FanFare

[TRAILER] Sweet-natured Alice Sycamore (Jean Arthur) falls for banker's son Tony Kirby (James Stewart). But when she invites her snooty prospective in-laws to dinner to give their blessing to the marriage, Alice's peculiar extended family -- including philosophical grandfather Martin Vanderhof (Lionel Barrymore), hapless fledgling ballerina sister Essie (Ann Miller) and fireworks enthusiast father, Paul (Samuel S. Hinds) -- might be too eccentric for the staid Kirbys. [more inside]
posted by DirtyOldTown on Jan 23, 2023 - 5 comments

[TRAILER] Longfellow Deeds (Gary Cooper), a resident of small-town Vermont, leads a simple life until he inherits a vast fortune from a late uncle. Soon, unscrupulous lawyer John Cedar (Douglas Dumbrille) brings Deeds to New York City, where the unassuming heir is the object of much media attention. When wily reporter Babe Bennett (Jean Arthur) gains the trust and affection of Deeds, she uses her position to publish condescending articles about him -- but are her feelings for him really that shallow? [more inside]
posted by DirtyOldTown on Jan 19, 2023 - 4 comments

An aging New York City fruit seller named Apple Annie (May Robson) attempts to maintain an outrageous charade. Long separated from her daughter, Louise (Jean Parker), who has been raised in a Spanish convent, Annie has hidden her modest position in life by claiming in her letters to be an aristocrat. When Louise finally comes to visit, Annie enlists the help of local gangster Dave the Dude (Warren William) to pose as a Manhattan socialite, leading to antics aplenty. [more inside]
posted by DirtyOldTown on Jan 19, 2023 - 2 comments

[TRAILER] A penniless drifter (Gary Cooper) is recruited by an ambitious columnist (Barbara Stanwyck) to impersonate a non-existent person who said he'd be committing suicide as a protest, and a social movement begins. [more inside]
posted by DirtyOldTown on Jan 19, 2023 - 1 comment

[TRAILER] Based on the Broadway play of the same name, this comedy finds widower Tony Manetta (Frank Sinatra) struggling to own and operate a Miami hotel, but dreaming of opening a new Disneyland... in Florida!. (The film pre-dates Walt Disney World by 12 years). Irresponsible in both business and romance, Tony is dedicated to his young son, Ally (Eddie Hodges), though he butts heads with his own brother, Mario (Edward G. Robinson). [more inside]
posted by DirtyOldTown on Jan 19, 2023 - 1 comment

[TRAILER] Megan Davis (Barbara Stanwyck) arrives in China to marry Dr. Robert Strike (Gavin Gordon), her missionary fiancé. The Chinese Civil War interrupts their wedding plans, and the couple is separated while trying to save endangered orphans. Chinese warlord General Yen (Nils Asther) rescues Davis after she faints but subsequently holds her captive, persistently attempting to seduce her. Surprisingly, though, Davis becomes attracted to Yen and develops a sympathy for his embattled position. [more inside]
posted by DirtyOldTown on Jan 19, 2023 - 2 comments

[TRAILER] When the idealistic young Jefferson Smith (James Stewart) winds up appointed to the United States Senate, he gains the mentorship of Senator Joseph Paine (Claude Rains). However, Paine isn't as noble as his reputation would indicate, and he becomes involved in a scheme to discredit Smith, who wants to build a boys' campsite where a more lucrative project could go. Determined to stand up against Paine and his corrupt peers, Smith takes his case to the Senate floor. [more inside]
posted by DirtyOldTown on Jan 19, 2023 - 4 comments

Based on a novel by James Hilton, this fantasy/drama follows a group of plane-crash survivors who have landed in the mythical Shangri-La, a valley hidden deep within the mountains of the Himalayas. Rescued by followers of the High Llama (Sam Jaffe), the outsiders grow to love the remote paradise, but British writer and diplomat Robert Conway (Ronald Colman), suspecting that the crash was no accident, begins to investigate, leading to a surprising revelation. [more inside]
posted by DirtyOldTown on Aug 28, 2022 - 8 comments

Picard is bumped all the way back down to Cadet following a disastrous away mission. Harsh, yes, but what do you expect from Q? [more inside]
posted by CheesesOfBrazil on Aug 5, 2021 - 36 comments

A drama critic learns on his wedding day that his beloved maiden aunts are homicidal maniacs, and that insanity runs in his family. [more inside]
posted by joseph conrad is fully awesome on Oct 26, 2015 - 14 comments

An angel helps a compassionate but despairingly frustrated businessman by showing what life would have been like if he never existed. Directed by Frank Capra, starring James Stewart, Donna Reed and Lionel Barrymore. [more inside]
posted by the man of twists and turns on Dec 24, 2014 - 28 comments