1940 Movies
OSCARS Won/Nominated
The Devil Bat
Dir: Jean Yarborough Stars: Bela Lugosi Completely forgettable, but if Bela Lugosi wasn't in it...it would have no other reason to exist. Lugosi is a doctor who Frankenstein-ed his way into creating a mann-eating, huge bat who is attacking the locals. No real motivation...but Lugosi can act circles around the rest of the actors. His charisma is the only reason this film was made..and the only reason to see it. C- |
Fantasia
1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die I feast for the eyes and the ears. Disney released this film, with the first use of stereo sound, and showed the world what they can and will be able to accomplish with their animation. They took famous works of classical music and animated such wonderful, memorable, gorgeous realizations of that music and it works 100%. To watch the dreamlike unfolding of the Nutcracker Suite or the nightmarish Night on Bald Mountain or the fun Sorcerer's Apprentice or the Dance of the Hours...it is hard to choose exactly which one is more extraordinary. A Bluray |
His Girl Friday
Dir: Howard Hawks Stars: Cary Grant, Rosalind Russell 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die This is considered one of the greatest comedies of all time. I think that is complete misrepresentation. It is madcap, screwball, frantic ridiculousness...but what is actually happeneing is actually a bit sad and subversive. I really enjoyed Cary Grant, but the entire enterprise feels like it is almost a dare to see how fast people can deliver their lines. I don't believe for a second that anyone ever spoke this fast or believed people spoke that fast. Petty distracting actually. C+ |
OSCARS
Best Original Score
Best Song |
Pinocchio
Dir: Ben Sharpsteen & Hamilton Luske 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die After I watched PINOCCHIO, I went to my Mom and started badgering her. How could she let my childhood pass by without ever introducing me to this classically wonderful Disney film. It has bright colors, wonderful animation, great music, scares, adventure, and just all-around magic. This is by far, one of the greatest animated films ever, and it shows that Disney has been so successful over the years not ONLY because of their always being on the cusp of animation technology, but because they can tell a heartfelt story like no other studio can. A+ DVD |