Queen
Felix Aylmer – Polonius, Lord Chamberlain
Stanley Holloway – Gravedigger
Director(s)
Laurence Olivier
Writer(s)
Laurence Olivier, William Shakespeare
Producer(s)
NA
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
NA
Academy Awards
All Critics (41) | Top Critics (9) | Fresh (39) | Rotten (2)
Its alliance of literature, theatre, and art is peerless proof that the screen can be brought to treat a wild dark poem of the mind, of unseen and unseeable things, in terms that do not corrupt great thought nor stultify cinema.
January 29, 2020
SMH Staff
Sydney Morning Herald
TOP CRITIC
Add to Sir Laurence as Hamlet a cast that is equal to each role, and we have the perfect production.
January 29, 2020
Erle Cox (The Chiel)
The Age (Australia)
TOP CRITIC
Altogether Hamlet is one of the most impressive films ever made and, so far as Shakespeare’s work is concerned, it need never be done again on stage nor for the screen, as the Olivier production… may stand for all time as THE Hamlet.
February 23, 2016 | Rating: 4/4
Kate Cameron
New York Daily News
TOP CRITIC
Sir Laurence Olivier’s masterful version of the classic.
February 18, 2009
TIME Staff
TIME Magazine
TOP CRITIC
Olivier’s classic and personalised version of the troubled Prince of Denmark is still highly atmospheric and intriguing.
February 20, 2008 | Rating: 4/5
David Parkinson
Empire Magazine
TOP CRITIC
Despite winning several Oscars, Olivier’s (condensed) version of Shakespeare’s masterpiece makes for frustrating viewing.
February 20, 2008
Geoff Andrew
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
Desmond Dickenson’s photography has a stern grandeur that frequently recalls Eisenstein, while William Walton’s superb musical score frames the drama in terms of its own dimension.
July 13, 2021
Mildred Norton
Illustrated Daily News (Los Angeles)
A striking achievement for an actor/director who would continue to helm and star in Shakespeare’s works.
August 5, 2020 | Rating: 9/10
Mike Massie
Gone With The Twins
No less than an Expressionist film noir version of the play.
July 12, 2020 | Rating: 3.5/5
Tim Brayton
Alternate Ending
Olivier’s classic Shakespeare tragedy has themes of revenge.
February 14, 2020 | Rating: 4/5
Rich Phippen
Common Sense Media
Olivier brings more of everything to his Hamlet, more energy, more voice, more virility, but most of all he brings to it more understanding of Shakespeare’s hero.
January 29, 2020
Jay Carmody
Washington Star
The brilliance of how Olivier has done Hamlet almost sweeps us into forgetting what he has done with it.
March 15, 2019
Josephine O’Neill
Daily Telegraph (Australia)…
Plot
Hamlet, directed and starring Laurence Olivier, is a well-executed adaptation of Shakespeare’s tragedy that paved the way for further cinematic interpretations.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
The cast includes Laurence Olivier as Hamlet, Jean Simmons as Ophelia, and Basil Sydney as Claudius.
Laurence-Olivier.jpg
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948)
97%RT Audience Score: 93%
Awards & Nominations: Won 3 Oscars
16 wins & 8 nominations total
Remade but never duplicated, this darkly humorous morality tale represents John Huston at his finest.
This flick is a total gem! It’s a twisted, yet hilarious story that showcases John Huston’s genius. You won’t find anything like it out there – it’s one of a kind. Huston’s got a way of making you laugh while also making you think about the bigger picture. Trust me, you won’t be disappointed.
Production Company(ies)
Warner Bros.,
Distributor
Warner Bros. Pictures, MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc.
