Tag: 2022 Summer Reading Challenge

Ink-Stained Hollywood — Book Review

September 14, 2022September 14, 2022Shawn1 Comment

This book review is part of the 2022 Summer Reading Classic Film Book Challenge hosted by Raquel Stecher’s Out of the Past blog. Click here for a list of the classic film books I am reviewing this summer and here for great reviews from others.…

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Heritage of the Desert — Book Review

September 5, 2022September 11, 2022ShawnNo Comments

This book review is part of the 2022 Summer Reading Classic Film Book Challenge hosted by Raquel Stecher’s Out of the Past blog. Click here for a list of the classic film books I am reviewing this summer and here for great reviews from others.…

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20th Century-Fox: Darryl F. Zanuck and the Creation of the Modern Film Studio — Book Review

September 5, 2022September 5, 2022Shawn1 Comment

This book review is part of the 2022 Summer Reading Classic Film Book Challenge hosted by Raquel Stecher’s Out of the Past blog. Click here for a list of the classic film books I am reviewing this summer and here for great reviews from others.…

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John Gilbert: The Last of the Silent Film Stars — Book Review

August 14, 2022August 21, 2022ShawnNo Comments

This book review is part of the 2022 Summer Reading Classic Film Book Challenge hosted by Raquel Stecher’s Out of the Past blog. Click here for a list of the classic film books I am reviewing this summer and here for great reviews from others.…

Continue Reading

The Motion Picture Stunt Pilots — Book Review

July 17, 2022August 21, 2022ShawnNo Comments

This book review is part of the 2022 Summer Reading Classic Film Book Challenge hosted by Raquel Stecher’s Out of the Past blog. Click here for a list of the classic film books I am reviewing this summer and here for great reviews from others.…

Continue Reading

The First King of Hollywood: The Life of Douglas Fairbanks—Book Review

July 11, 2022August 21, 2022ShawnNo Comments

This book review is part of the 2022 Summer Reading Classic Film Book Challenge hosted by Raquel Stecher’s Out of the Past blog. Click here for a list of the classic film books I am reviewing this summer and here for great reviews from others.…

Continue Reading

Spite Marriage, 1929 - ★★½
Don’t know if I’m being nit picky but having laughs on the original soundtrack really took me out of the comedy. There’s some good humor of Buster onstage but it falls a little flat for me knowing the audience is enjoying his shenanigans.The last half of the film really falls if the rails but at […]
The Maltese Falcon, 1931 - ★★★★
Surprised at how good this version of The Maltese Falcon is. It doesn’t have nearly as distinct an atmosphere as the famous 1941 adaptation but has the advantage of being more frank about sex as a Pre Code. Richard Cortez and Bebe Daniels deliver career best performances and along with the rest of the cast […]
Daughter of Shanghai, 1937 - ★★★★
Coming in at just over an hour, this fast-paced crime thriller gets a lot of mileage out of Ann May Wong and Phillip Ahn in the leads. Its smuggling migrants plot never feels exploitative like a lot of other films of the period but still manages to build up suspense and reach a satisfying climax […]
The Great Ziegfeld, 1936 - ★★★
Despite it being overblown and a least an hour too long, The Great Ziegfeld always keeps your attention. It helps that what it lacks in plot it makes up with a good cast and a couple beautifully shot musical numbers. (A Pretty Girl Is Like A Melody being the most impressive despite the mishandling of […]
The Unholy Three, 1930 - ★★★
Of all Chaney’s starting vehicles to remake as a sound version, The Unholy Three makes the most sense even if it wasn’t a very thrilling choice. (West of Zanzibar would have been my choice but it was quite a recent release still in 1930). It would have been really hard for Chaney to seamlessly transition […]