[8] Jimmy Stewart gives a career-defining performance in this Frank Capra classic about a celebrated boy scout leader (Stewart) who gets chosen to fill a deceased senator’s seat in the U.S. congress. His party assumes Stewart will be a doting yes-man, seriously underestimating his sense of duty and patriotism. When he introduces legislation that conflicts with a corrupt land deal, the party tries to take …
[6] Cary Grant and Claude Rains star as British officers whose paths cross time and again on the Eastern front of World War I. The two become friends after Rains saves Grant from Kurdish raiders. Grant then goes on to help Rains move a village to safety and prevent a sneak attack on British troops. The friends part for much of the second act, during …
[7] Errol Flynn stars in his most enduring performance in this romantic action adventure that has captured audiences of all ages for more than three-quarters of a century. You know the story: In the absence of King Richard, Prince John seizes control of the land and taxes it into despair, causing a renegade Saxon named Robin Hood to come to the people’s defense, stealing from …
[7] Bette Davis stars as Charlotte Vale, a nervous young woman whose emotionally abusive mother (Gladys Cooper) causes her to submit herself to a sanitarium. Under the care of her doctor (Claude Rains), Charlotte begins to gain the confidence to stand up for herself and appreciate her self worth. On an ocean-liner cruise she meets a man named Jerry (Casablanca‘s Paul Henreid) and falls in …
[6] In 18th century Italy, an orphan boy comes of age with the help of nuns and a kindly mentor, falls in love, gets embroiled in the slave trade, and fights for his inheritance in this adaptation of Hervey Allen’s sprawling novel. Anthony Adverse looks and sounds great, with immense sets, period costumes, and a rich score by Erich Wolfgang Korngold. Some of the supporting …
[7] Twins Billy and Bobby Mauch do very well as the title characters in this lavish production of Mark Twain’s oft-told tale of mistaken identity. Claude Rains takes the role of villainy this time, playing an evil Earl who forces the beggar boy to be king for his own selfish gain, while Errol Flynn (at his dashing best) plays the soldier of fortune who helps …
[5] Claude Rains is gold in all his scenes as the god-like Mr. Jordan, but I find the movie’s playfully fatalistic view of love and self-purpose too saccharine to swallow. Robert Montgomery is also good as the deceased boxer who, due to heavenly oversight, gets the opportunity to rejoin the living by possessing the bodies of freshly dead strangers. The film was nominated for several …
[7] In this romantic, seafaring adventure from director Michael Curtiz (Casablanca), Errol Flynn swashbuckles as a pirate hired by Queen Elizabeth I to thwart the Spanish armada. The Sea Hawk rises above Saturday matinee standards by integrating a healthy dose of political intrigue and cinematic panache. Flynn is terrific as usual, but there are also memorable performances by Flora Robson as Queen Elizabeth and Henry …
[5] Bette Davis stars as a woman who marries a banker (Claude Rains) to protect her brother from embezzlement charges. Claude Rains’ character knows full well that she’s marrying him for his money, but hopes that in time she’ll grow to love him. Well… she doesn’t. Bette Davis is a cold-hearted bitch in this movie, so all your sympathy goes to the long-suffering Rains, whose …
[9] Ingrid Bergman and Cary Grant headline this twisted love story from Alfred Hitchcock, about a secret service agent (Grant) who entices an aimless drunk (Bergman) to spy on a group of Nazis gathering uranium in Rio de Janeiro. There’s an immediate attraction between Bergman and Grant, but she has reservations about her self-worth and he won’t admit to loving her — possibly because of …
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