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Tampico, Tamaulipas, Mexico
MPAA / Certificate
Passed
Year of Release
1948
-
Color:Color
Black and White -
Sound mix:Dolby
-
Aspect ratio:1.37 : 1
-
Runtime:2h 4m
-
Language(s):English, Spanish
-
Country of origin:United States
-
Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Jan 6, 1948 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 30, 2003
Genre(s)
Adventure/Western
Keyword(s)
starring Humphrey Bogart, Walter Huston, Tim Holt, Bruce Bennett, Barton MacLane, Alfonso Bedoya, directed by John Huston, written by B Traven and John Huston, Adventure, Western, Drama, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Rob Humanick, David Parkinson, Don Druker, Stephen Garrett, Steven D Greydanus, Roger Ebert, Brian Eggert, Matt Neal, MPAA rating, produced by Henry Blanke, Warner Bros Pictures, MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc., gold, greed, bandits, Mexico, Sierra Madre mountains, prospector, treasure, conflict, morality tale, character study, human nature, Oscar-winning performance, dark humor, John Huston’s finest, remade but never duplicated, Walter Huston’s Oscar-winning performance, unsettling tale, self-discovery, self-betrayal, unlikable characters, light adventure, powerful morality tale, paranoia, pyrite, obsessed, location shooting in Mexico
Worldwide gross: $5,014,000
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $70,894,495
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,189
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 7,731,134
US/Canada gross: $5,014,000
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $70,894,495
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 915
US/Canada opening weekend: $144,074
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $2,037,107
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,203
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $3,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $42,417,927
Production budget ranking: 903
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $22,842,054
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $5,634,515
ROI to date (est.): 9%
ROI ranking: 1,354
Walter Huston – Howard
Tim Holt – Bob Curtin
Bruce Bennett – James Cody
Barton MacLane – Pat McCormick
Alfonso Bedoya – Gold Hat
Director(s)
John Huston
Writer(s)
B. Traven, John Huston
Producer(s)
Henry Blanke
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
Won 3 Oscars
16 wins & 8 nominations total
Academy Awards
Oscar Nominees
All Critics (53) | Top Critics (9) | Fresh (53)
Transcends the medium to become a mandatory viewing experience for anyone that identifies themselves as a human being, period.
April 20, 2011 | Rating: 4/4
Rob Humanick
Slant Magazine
TOP CRITIC
This is so brilliant that the only real effect of the other versions is to make you want to watch the original again.
April 20, 2009 | Rating: 5/5
David Parkinson
Empire Magazine
TOP CRITIC
John Huston has rarely been in better form than in this 1948 study of gold fever and worse obsessions among an unlikely trio of prospectors…
July 2, 2007
Don Druker
Chicago Reader
TOP CRITIC
There’s a quite enjoyable yarn buried under the hollow laughter.
February 9, 2006
Stephen Garrett
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
Riveting, downbeat, and surprising, a gripping adventure and one of Hollywood’s most resonant morality tales… a smart, remorseless story of gold, greed, guns, and guile.
June 14, 2004 | Rating: A+
Steven D. Greydanus
Decent Films
TOP CRITIC
The movie has never really been about gold but about character, and Bogart fearlessly makes Fred C. Dobbs into a pathetic, frightened, selfish man — so sick we would be tempted to pity him, if he were not so undeserving of pity.
January 15, 2004 | Rating: 4/4
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
TOP CRITIC
Unlike most studio releases of the era, the film’s depiction of wretched moral depravity is not sweetened by a studio ending, where, say, the ugly impulses of greed are suppressed by a higher moral calling.
February 14, 2022 | Rating: 4/4
Brian Eggert
Deep Focus Review
Wildly unconventional for its time, it makes its A-list star a villain, there’s no romantic subplot, and it’s far grimmer than most movies of the age.
July 30, 2021 | Rating: 5/5
Matt Neal
ABC Radio (Australia)
The film is about the power of human greed. From the moment Dobbs sees that first seam of pyrite, he is obsessed…
April 1, 2021
Sarah Brinks
Battleship Pretension
This attraction, produced by Henry Blanke, is never pretty, but it has guts and substance. And also Bogart.
November 18, 2020
Red Kann
Motion Picture Herald (Exhibitors Herald)
Aside from a dark lesson in moral corruption, the film serves as a monumental achievement in storytelling and balanced entertainment.
August 15, 2020 | Rating: 10/10
Mike Massie
Gone With The Twins
What an incredible film.
