Peter Kirk (Henry Fonda) is having a fun day on the slopes, until he crashes. But the crash turns out to be a happy accident. He lands at the feet of Helen Hunt (Barbara Stanwyck), a beautiful doctor vacationing at the same ski resort. Naturally, he chooses Helen to be the physician in charge of his recovery. Peter is flirtatious from the start, but Helen … Continue reading You Belong to Me (1941)
The favorite film: The Lady Eve, a 1941 romantic comedy directed by Preston Sturges. The synopsis: Charlie Pike, the adventuring heir to a beer fortune, boards a boat after an Amazon expedition. Once aboard, he meets Jean Harrington and her father. The Harringtons are cardsharp con artists, and Charlie may be their next target… until Jean finds herself falling for him. The cast: Barbara Stanwyck … Continue reading Favorite things about… The Lady Eve (1941)
Ives Towner (Henry Fonda) is an idealistic young man with dreams of a wonderful future with his love, Julie Wier (Joan Bennett). They plan to marry, but not until Ives has finished college and made something of himself. After waiting years for Ives to finally marry her, Julie starts to go a little stir-crazy in her small Vermont town. When she gets lost one day … Continue reading I Met My Love Again (1938)
In a small mill town on the border of Ohio and Pennsylvania lives blind veteran Frank Dunlap (Elisha Cook Jr.). He’s able to get around town quite well since he grew up there. He knows every block, every step. One day, as Frank is returning to his apartment, a wounded man tumbles down the stairs. Since he’s blind, Frank doesn’t know exactly what is going … Continue reading The Long Night (1947)
In the dusty West just before the turn of the 20th century, there are few things more exciting than the annual, extremely-competitive poker tournament held by the five richest men of the Laredo territory. They play in the back room of a saloon while a crowd eagerly awaits the outcome of the tournament. The competitors are willing to give up anything to partake in the … Continue reading A Big Hand for the Little Lady (1966)
The film: The Mad Miss Manton, dir. Leigh Jason starring Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda Rating: Recommended | Highly Recommended | MUST-SEE Before I began the Barbara Stanwyck Filmography Project, I reviewed and fell in love with The Mad Miss Manton, giving it a “Super Five” (5/5!) rating. The film follows Melsa Manton (Stanwyck), a socialite who is enjoying a late-night walk home from a costume party when … Continue reading One year, one film: 1938 – The Mad Miss Manton
Tommy Turner (Henry Fonda) is an English professor at Midwestern University. He and his wife Ellen (Olivia de Havilland) are preparing to host a cocktail party, with honored guests Frederick (Ivan Simpson) and Blanche Damon (Minna Phillips) — the Dean and his wife — among others. It’s homecoming week, and the school is also preparing for the big game against Michigan. Former team hero Joe … Continue reading The Male Animal (1942)
This post is technically a part of the “Favorite things about…” series. I decided to give it a fun name since this was one of the only Westerns I loved before beginning the “Lindsey Tries to Appreciate Westerns” project. The favorite film: Once Upon a Time in the West, also known as C’era una volta il West, a spaghetti Western directed by Sergio Leone The … Continue reading Lindsey Appreciates a Western: Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)
The favorite film: The Grapes of Wrath, a 1940 drama based on the novel by John Steinbeck (adapted for the screen by Nunnally Johnson) and directed by John Ford The synopsis: Tom Joad is fresh off of a prison sentence for homicide when he returns to his family’s home to find that they’ve been kicked off of their land. Like many Oklahoma sharecroppers, they’ve been … Continue reading Favorite things about… The Grapes of Wrath
Melsa Manton (Barbara Stanwyck) is a socialite who happens to be enjoying a late night walk with the dogs after a costume party when she comes across a body in the empty house belonging to a wealthy couple, the Lanes. She calls the police straight away, but when they show up, both the body and Melsa’s cape have vanished from the property. She insists that … Continue reading The Mad Miss Manton (1938)
