Movie Reviews | Immortal Ephemera

The Lost Squadron (1932) Starring Richard Dix, With Erich von Stroheim

June 17, 2013 By Cliff Aliperti Leave a Comment

Joel McCrea, Robert Armstrong and Richard Dix

RKO’s The Lost Squadron (1932) is a war movie that isn’t a war movie. Veterans return home to find work as Hollywood stunt fliers under Erich von Stoheim’s command. Starring Richard Dix, Robert Armstrong, Joel McCrea, Hugh Herbert, Mary Astor and Dorothy Jordan. Directed by George Archainbaud.

Filed Under: Movie Reviews Tagged With: 1932, 1932 movies, David O Selznick, dick grace, Dorothy Jordan, erich von stroheim, forgotten men, george archainbaud, hugh herbert, Joel McCrea, Mary Astor, Richard Dix, Robert Armstrong, the lost squadron, wallace smith, World War I

The Office Wife (1930) Starring Dorothy Mackaill and Lewis Stone

May 23, 2013 By Cliff Aliperti 6 Comments

Publisher Lewis Stone needs a new secretary and Dorothy Mackaill gets the job in The Office Wife (1930). Great dialogue in this pre-Code hit, with many of the best lines coming from Joan Blondell.

Filed Under: Movie Reviews Tagged With: 1930, 1930 movies, blanche friderici, brooks benedict, charles kenyon, dorothy mackaill, faith baldwin, hobart bosworth, Joan Blondell, Lewis Stone, lloyd bacon, natalie moorhead, pre-code, the office wife, walter merrill, warner archive

Her Man (1930) Starring Helen Twelvetrees and Phillips Holmes

May 21, 2013 By Cliff Aliperti Leave a Comment

Tay Garnett’s Her Man from Pathe is an overlooked pre-Code classic starring Helen Twelvetrees in the first screen adaptation of the Frankie and Johnny ballad. With Phillips Holmes, Ricardo Cortez and Marjorie Rambeau.

Filed Under: Movie Reviews Tagged With: 1930, 1930 movies, franklin pangborn, Harry Sweet, Helen Twelvetrees, her man, james gleason, Marjorie Rambeau, matthew betz, Phillips Holmes, pre-code, ricardo cortez, Slim Summerville, stanley fields, tay garnett, Thelma Todd, Turkey Mike Donlin

The Sin Ship (1931) – Astor’s Frisco Kitty Makes for Holy Wolheim

May 8, 2013 By Cliff Aliperti 22 Comments

Written for The Mary Astor Blogathon, The Sin Ship (1931) stars Astor with Louis Wolheim, who also directed what would be his final film prior to his tragic death in 1931. Also starring Ian Keith and Hugh Herbert.

Filed Under: Movie Reviews Tagged With: 1931, 1931 movies, hugh herbert, ian keith, Louis Wolheim, Mary Astor, RKO, the sin ship

The Penalty (1941) Starring Gene Reynolds and Edward Arnold

April 24, 2013 By Cliff Aliperti Leave a Comment

Roosty worships gangster dad “Stuff” Nelson in MGM’s The Penalty (1941). When the G-men send Roosty to the farm he has to adjust to life amongst the hicks. Starring Edward Arnold as Stuff, Lionel Barrymore and Gene Reynolds as Roosty.

Filed Under: Movie Reviews Tagged With: 1941, 1941 movies, edward arnold, emma dunn, gangsters, gene reynolds, gloria dehaven, grant mitchell, harold s bucquet, lionel barrymore, marsha hunt, martin berkeley, phil silvers, richard lane, robert sterling, the penalty, veda ann borg

Public Enemy’s Wife (1936) and Bullets for O’Hara (1941)

April 21, 2013 By Cliff Aliperti 4 Comments

Continuing the G-man cycle with Warner Brother’s Public Enemy’s Wife (1936) and its 1941 remake, Bullets for O’Hara. Reuniting Robert Armstrong and Margaret Lindsay from G Men with Pat O’Brien, Public Enemy’s Wife is a worthwhile Warner’s crime film, while the low budget O’Hara is worth a try for fans of the original.

Filed Under: Movie Reviews Tagged With: 1936, 1936 movies, 1941, 1941 movies, anthony quinn, bullets for ohara, Cesar Romero, dick purcell, g men, gangster movies, joan perry, margaret lindsay, nick grinde, pat obrien, public enemys wife, Robert Armstrong, roger pryor, warner brothers, william k howard

G Men (1935) – The James Cagney Blogathon

April 10, 2013 By Cliff Aliperti 30 Comments

A look at Warner Brothers’ G MEN (1935) starring James Cagney, this time as the good guy. Based on several real incidents and infamous names, it’s the movie that began the G-Men cycle of films.

Filed Under: Movie Reviews Tagged With: 1935 movies, ann dvorak, Barton MacLane, crime, Darryl F Zanuck, edward pawley, edwin maxwell, fbi, g men, gangster movies, hal wallis, harold huber, james cagney, lloyd nolan, margaret lindsay, regis toomey, Robert Armstrong, russell hopton, seton i miller, warner brothers, william harrigan, William Keighley

How Green Was My Valley (1941) and the Black Slag of Time

April 8, 2013 By Cliff Aliperti 6 Comments

Like Roddy McDowall I find myself focused on Donald Crisp throughout the Academy Award winning How Green Was My Valley (1941). Labor unrest invades the valley and Crisp’s once stable world changes.

Filed Under: Movie Reviews Tagged With: 1941 movies, 20th Century Fox, best picture winners, donald crisp, john ford, literary adaptations, maureen ohara, oscar winners, richard llewellyn, Roddy McDowall, sara allgood, Twentieth Century-Fox, Walter Pidgeon

Brief Impressions: No Other Woman – Side Streets – Evelyn Prentice – Millionaires in Prison

March 27, 2013 By Cliff Aliperti Leave a Comment

William Powell and Myrna Loy 1935 Gallaher Famous Film Stars Tobacco Card

A quick peek at four movies I’ve watched recently: No Other Woman (1933); Side Streets and Evelyn Prentice (both 1934); and Millionaires in Prison (1940).

Filed Under: Movie Reviews Tagged With: Aline MacMahon, ann dvorak, charles bickford, Eric Linden, Evelyn Prentice, gwili andre, Irene Dunne, Isabel Jewell, lee tracy, Millionaires in Prison, myrna loy, No Other Woman, paul kelly, Rosalind Russell, Side Streets, william k howard, william powell

Night Court (1932) Starring Phillips Holmes and Walter Huston

March 24, 2013 By Cliff Aliperti Leave a Comment

Phillips Holmes takes on Walter Huston’s corrupt judge in MGM’s Night Court (1932), a pre-code drama directed by W.S. Van Dyke and also featuring Anita Page, Lewis Stone and Noel Francis.