Author Archive: Retro

After causing the death of a fellow flyer, a reckless Fleet Arm pilot is busted out of the service, where he becomes a mercenary pilot on a Mediterranean Island. His old patriotism resurfaces when the Nazis take over the island. Produced by Michael Balcon. Dir. Sergei Nolbandov

Typical Amos ‘n Andy storyline has the boys trying to make ago of their “open-air” taxi business while they get caught up in asociety hassle, involving driving musicians to a fancy party. Allthe regular characters are here (or mentioned), including thefamous Mystic Knights of the Sea. The only film appearance of radio’s long-running characters.

Remake of the tragic 1919 film of a girl who escapes from her abusive father and befriends a kind Chinese youth. Originally intended to be directed by D.W. Griffith. Written by Emlyn Williams. Dir. John Brahm.

Casino operator Johnny Lamb hires down-on-her-luck socialite Lucille Sutton as his casino hostess, in order to help her and to improve casino income. But Lamb’s pals fear he may follow Lucille onto the straight-and-narrow path, which would not be good for business. So they hire Gert Malloy and Dictionary McKinney, a pair of con-artists, to manipulate Johnny back off the path of righteousness.

A man finds excitement and adventure while searching the South Seas for a woman’s missing fiance.

In the tradition of such big-budget “docudramas” as House on 92nd Street and Call Northside 777, the modestly budgeted C-Man adopts a quasi-documentary approach to its subject matter. The “C” stands for Customs, and indeed the leading character, Cliff Holden (Dean Jagger), is a detective for the U.S. Customs Department. Against a backdrop of genuine New York locations (with a few rather obvious back-projected shots thrown in), Holden puts the heat on a homicidal jewelry smuggler. John Carradine steals the show as an alcoholic doctor, reduced to fronting for the smugglers. The rest of the cast is populated with such Broadway regulars as Edith Atwater and Walter Brooke. Though it obviously cost next to nothing to produce, C-Man is far more atmospheric and suspenseful than many a major-studio effort.

A small group of men and a tank stave off a German attack in a Bedouin desert during World War II.

Family pressures lead a man to forsake his true love, who has a difficult time forgetting about him.

Simple Russian villagers find their happy lives interrupted when the Nazis ignore former treaties and begin a brutal occupation of Russia. Lots of songs written by Ira Gershwin and Aaron Copland. Produced by William Cameron Menzies. Dir. Lewis Milestone