4 Shots From 4 Films: Special Humphrey Bogart Edition


4 Shots From 4 Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 Shots From 4 Films lets the visuals do the talking.

Today is not just Christmas!  It is also Humphrey Bogart’s birthday!  Bogart was born 126 years ago, today!  And that means that it’s time for….

4 Shots From 4 Films

Dead End (1937, dir by William Wyler)

Casablanca (1943, dir by Michael Curtiz)

The Big Sleep (1946, dir by Howard Hawks)

The African Queen (1951, dir by John Huston)

4 Shots From 4 Films: Special Michael Curtiz Edition


4 Shots From 4 Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 Shots From 4 Films lets the visuals do the talking.

December 24th is not just Christmas Eve!  It’s also the anniversary of the birth of Michael Curtiz!  Michael Curtiz was born in Budapest in 1886 and, after getting his start making silent films in Hungary, he eventually came to the United States and became one of the most important directors of Hollywood’s Golden Age!  Curtiz mastered every genre and worked with every star and the end result was some of the greatest films ever made.

Today, we honor the legacy of Michael Curtiz with….

4 Shots From 4 Michael Curtiz Films

The Walking Dead (1936, dir by Michael Curtiz, DP: Hal Mohr)

The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938, dir by Michael Curtiz, DP: W. Howard Greene)

Casablanca (1942, dir by Michael Curtiz, DP: Arthur Edeson)

Mildred Pierce (1945, dir by Michael Curtiz, DP: Ernest Haller)

8 Shots From 8 Films: Special Lisa Marie’s Favorite Best Picture Winners Edition


8 Shots From 8 Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 8 Shots From 8 Films lets the visuals do the talking!

My list of my favorite Best Picture winners is a fluid one.  There are a few — like All About Eve, It Happened One Night, the two Godfathers — that are always on the list.  I love these four films with all my heart.  Then there are films like No Country For Old Men that I think about and say, “Of course that’s going on the list!”  There are other films that have snuck up on me.  Until I was making out this list, I didn’t realize how much I truly did like Coda.

Anyway, here’s my top 8!

8 Shots From 8 Oscar-Winning Films

It Happened One Night (1934, dir by Frank Capra, DP: Joseph Walker)

Casablanca (1942, dir by Michael Curtiz, DP: Arthur Edeson)

All About Eve (1950, dir by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, DP: Milton R. Krassner)

West Side Story (1961, dir by Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins, DP: Daniel L. Fapp)

The Godfather (1972, dir by Francis Ford Coppola, DP: Gordon Willis)

The Godfather Part II (dir by Francis Ford Coppola, DP: Gordon Willis)

No Country For Old Men (2007, dir by Joel and Ethan Coen, DP: Roger Deakins)

CODA (2021, dir by Sian Heder, DP: Paula Huidobro)

4 Shots From 4 Best Picture Winners: The 1940s


4 Shots From 4 Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 Shots From 4 Films lets the visuals do the talking!

Today, I’m using this feature to take a look at the history of the Academy Award for Best Picture.  Decade by decade, I’m going to highlight my picks for best of the winning films.  To start with, here are 4 shots from 4 Films that won Best Picture during the 1940s!  Here are….

4 Shots From 4 Best Picture Winners: The 1940s

Rebecca (1940, dir by Alfred Hitchcock, DP: George Barnes)

Casablanca (1942, dir by Michael Curtiz, DP: Arthur Edeson)

The Best Years Of Our Lives (1946, dir by William Wyler, DP: Gregg Toland)

Hamlet (1948, dir by Laurence Olivier, DP: Desmond Dickinson)

4 Shots From 4 Films: Special Michael Curtiz Edition


4 Shots From 4 Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 Shots From 4 Films lets the visuals do the talking.

December 24th is not just Christmas Eve!  It’s also the anniversary of the birth of Michael Curtiz!  Michael Curtiz was born in Budapest in 1886 and, after getting his start making silent films in Hungary, he eventually came to the United States and became one of the most important directors of Hollywood’s Golden Age!  Curtiz mastered every genre and worked with every star and the end result was some of the greatest films ever made.