August 4, 2020
Chris Plante
Polygon…
Plot
Fred C. Dobbs and Bob Curtin, both down on their luck in Tampico, Mexico in 1925, meet up with a grizzled prospector named Howard and decide to join with him in search of gold in the wilds of central Mexico. Through enormous difficulties, they eventually succeed in finding gold, but bandits, the elements, and most especially greed threaten to turn their success into disaster.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Walter Huston won an Oscar for his performance in The Treasure of the Sierra Madre.
John-Huston.jpg
The Best Years of Our Lives
The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)
96%RT Audience Score: 93%
Awards & Nominations: Won 8 Oscars
21 wins & 4 nominations total
An engrossing look at the triumphs and travails of war veterans, The Best Years of Our Lives is concerned specifically with the aftermath of World War II, but its messages speak to the overall American experience.
If you’re looking for a movie that’ll make you laugh, cry, and think all at the same time, then The Best Years of Our Lives is the one for you. It’s all about what happens to war veterans after they come home, and let me tell you, it’s not all sunshine and rainbows. But even though it’s set after World War II, the themes are still super relevant today. It’s like the filmmakers knew that America would always be dealing with the aftermath of war, and they wanted to give us a heads up. Plus, the acting is top-notch. You’ll feel like you’re right there with the characters, experiencing their triumphs and travails. So grab some popcorn and get ready for a wild ride through the best years of our lives (or at least, the best years of some people’s lives).
Production Company(ies)
The Samuel Goldwyn Company,
Distributor
RKO Radio Pictures
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Ontario International Airport – 2900 E. Airport Drive, Ontario, California, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Approved
Year of Release
1947
-
Color:Color
Black and White -
Sound mix:Dolby
-
Aspect ratio:1.37 : 1
-
Runtime:2h 52m
-
Language(s):English
-
Country of origin:United States
-
Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Nov 21, 1946 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jul 18, 2000
Genre(s)
Drama
Keyword(s)
starring Dana Andrews, Fredric March, Myrna Loy, Teresa Wright, Virginia Mayo, Harold Russell, directed by William Wyler, written by MacKinlay Kantor, Robert E Sherwood, drama, World War II veterans, aftermath of war, American experience, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Marjory Adams, Mae Tinee, Philip Hope-Wallace, Herman G Weinberg, Times (UK) Staff, Helen Bower, André Bazin, Brian Eggert, Howard Pearson, Matt Neal, Virginia Wright, Nancy Philips, MPAA rating, Samuel Goldwyn, RKO Radio Pictures, Mono sound mix, Flat (1.37:1) aspect ratio, Al Stephenson, Milly Stephenson, Fred Derry, Peggy Stephenson, Marie Derry, Homer Parrish, critic reviews, audience reviews, deep focus, mise-en-scène, Gregg Toland, post-WWII, psychological trauma, obstacles, veteran soldiers, different backgrounds, returning from war, visual compositions
Worldwide gross: $23,656,620
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $362,556,146
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 422
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 39,537,202
US/Canada gross: NA
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend:
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $2,100,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $32,184,137
Production budget ranking: 1,121
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $17,331,158
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $313,040,851
ROI to date (est.): 632%
ROI ranking: 199
Myrna Loy – Milly Stephenson
Dana Andrews – Fred Derry
Teresa Wright – Peggy Stephenson
Virginia Mayo – Marie Derry
Harold Russell – Homer Parrish
Director(s)
William Wyler
Writer(s)
MacKinlay Kantor, Robert E. Sherwood
Producer(s)
Samuel Goldwyn
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
Won 8 Oscars
21 wins & 4 nominations total
Academy Awards
Oscar Best Picture Winners, Oscar Winners
All Critics (93) | Top Critics (28) | Fresh (91) | Rotten (2)
The Best Years Of Our Lives is an eloquent tribute to returned veterans [and] a magnificent, brilliant contribution to motion pictures as an art.
April 14, 2021
Marjory Adams
Boston Globe
TOP CRITIC
Every member of the cast Is so much like some one you know, every one so natural and likable, as real and pathetic as any human being close to your heart, but Fredric March, Dana Andrews, and Harold Russell give faultless performances.
April 14, 2021
Mae Tinee
Chicago Tribune
TOP CRITIC
The playing is magnificent — especially that of Fredric March.
