The Grand Hotel (1932) – Edmund Goulding

  It’s time to check in on Greta Garbo again, as we take on another recommendation from the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book following my screening of Anna Karenina. This one is based on the novel by Vicki Baum, and is filled with melodrama, one for almost every room in the hotel….

Anna Karenina (1935) – Clarence Brown

  It’s time to return the romance and melodrama section of the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book, and the title under examination time is the 1935 Greta Garbo classic based on the epic novel by Leo Tolstoy. Garbo is the titular Anna in 19th century St. Petersburg. Her husband, Karenin is played…

The Prisoner of Zenda (1937) – John Cromwell

  The next title up for review in the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book, as we return to the action section was the delightful, and previously reviewed, Adventures of Robin Hood, amongst its recommendations however, was this delightful jewel I had never seen. Ronald Colman takes on double duty as Major Rudolph Rassendyll…

The Princess Bride (1973) – William Goldman

  William Goldman’s ‘abridged version of S. Morgenstern’s Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure” has been long overdue for a read. It should come as no surprise that the movie follows the book very closely, as Goldman adapted his own book to the screen, but it was still fun to dive into the…

Slumdog Millionaire (2008) – Danny Boyle

  The final recommendation from the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book for my screening of On The Waterfront is this immensely enjoyable tale. Boyle’s kinetic, energetic film style is well-served in this film, that is a dramatic, heart-on-its-sleeve film that one 8 academy awards and that year’s ceremonies, including Best Picture, Best…

The Lost Weekend (1945) – Billy Wilder

  Ray Milland and Jane Wyman star in this first recommendation from Great Movies – 100 Years of Film following my viewing of On The Waterfront. And wow… $10 went a long way back in 1945! This one took Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay, and Milland too Best Actor at the Oscars that year,…

Relic (1995) – Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child

  I read this one back when it first came out, though I definitely didn’t recall much in the way of details, I think because after I read it, I saw the film adaptation, which, in my opinion dropped the ball (though now that I have read the book again, I may rewatch the film,…

The Book Thief (2013) – Brian Percival

  I read the book for this one some time ago, and had forgotten enough of it so that I was coming in to the story fresh, and wow did I enjoy this one. Great performances, a stirring score, thank you John Williams and an emotional and human tale from a script by Michael Petroni,…

Jodorowsky’s Dune (2013) – Frank Pavich

  The most influential science fiction never made. There’s no other way to put it. The names involved with this film resonate across all of pop culture, and specifically the sci-fi films that followed this film, that never shot a single frame… I wanted to see this one as soon as I heard about it,…

The Lady From Shanghai (1947) – Orson Welles

  Welles takes us in to the film noir world as he writes, directs and stars in this adaptation of Sherwood King’s novel; the next recommendation from the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book following my screening of Citizen Kane. Welles plays Michael O’Hara, replete with Irish accent, a rough and tumble sailor,…