Today, we honor the legacy of Michael Curtiz with….

4 Shots From 4 Michael Curtiz Films

The Walking Dead (1936, dir by Michael Curtiz, DP: Hal Mohr)

The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938, dir by Michael Curtiz, DP: W. Howard Greene)

Casablanca (1942, dir by Michael Curtiz, DP: Arthur Edeson)

Mildred Pierce (1945, dir by Michael Curtiz, DP: Ernest Haller)

4 Shots From 4 Films: Special Humphrey Bogart Edition


4 Shots From 4 Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 Shots From 4 Films lets the visuals do the talking.

Today is not just Christmas!  It is also Humphrey Bogart’s birthday!  Bogart was born 121 years ago, today!  And that means that it’s time for….

4 Shots From 4 Films

Dead End (1937, dir by William Wyler)

Casablanca (1943, dir by Michael Curtiz)

The Big Sleep (1946, dir by Howard Hawks)

The African Queen (1951, dir by John Huston)

4 Shots From 4 Films: Special Michael Curtiz Edition


4 Shots From 4 Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 Shots From 4 Films lets the visuals do the talking.

December 24th is not just Christmas Eve!  It’s also the anniversary of the birth of Michael Curtiz!  Michael Curtiz was born in Budapest in 1886 and, after getting his start making silent films in Hungary, he eventually came to the United States and became one of the most important directors of Hollywood’s Golden Age!  Curtiz mastered every genre and worked with every star and the end result was some of the greatest films ever made.

Today, we honor the legacy of Michael Curtiz with….

4 Shots From 4 Films

Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933; Dir by Michael Curtiz)

The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938, dir by Michael Curtiz)

Casablanca (1943, dir by Michael Curtiz)

King Creole (1958, directed by Michael Curtiz)

Here’s Looking at You On The Big Screen, CASABLANCA!


gary loggins's avatarcracked rear viewer

Longtime readers of this blog know CASABLANCA is my all-time favorite film. It’s blend of stars, supporting cast, script, direction, drama, romance, and humor is the perfect example of 1940’s Hollywood storytelling,  when Tinseltown was at the peak of its moviemaking powers . I’ve seen the film at least 80 times in many different formats, from broadcast television to cable and satellite, from VHS to DVD to DVR, but never before on the big screen – until this past Sunday, that is!

Fathom Events, in conjunction with TCM, presents classic films on a monthly basis in theaters across the country. In my area, they’re shown at Regal Cinemas in Swansea, MA, a half hour drive down the highway. I’ve been tempted to make the trip a few times, but never got around to it for one reason or another. But when I heard CASABLANCA was this month’s feature, I knew…

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Madeleine LeBeau: Vive La France!


gary loggins's avatarcracked rear viewer

maddy1

I’ve mentioned many times before CASABLANCA is my all-time favorite movie. News came across the Atlantic today that Madeleine LeBeau, the last surviving cast member, passed away May 1, 2016 at age 92. Mademoiselle LeBeau’s early life reads like the CASABLANCA script, as she and her then-husband Marcel Dalio (who played the croupier in the film) fled Paris during the Nazi occupation to Portugal, receiving letters of transit in Lisbon. The letters turned out to be forgeries, and the couple were stranded in Mexico before emigrating to America, landing in Hollywood to resume their acting careers.

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Madeleine’s stateside credits are brief, and can be divided into pre- (HOLD BACK THE DAWN, GENTLEMAN JIM) and post- (PARIS AFTER DARK, MUSIC FOR MILLIONS) CASABLANCA films. After divorcing Dalio, she returned to Europe in 1947. She made movies in her native France (the all-star NAPOLEON and LA PARISIENNE with French cinema icons Charles Boyer and…

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