April 14, 2021
Philip Hope-Wallace
Guardian
TOP CRITIC
It has everything it should have — a literate and often sharp and honest script by Robert E. Sherwood, supple direction by William Wyler, and is ingratiatingly played by at least one actor — Frederic March.
April 14, 2021
Herman G. Weinberg
Sight & Sound
TOP CRITIC
This long American film is a gallant and sincere attempt to examine the difficulties of ex-service men in returning to civil life.
April 14, 2021
Times (UK) Staff
Times (UK)
TOP CRITIC
The film, throughout, presents the American scene with homely, familiar touches.
April 13, 2021
Helen Bower
Detroit Free Press
TOP CRITIC
Nonetheless, these reservations are not intended to diminish the eminent merits of The Best Years of Our Lives, in which the mastery of one of the world’s greatest directors is ever on display.
February 25, 2022
André Bazin
L’Écran Français
The Best Years of Our Lives remains so singularly honest in its description of veterans that Wyler’s treatment cannot help but supply an editorial on the social landscape of postwar America.
February 12, 2022 | Rating: 4/4
Brian Eggert
Deep Focus Review
Splendid producing, acting, directing of a realistic, down-to-earth plot such as this results then in a living portrayal of what peoples actually are experiencing today.
August 16, 2021
Howard Pearson
Deseret News (Salt Lake City)
Very much of its time in some ways, but what makes it memorable is how ahead of its time it was in the ways that really mattered.
July 25, 2021 | Rating: 4/5
Matt Neal
ABC Radio (Australia)
The Best Years of Our Lives is the most rewarding picture in a long, long time.
July 13, 2021
Virginia Wright
Illustrated Daily News (Los Angeles)
The Best Years of Our Lives is a fine example of what Hollywood Is capable of doing once they set their minds to it.
April 14, 2021
Nancy Philips
Austin American-Statesman…
Plot
The story concentrates on the social re-adjustment of three World War II servicemen, each from a different station of society. Al Stephenson returns to an influential banking position, but finds it hard to reconcile his loyalties to ex-servicemen with new commercial realities. Fred Derry is an ordinary working man who finds it difficult to hold down a job or pick up the threads of his marriage. Having had both hands burnt off during the war, Homer Parrish is unsure that his fiancée’s feelings are still those of love and not those of pity. Each of the veterans faces a crisis upon his arrival, and each crisis is a microcosm of the experiences of many American warriors who found an alien world awaiting them when they came marching home.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Harold Russell, who played Homer Parrish, was a real-life veteran who lost both of his hands in a training accident during World War II. He was awarded two Academy Awards for his performance in the film, one for Best Supporting Actor and an honorary award for “bringing hope and courage to his fellow veterans.”
William-Wyler.jpg
Nightmare Alley
Nightmare Alley (1947)
89%RT Audience Score: 86%
Awards & Nominations: Nominated for 4 Oscars
20 wins & 100 nominations total
Nightmare Alley is a film that delves into the dark and twisted world of carnival life, where the lines between reality and illusion are blurred. The cast, led by the talented Tyrone Power, delivers a captivating performance that draws the audience into the seedy underbelly of the circus. Director Edmund Goulding masterfully captures the grit and grime of the carnival, creating a world that is both alluring and repulsive. While the subject matter may be unsettling, the film’s exploration of human nature and the lengths people will go to achieve their desires is both thought-provoking and entertaining. Overall, Nightmare Alley is a must-see for fans of film noir and those who enjoy a good psychological thriller.
If you’re in the mood for a movie that’s equal parts creepy and captivating, then Nightmare Alley is the perfect pick. With a cast of talented actors and a storyline that will keep you on the edge of your seat, this film is not for the faint of heart. But if you’re up for a little bit of darkness and intrigue, then settle in and get ready for a wild ride. Just don’t blame us if you have nightmares afterwards!
