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You can rate and share your favorite classic movie posts here.
The CMBA Film Passion 101 Blogathon: Jean Harlow in Red Dust (1932)
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Dec 3, 2013
The first movie where I saw Jean Harlow was Red Dust (1932). I’d heard of Harlow, certainly, and knew of her reputation as a platinum blonde, but I’d never seen a single performance. And what an introduction this was. For the first five minutes of the movie, it’s all rugged male and jungle, complete read more
Please Don’t Call My Husband A Clown: The Awesomeness of New York Nights (1929)
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Nov 30, 2013
The movie starts off with a gunshot victim being taken to the hospital. The officers have to awaken the doctor on duty, who yawns, sees by his watch that it’s five in the morning, and remarks, “Why can’t these losers get shot at a decent hour?” That’s New York Nights. We next see the guy who’s read more
Loretta Young: Pre-Code Paragon
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Nov 29, 2013
As I mentioned here recently, I’m not overly enamored of Loretta Young post-1934. She was just a little too goody-goody for my taste, a little too square, a little too close to the perfect side. Plus, she lost that adorable girlishly sexy look that she had during the pre-Code era, and looked more read more
Happy Thanksgiving from Shadows and Satin — and Mary Doran!
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Nov 28, 2013
Happy Thanksgiving! I first noticed Mary Doran in The Divorcee (1930), where she plays the small but crucial role of the “other woman” in the marriage of Jerry (Norma Shearer) and Ted (Chester Morris). I had no idea who she was, and didn’t think much about her until I started having “Doran sightings read more
The Men of Brute Force (1947)
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Nov 27, 2013
Brute Force (1947) takes place in a men’s penetentiary and focuses on a group of cellmates who plan and execute a prison break, driven primarily by their desire to escape the torturous treatment of a sadistic guard. The cellmates, who are continuously tormented and dehumanized, find solace only read more
These Three: The Noirs I’ve Seen the Most
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Nov 26, 2013
Now that I’ve reconciled myself to the relationship between my “favorite” movies and the ones that I watch most often, I decided to turn my sights to the film noir features that so frequently find themselves popped into my VCR. Each of these is the kind of movie that I just HAVE to see every time read more
Quotes in Noir: The Killing (1956)
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Nov 25, 2013
Who says we can’t learn from the movies? One of my favorite noirs is The Killing (1956), Stanley Kubrick’s time-bending masterpiece about an intricately designed heist that goes terribly, terribly wrong. If you’ve never seen it, do yourself a solid and hunt down a copy, pronto. Notwithst read more
Soup’s On! My Favorite Pre-Code Dinner Guests
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Nov 24, 2013
Last week, you may recall, I listed 10 characters from the classic film noir era that I would most like to invite to a dinner party. I had such a good time planning my guest list, and even more fun reading your suggestions, that I decided to throw another soiree, this time inviting characters from p read more
Obscure Noir: Plunder Road (1957)
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Nov 23, 2013
For the first 13 minutes of Plunder Road, not one of the characters speaks a word. We can only hear their thoughts. It’s a fascinating beginning to one of the best obscure noirs around. In a nutshell, Plunder Road centers on – in the tradition of The Asphalt Jungle (1950), Rififi (1955), and The read more
Bad Boys: The Men of Pre-Code
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Nov 21, 2013
I admit it. I’m guilty of ignoring the pre-Code fellas. I’m so fond of gals like Norma Shearer and Joan Crawford, Carole Lombard and Loretta Young, Dorothy Mackaill and Joan Blondell (and I could go on and on and on) that I’m afraid I’ve given little attention to the manly side of these fascinating read more
Remembering Evelyn Keyes . . .
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Nov 20, 2013
November 20th is a banner day in the film noir world – it marks the birth date of film noir veteran Evelyn Keyes. This feisty femme appeared in four films noirs during her career, including one of my favorites, The Prowler (1951), and was also featured in such non-noir favorites as Here Comes Mr. read more
Quotes in Noir: The Damned Don’t Cry (1950)
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Nov 19, 2013
“Don’t talk to me about self-respect.” Among the many noirs of which I’m most fond is The Damned Don’t Cry (1950), starring my girl Joan Crawford, David Brian, Steve Cochran, and Kent Smith. In the film, Joanie plays Lorna Hansen Forbes, a Texas oil heiress and the darling of café read more
If you don’t have anything nice to say . . .
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Nov 18, 2013
A few years ago, at a local book fair, I picked up a book called If you don’t have anything nice to say . . . come sit next to me. What a find! Compiled by Coral Amende, this 1994 book is fairly bursting at the binding with catty comments, snarky sayings, and acerbic asides. Reading through the sect read more
The Maltese Falcon (or, The Big Oops)
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Nov 17, 2013
The Maltese Falcon is one of the best-known films from the noir era, and it’s rife with such familiar characters as the Fat Man and Sam Spade, and memorable quotes like this favorite: “The cheaper the crook, the gaudier the patter.” It’s also rife with more goofs than you can shake a stick at. read more
Johnny Eager: Characters Welcome
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Nov 16, 2013
Johnny Eager tells the story of a slick ex-con who works as a taxicab driver to mask his criminal activities. Standing in the way of Eager’s project is his longtime nemesis, the local district attorney, who just happens to be the stepfather of a young sociology student who falls for Johnny in a big read more
My Favorite Pre-Codes (Or Something Like That)
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Nov 15, 2013
Just a casual chat between gal pals. Don’t you just love pre-Code? Lately, I’ve been struggling with (well, not really struggling – maybe just thinking about? Mulling over?) my definition of “favorite” movie. For instance, I’ve long considered my “favorite” to be Gone With the Wind. read more
Bon Appetit: My Favorite Noir Dinner Guests
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Nov 14, 2013
Just one pie recipe. That’s not too much to ask, is it? What noir characters would you like to have for dinner? This was a question posed to Dark Pages readers several years ago by one of our longtime subscribers, Weda Mosellie. Miss Weda passed on earlier this year, so in her memory, it’ read more
Love that Lizabeth!
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Nov 13, 2013
A tawny-haired beauty with a smoldering gaze and a distinctively throaty voice, Lizabeth Scott is my film noir guilty pleasure. She’s no Sarah Bernhardt, it’s true – but she’s one of the quintessential bad girls of the noir era, and she’s just plain fun to watch! And on November 15th, TCM read more
Must-See Movie: My Name is Julia Ross (1945)
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Nov 12, 2013
Nina Foch gives a first-rate performance in the title role. My Name is Julia Ross came THISCLOSE to being my TCM film noir pick of the month – it was edged out by a hair by that ever-so-awesome Burt Lancaster starrer, The Sweet Smell of Success. But while you’re making your movie-watching choices read more
Behind the Scenes: Shelley Winters in A Double Life
Shadows and Satin Posted by shadowsandsatin on Nov 11, 2013
To today’s audiences, Shelley Winters may be the grandmother on the Roseanne Barr comedy show, or the zaftig swimming champion who valiantly perished in The Poseidon Adventure. But back in the day, she was a gorgeous blonde whose curvaceous figure was complemented by her considerable acting chops. read more