Author Archive: Retro

A young man, Facing torture and possibly death for his Christian beliefs, confesses his fears to Peter, who awaits a similar fate. Peter tells him of fear he felt in following Jesus’ arrest in the Garden of Gethesamene, when he denied knowing him three times – and yet Jesus told him that he would be the rock upon which the Church was built. Peter goes on to relate the events of the passion week, including the Christ’s crucifixion, resurrection and ascension.

Mattathias and his five sons deliver their people, based on the Books of the Maccabees in the Apocrypha.

Biblical epic covering the reign of the wicked King of the Jews from his failed alliance with Anthony to his death, shortly after his order to kill all newborn males in his kingdom. English dubbed. Dir. Viktor Tourjansky (billed as Arnaldo Genoino)

Dir. Lionello De Felice. Biblical epic about Emperor Constantine who in 303 AD becomes emperor of Gaul and defeats the Roman Army.

The life of the First Protestant is depicted as he breaks away from the Catholic church in the 16th Century. Dir. Irving Pichel. A magnificent depiction of Luther and the forces at work in the surrounding society that resulted in his historic reforming efforts.

Dickens’ classic tale of the orphan boy who wanted “more”. Chaney is perfectly cast as Fagin.

Before it became one of Hollywood’s busiest B-picture mills, Monogram Pictures had a fondness for literary adaptations (The Moonstone, Jane Eyre etc.) Monogram’s 1933 Black Beauty was, of course, based on the classic novel by Anna Sewell. Only a few of the many anecdotal adventures of the titular black horse are dramatized herein. Black Beauty is raised by a loving family, is abused by unloving owners, then returns to the loving family again. Silent movie star Esther Ralston is top-billed, but the true acting honors go to Black Beauty herself. The story would be remade by 20th Century-Fox in 1946, and for television several times over.