Production Company(ies)
Amazon Studios, Stay Gold Features, Kindred Spirit
Distributor
NA
Release Type
Theatrical, Theatrical (Wide)
Filming Location(s)
Buffalo, New York, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for strong/bloody violence, some sexual content, nudity and language
Year of Release
1947
-
Color:Color
-
Sound mix:D-Cinema 48kHz 5.1 Dolby Digital Dolby Atmos
-
Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
-
Runtime:NA
-
Language(s):English, French
-
Country of origin:United States
-
Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Oct 9, 1947 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 7, 2005
Genre(s)
Crime/Drama
Keyword(s)
Nightmare Alley, Tyrone Power, Edmund Goulding, Joan Blondell, Coleen Gray, Ian Keith, Crime, Drama, Box Office, Budget, Critic Reviews, Pauline Kael, Mildred Martin, Helen Bower, Mae Tinee, Thomas M Pryor, Philip K Scheuer, Los Angeles Times, Matt Brunson, Rob Aldam, Mike Massie, Linda Cook, Kevin Carr, Hortense Morton, San Francisco Examiner, MPAA Rating, Fresh Kernels, Audience Score, Director, Written by, Produced by, Reviewed by, Noir, Carnival, Mind-Reading, Chicago, Stanton Carlisle, Zeena Krumbein, Molly, Pete Krumbein, The Great Stanton, Traveling Carny, High-Class Audiences, Philadelphia Inquirer, Detroit Free Press, Chicago Tribune, New York Times, Film Frenzy, Backseat Mafia, Gone With The Twins, OurQuadCities, Fat Guys at the Movies, Screen Scout, Alec B, Kevin M W, Clintus M, Aj V
Worldwide gross: $39,629,195
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $43,100,979
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,403
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 4,700,216
US/Canada gross: $11,338,107
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $12,331,401
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,557
US/Canada opening weekend: $2,811,703
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $3,058,027
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,161
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $60,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $65,256,403
Production budget ranking: 636
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $35,140,573
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): -$57,295,998
ROI to date (est.): -57%
ROI ranking: 1,730
Joan Blondell – Zeena Krumbein
Coleen Gray – Molly
Ian Keith – Pete Krumbein
Edmund Goulding – Director
Director(s)
Edmund Goulding
Writer(s)
NA
Producer(s)
NA
Film Festivals
Toronto
Awards & Nominations
Nominated for 4 Oscars
20 wins & 100 nominations total
Academy Awards
Oscar Nominees
All Critics (61) | Top Critics (22) | Fresh (53) | Rotten (8)
The material… is unusual and the cast first-rate.
July 6, 2022
Pauline Kael
The New Republic
TOP CRITIC
If Nightmare Alley isn’t precisely tasty entertainment, at least it has been colorfully and harshly set forth with better than average character sketches lending it a certain unsavory interest and morbid fascination.
December 7, 2021
Mildred Martin
Philadelphia Inquirer
TOP CRITIC
All together the film has a great deal of accumulative impact. It is a thoroughly unpleasant, but salutary picture. It should pull both potential dupes and the potentially ruthless up good and short.
December 7, 2021
Helen Bower
Detroit Free Press
TOP CRITIC
The dialogue has plenty of punch, and the photography, especially in the tawdry tent world, is expert. If you like your movies rough and realistic, you’ll find this one entertaining for the most part.
December 7, 2021
Mae Tinee
Chicago Tribune
TOP CRITIC
Despite some fine and intense acting by Mr. Power and others, this film traverses distasteful dramatic ground and only rarely does it achieve any substance as entertainment.
December 7, 2021
Thomas M. Pryor
New York Times
TOP CRITIC
Edmund Goulding is a director who knows how to squeeze emotions out of players; and his production, repellent as its theme may be, develops considerable fascination up to the closing reel or so.
December 7, 2021
Philip K. Scheuer
Los Angeles Times
TOP CRITIC
One of the bleakest of all ’40s flicks.
March 27, 2022 | Rating: 3.5/4
Matt Brunson
Film Frenzy
An entertaining drama which explores the perils of flying too close to the sun.
January 13, 2022
Rob Aldam
Backseat Mafia
Although this story is unexpectedly macabre and sinister, the finale is easily guessable and better fit for a “Twilight Zone” episode than a feature-length production.
January 2, 2022 | Rating: 5/10
Mike Massie
Gone With The Twins
I can’t figure out whether “Nightmare Alley” or “Nightmare Alley” is my favorite film noir.
