The Partnership Of Fred Astaire And Ginger Rogers

Laurel and Hardy, Bogie and Bacall, Morecambe and Wise, Hope and Crosby, Pryor and Wilder, Tracy and Hepburn. There are some people who are just meant to be together and you cannot ever imagine them apart. Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers are one such screen partnership. Fred and Ginger fit together perfectly and are quite…

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Now, Voyager(1942) At Eighty

Eighty years ago, Now, Voyager received its premiere in New York on the 22nd of October, 1942. The film went on general release in America on the 31st of October and wouldn't be released here in the UK until November of 1943. It is based upon the 1941 novel of the same name, which was…

The Naked Jungle(1954)

The Naked Jungle is one wild film. There’s a vast amount of sexual tension crackling away between Eleanor Parker and Charlton Heston, something which leads to their shared scenes(especially the moment he applies some insect repellent ointment to Joanna's skin) and dialogue delivery being so sexually suggestive, that you really do have to wonder quite how…

King Solomon’s Mines(1950)

King Solomon's Mines is a lot of fun and has a perfect blend of adventure, action, romance and mystery. It was directed at first by Compton Bennett who was replaced in the director's chair by Andrew Marton after the first few months of shooting. The film is based upon the 1885 novel of the same…

The 11th Annual What A Character Blogathon: Takashi Shimura

Kellee at Outspoken And Freckled, Aurora at Once Upon A Screen and Paula at Paula's Cinema Club, are back together co-hosting one of my favourite annual blogathons. Their joint blogathon is dedicated to the character actors working in film and television across the years. Make sure you check out their sites on the 8th of…

The Discovering Classic Cinema Blogathon Arrives!

Welcome to the Discovering Classic Cinema Blogathon. I hope you're all well and had a lovely Christmas. Please drop by this page over the next few days in order to read a selection of very different stories about how we discovered classic era films and became fans. I want to say a huge thank you…

Discovering Classic Cinema Blogathon: My Classic Film Journey

Classic era films are my happy place. They've been a much needed source of comfort and escape for me over the years and continue to be so. Watching them is like being in the company of friends whose presence makes you feel as though a warm blanket has been gently placed around your shoulders. I…

Hawksian Women

Howard Hawks is one of my favourite American film directors from the classic film era. One of the things that I've always loved most about his films is that his focus is always on the characters. He really lets us see deep into his characters personalities and gives us a good sense of who they…

Dark Passage(1947)

Dark Passage is one of the most underrated and interesting of all the 1940’s Noir films. Quite why this one isn’t discussed more often is beyond me. It’s a very different looking Film Noir than most and also offers us a glimpse of a far more vulnerable Humphrey Bogart. The Humphrey Bogart we see in this…

Announcing The Discovering Classic Cinema Blogathon

I'm delighted to announce my first Blogathon here on my new blog. Those of you who knew me when I was blogging a few years ago will remember how much I loved these. I'd love you all to join me for this one. For this Blogathon the focus is upon how we all came to…

The End Of The Affair(1955)

One of Deborah Kerr's very best performances can be found in this British film adapted from the novel of the same name by Graham Greene, which was published in 1951. The novel is partly based on Greene’s own love affair with Catherine Walston and is dedicated to her.  The film is directed by one of my…

Sherlock Holmes And Beyond: A Profile Of Basil Rathbone

Basil Rathbone was one of the finest actors working during the classic film era. During the 1930’s and 1940’s he gained worldwide fame and appreciation, not only for his superb portrayal of Sherlock Holmes, but also for all of those memorable screen villains that he played so often. There are not enough words for me to…

Stray Dog(1949)

"He felt he would suffocate on the bus. A baby was crying. The cheap perfume of the woman next to him was nauseating." This voiceover is heard almost three minutes into the film as we see Toshiro Mifune's young detective Murakami squashed together with fellow passengers(standing room only) on an overcrowded bus hurtling through the…

Walking Down The Dark Alleys Of Film Noir

Happy Noirvember. Yes it’s that time of year again, time to once again celebrate all things Film Noir. Put on your trench coats and hats, pour yourself a glass of bourbon and sit back and revel in a cinematic world of shadows, thrills, double-crosses, sexual tension, Femme and Homme Fatales and plenty of darkness and…