Arsenic and Old Lace (1944)

Arsenic and Old Lace (1944)

[7] Cary Grant leads a wacky ensemble for director Frank Capra's film adaptation of Joseph Kesselring's crowd-pleasing stage play, Arsenic and Old Lace. Grant plays Mortimer Brewster, a newlywed stopping by the Brooklyn home of the two elderly aunts who…
The Old Dark House (1932)

The Old Dark House (1932)

[8] Five travelers end up stranded at our title location after a fierce night-time storm makes driving the English hillsides too dangerous. The family that lives there is less than hospitable, with secrets that make the evening increasingly frightening. The…
Desperate Journey (1942)

Desperate Journey (1942)

[7] After his bomber crew crash behind enemy lines, Errol Flynn leads an ever-shrinking number of men out of Nazi Germany, carrying information that will help turn the tide of war. Desperate Journey often plays like a comic-book rendition of…
James Dean (2001)

James Dean (2001)

[8] I've loved James Dean ever since my high school art teacher showed me East of Eden and Rebel Without a Cause, which prompted me to write a senior essay on the famous actor's life and work. So I'm coming…
East of Eden (1955)

East of Eden (1955)

[10]

James Dean received the first posthumous acting nomination from the Academy Awards for his performance as the troubled Cal in East of Eden, his first major film role. (He would die tragically just a few months after the film was released.) It’s a riveting performance, one of the most vulnerable and moving I’ve ever seen. The film, directed with style and elegance by Elia Kazan, is based on the last quarter of John Steinbeck’s sprawling novel. Steinbeck believed the power of storytelling was in its ability to remind us of our own humanity, and when I learned that, it helped me understand why I’ve loved this movie for so long.