December 12, 2021 | Rating: 4/4
Linda Cook
OurQuadCities / WHBF-TV (Illinois)
It deals with some unpleasant things… but it’s an interesting movie.
December 11, 2021 | Rating: 2.5/4
Kevin Carr
Fat Guys at the Movies
If the picture serves to expose racketeers in human emotions, it has accomplished something important. Certainly it is well done. But we hope Mr. Jessel goes back to his giddy musicals.
December 7, 2021
Hortense Morton (Screen Scout)
San Francisco Examiner…
Plot
In Nightmare Alley, a carnival worker named Stanton Carlisle becomes a successful mind-reader, but his ambition leads him down a dark path of deceit and betrayal.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Tyrone Power delivers some of his best work in Nightmare Alley, playing against type as the conniving Stanton Carlisle.
Edmund-Goulding.jpg
Miracle on 34th Street
Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
92%RT Audience Score: 87%
Awards & Nominations: Won 3 Oscars
8 wins & 1 nomination total
Irrefutable proof that gentle sentimentalism can be the chief ingredient in a wonderful film, Miracle on 34th Street delivers a warm holiday message without resorting to treacle.
If you’re looking for a movie that will make you believe in Santa Claus again, then Miracle on 34th Street is the perfect choice. This classic holiday film is a heartwarming tale that will leave you feeling all warm and fuzzy inside. The acting is superb, the script is lovely, and the story is perfect for the Christmas season. Sure, it may be pure Hollywood hokum, but who cares? It’s a timeless classic that will never wear out its welcome, no matter how many holiday seasons you spend watching it. So grab some hot cocoa, snuggle up under a blanket, and get ready to be enchanted by this delightful movie.
Production Company(ies)
Kennedy Miller Productions,
Distributor
20th Century Fox
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
24 Derby Road, Port Washington, Long Island, New York, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Not Rated
Year of Release
1947
-
Color:Color
Black and White -
Sound mix:Dolby
-
Aspect ratio:1.37 : 1
-
Runtime:1h 36m
-
Language(s):English, Dutch
-
Country of origin:United States
-
Release date:Release Date (Theaters): May 2, 1947 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 5, 1999
Genre(s)
Holiday
Keyword(s)
Holiday, Christmas, classic, sentimental, gentle, warm, message, court case, authenticity, Macy’s, parade, Santa Claus, mental health, Kris Kringle, intoxication, customers, employees, old man, box office, budget, George Seaton, directed by, William Perlberg, produced by, George Seaton, written by, Edmund Gwenn, Maureen O’Hara, John Payne, Gene Lockhart, Natalie Wood, Porter Hall, reviewed by, Kate Cameron, Michael Wilmington, Noel Murray, Shirley O’Hara, Nell Minow, Tony Sloman, Felix Vasquez Jr., Emanuel Levy, MPAA rating, 20th Century Fox, producer names, critic names, actor names, director names, genre
Worldwide gross: $527
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $8,077
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 3,145
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 881
US/Canada gross: NA
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend:
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
John Payne – Fred Gailey
Edmund Gwenn – Kris Kringle
Gene Lockhart – Judge Henry X. Harper
Natalie Wood – Susan Walker
Porter Hall – Granville Sawyer
Director(s)
George Seaton
Writer(s)
George Seaton
Producer(s)
William Perlberg
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
Won 3 Oscars
8 wins & 1 nomination total
Academy Awards
All Critics (48) | Top Critics (11) | Fresh (46) | Rotten (2)
It is light, it is charming, it is delightfully funny and completely captivating. It is all that, and something more.
May 11, 2015 | Rating: 4/4
Kate Cameron
New York Daily News
TOP CRITIC
A Christmas season evergreen.
December 4, 2013 | Rating: 3.5/4
Michael Wilmington
Chicago Tribune
TOP CRITIC
Yes, Miracle On 34th Street is pure Hollywood hokum… But the film is pretty savvy too, getting a jump on mounting anxieties about the post-war cult of consumerism.
December 3, 2013 | Rating: A-
Noel Murray
AV Club
TOP CRITIC
Miracle on 34th Street isn’t great art or high comedy, but it is good entertainment.
January 23, 2013
Shirley O’Hara
The New Republic
TOP CRITIC
Classic holiday movie for the whole family.
December 26, 2010 | Rating: 4/5
Nell Minow
Common Sense Media
TOP CRITIC
So you don’t believe in Santa Claus? If you want to stay a non-believer don’t see Miracle.
March 26, 2009
Variety Staff
Variety
TOP CRITIC
One of the Holy Trinity of Yuletide films — the others being, of course, It’s a Wonderful Life and A Christmas Story — this is one of those timeless classics that never wears out its welcome, no matter how many holiday seasons one has spent watching it.
September 22, 2021 | Rating: 4/4
Matt Brunson
Film Frenzy
What is interesting about Miracle on 34th Street is how it acknowledges the cynicism of the season.
December 4, 2013
Brian Salisbury
Hollywood.com
The acting is superb all around. The script is lovely, good spirited and perfect viewing for the Christmas season.
December 4, 2013 | Rating: 3.5/4
Steve Rhodes
Internet Reviews
Children may prefer the newer, more obvious version, but parents will warm to this utterly beguiling original.
December 3, 2013 | Rating: 5/5
Tony Sloman
Radio Times
One of the few perfect and genuinely emotional Christmas movies that will live on forever…
December 17, 2012
Felix Vasquez Jr.
Cinema Crazed
Decades after it was made, this fable, featuring Edmund Gwenn’s Oscar-winning role as Santa Claus, remains one of the most enchanting Christmas movies.
March 13, 2011 | Rating: B+
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com…
Plot
At the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, the actor playing Santa is discovered to be drunk by a whiskered old man. Doris Walker, the no nonsense special events director, persuades him to take his place. He proves to be a sensation and is quickly recruited to be the store Santa at the main store. While he is successful, Doris learns that he calls himself Kris Kringle and he claims to be the actual Santa Claus. Despite reassurances by his doctor that he is harmless, Doris still has misgivings, especially when she has cynically trained herself, and especially her daughter, Susan, to reject all notions of belief and fantasy. And yet, people, especially Susan, begin to notice there is something special about Kris and his determination to advance the true spirit of Christmas among the rampant commercialism around him and succeeding in improbable ways. When a raucous conflict with the store’s cruelly incompetent therapist, Granville Sawyer, erupts, he finds himself held at Bellevue where, in despair, he deliberately fails a mental examination to ensure his commitment. All seems lost until Doris’ friend, Fred Gailey, reassures him of his worth and agrees to represent him in the fight to secure his release. To achieve that, Fred arranges a formal hearing in which he argues that Kris is sane because he is in fact Santa Claus. What ensues is a bizarre hearing in which people’s beliefs are reexamined and put to the test, but even so, it’s going to take a miracle for Kris to win.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Edmund Gwenn won an Oscar for his role as Kris Kringle in Miracle on 34th Street.
George-Seaton.jpg
Its a Wonderful Life
It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)
96%RT Audience Score: 95%
Awards & Nominations: Nominated for 5 Oscars
6 wins & 6 nominations total
The holiday classic to define all holiday classics, It’s a Wonderful Life is one of a handful of films worth an annual viewing.
If you’re looking for a movie that screams “holiday spirit,” then It’s a Wonderful Life is the one for you. This flick is the OG of all holiday classics and is definitely worth watching every year. It’s like a warm hug from your grandma, but in movie form. Trust me, you won’t regret adding this gem to your holiday movie lineup.
Production Company(ies)
Liberty Films,
Distributor
RKO Radio Pictures
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
RKO Encino Ranch – Balboa Boulevard & Burbank Boulevard, Encino, Los Angeles, California, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Rated PG for thematic elements, smoking and some violence
Year of Release
1946
-
Color:Color
Black and White -
Sound mix:Dolby
-
Aspect ratio:1.37 : 1
-
Runtime:2h 9m
-
Language(s):English, French
-
Country of origin:United States
-
Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Jan 7, 1946 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jul 13, 2004
Genre(s)
Drama
Keyword(s)
Worldwide gross: $6,184,298
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $94,779,189
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,044
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 10,335,789
US/Canada gross: $44,000
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $674,334
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,266
US/Canada opening weekend: $44,000
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $674,334
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,330
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $3,180,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $48,735,979
Production budget ranking: 812
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $26,244,325
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $19,798,884
ROI to date (est.): 26%
ROI ranking: 1,258
James Stewart – George Bailey
Donna Reed – Mary Hatch Bailey
Lionel Barrymore – Mr. Henry F. Potter
Thomas Mitchell – William “Uncle Billy” Bailey
Henry Travers – Clarence Oddbody
Beulah Bondi – Mrs. Bailey
Director(s)
Frank Capra
Writer(s)
Frances Goodrich, Albert Hackett, Frank Capra, Philip Van Doren Stern, Jo Swerling
Producer(s)
Frank Capra
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
Nominated for 5 Oscars
6 wins & 6 nominations total
Academy Awards
Oscar Nominees
All Critics (89) | Top Critics (23) | Fresh (84) | Rotten (5)
A movie people will have a good time watching with their families for enduring decades.
January 4, 2019 | Rating: A+
Chris Stuckmann
ChrisStuckmann.com
TOP CRITIC
There’s sex and death here, elation and depression, hope and despair.
December 14, 2018 | Rating: 5/5
Karen Krizanovich
Little White Lies
TOP CRITIC
While it isn’t the best picture to come out of Hollywood this year, nor is it Capra’s masterpiece, it tells a good story and its conclusion has a heart-warming effect on the audience.
December 19, 2016 | Rating: 3.5/4
Kate Cameron
New York Daily News
TOP CRITIC
It’s a Wonderful Life is a wonderful title for a motion picture about which practically everyone who sees it will agree that it’s wonderful entertainment.
December 7, 2014
Jack D. Grant
Hollywood Reporter
TOP CRITIC
The inspirational, thoroughly festive ending is guaranteed to bring tears to the eyes.
December 24, 2013
Marc Lee
Daily Telegraph (UK)
TOP CRITIC
The most well-loved of all Christmas movies.
December 4, 2013 | Rating: 4/4
Michael Wilmington
Chicago Tribune
TOP CRITIC
Jimmy Stewart’s performance is the reason we keep coming back decade after decade.
December 26, 2021 | Rating: A
Kent Garrison
Mad About Movies Podcast
Capra remained true to classical Hollywood narrative, conceived and directed here, it is true, with almost hallucinatory skill. The scenes of tenderness are capable of penetrating the armor of even the most skeptical critical mind.
December 8, 2021
André Bazin
L’Écran Français
It is watched over and over by many. A Christmas tradition since 1946.
November 28, 2021 | Rating: 4/5
Carey-Ann Pawsey
Orca Sound
There are a number of fantastic performances in the film, led by Jimmy Stewart. Stewart captures the many faces and phases of George Bailey…
March 24, 2021
Sarah Brinks
Battleship Pretension
“One of the most influential films in the history of Hollywood was a box office failure, not winning a single one of the five Oscars for which it was nominated”. [Full review in Spanish]
December 31, 2020 | Rating: 4/4
Ernesto Diezmartinez
Letras Libres
Forget the Christmas connection: This all-timer can be watched any time of the year.
December 17, 2020 | Rating: 4/4
Matt Brunson
Film Frenzy…
Plot
George Bailey has spent his entire life giving of himself to the people of Bedford Falls. He has always longed to travel but never had the opportunity in order to prevent rich skinflint Mr. Potter from taking over the entire town. All that prevents him from doing so is George’s modest building and loan company, which was founded by his generous father. But on Christmas Eve, George’s Uncle Billy loses the business’s $8,000 while intending to deposit it in the bank. Potter finds the misplaced money and hides it from Billy. When the bank examiner discovers the shortage later that night, George realizes that he will be held responsible and sent to jail and the company will collapse, finally allowing Potter to take over the town. Thinking of his wife, their young children, and others he loves will be better off with him dead, he contemplates suicide. But the prayers of his loved ones result in a gentle angel named Clarence coming to earth to help George, with the promise of earning his wings. He shows George what things would have been like if he had never been born.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
NA
Frank-Capra.jpg