I saw this being suggested in another thread, so I thought why not....

Let's talk about classic films! Which ones do you like? Which ones don't you like? Which movies do you consider classics?

Favourite actors and actresses?

Let's start with the perhaps most classic of all the classics.... It might not be the best movie ever made, but if any movie can be labeled a true classic this is it:

If you have the predilection for silent films, I watched J'accuse (1919) for the first time last night. This film is a beautiful, harrowing, and tragic tale of a romantic love triangle amidst the backdrop of World War I. Directed by Abel Gance, though the film comes in at 2h 45m, it never feels like a slog, but a genuine, yet thorough and emotional journey. The film goes to dark places, places you don't expect it to, and certainly places Hollywood would have been wary of, but it's in that darkness that the truthfulness of the time and place shines through. A highly recommended film by me, for whatever that's worth.

A Bacchanalia of bizarreness gets a new cut in its return to the screen.

‘Caligula: The Ultimate Cut’ Review: The Emperor’s New Clothes

Has anybody ever seen this movie? Admittedly, I haven’t. Only a trailer and some clips. I do wonder whether the television series I, Claudius that aired a few years before might have inspired the characterization of Caligula in some way. (Even though quality seems like night and day when comparing the two adaptations). The trailer seems like a way over the top version of what was presented in I Claudius but from the screenshot of McDowell draped over Mirren in the article, it just seems like some of the characterization of Caligula in the movie may have been their hardcore take on John Hurt’s decadent portrayal of the character.

I've finally completed my thorough watch of silent films up to the year 1919, and since I finished the first full decade of feature films, I thought it'd be fun to share my choices for the would be Academy Awards ...

Best Picture
1911: DANTE'S INFERNO (L'Inferno) - dir. Francesco Bertolini, Adolfo Padovan (ITL)
1912: FROM THE MANGER TO THE CROSS - dir. Sidney Olcott (CAN)
1913: ATLANTIS - dir. August Blom (DEN)
1914: CABIRIA - dir. Giovanni Pastrone (ITL)
1915: THE BIRTH OF A NATION - dir. D.W. Griffith (USA)
1916: JOAN THE WOMAN - dir. Cecil B. DeMille (USA)
1917: A MAN THERE WAS (Terje Vigen) - dir. Victor Sjöström (SWE)
1918: STELLA MARIS - dir. Marshall Neilan (USA)
1919: J'ACCUSE - dir. Abel Gance (FRA)

Lead Actor:
1915: GEORGE BEBAN (The Italian)
1916: WILLIAM S. HART (Hell's Hinges)
1917: VICTOR SJÖSTRÖM (A Man There Was)
1918: RAYMOND HATTON (The Whispering Chorus)
1919: ROMUALD JOUBÉ (J'accuse)

Lead Actress:
1915: THEDA BARA (A Fool There Was)
1916: MARY MACLAREN (Shoes)
1917: MARY PICKFORD (The Little American)
1918: NORMA TALMADGE (The Forbidden City)
1919: LILLIAN GISH (Broken Blossoms)

Supporting Actor:
1915: SESSUE HAYAKAWA (The Cheat)
1916: EUGENE PALLETT (Going Straight)
1917: JACK HOLT (The Little American)
1918: GORDON GRIFFITH (Tarzan of the Apes)
1919: DONALD CRISP (Broken Blossoms)

Supporting Actress:
1915: MAE MARSH (The Birth of a Nation)
1916: CONSTANCE TALMADGE (Intolerance: Love's Struggle Throughout the Ages)
1917: VOLA VALE (The Silent Man)
1918: DOROTHY GISH (Hearts of the World)
1919: CLARINE SEYMOUR (True Heart Susie)

Don't worry, I won't become annoying about this as I also have lists of golden age films and modern classics to go with my silent watching.

Edited September 26, 20241 yr by Bright Eyes

 

Kudos to Warner Bros. for doing this!

https://variety.com/2025/digital/news/warner-bros-free-movies-youtube-streaming-1236298880/

8 minutes ago, Bright Eyes said:

Kudos to Warner Bros. for doing this!

https://variety.com/2025/digital/news/warner-bros-free-movies-youtube-streaming-1236298880/

This is absolutely AMAZING. LIKE - AMAZING AMAZING. YEEEEEEEEEES.

Remembering Vivien Leigh, who died on this date 58 years ago.  Gone much too soon.

The definition of an Icon. Gone way too soon. 

On 7/8/2025 at 2:28 AM, I Am A Swede said:

Remembering Vivien Leigh, who died on this date 58 years ago.  Gone much too soon.

 

 

October 19, 2023
Patrick Stewart (from Star Trek etc.) was in the Old Vic Touring Company in England with Vivian Leigh.
Patrick tells Conan O'Brien that he(Patrick) attended a re-release of Gone With the Wind in a movie theater, seated next to Vivian Leigh and her boyfriend, and she cried.  He also says that he invited her to his 25th birthday party and she attended, and gave him a present of a handkerchief scented with her favorite perfume.

My words are useless here, just watch
 

Edited July 14Jul 14 by janea4old

Happy 75th anniversary to Sunset Boulevard - one of the best screenplays ever written and Gloria Swanson delivers one of the best cinematic performances in history that didn’t win the Academy Award. 
 

 

City Slickers - I only vaguely remembered it from my childhood, but I just watched it as an adult and I had no idea how much heart and humanity there was in it. Pushing 40 in a few years myself, it really hit home. Not to mention all the supporting cast is a real who's who from a young Yeardley Smith to being Jake Gyllenhaal's film debut. Plus, it must be said, even before I saw Jack Palance had won an Oscar for it, I thought he was fan-f*cking-tastic in this movie.

 

Apologies if this is an annoying ask, but I thought it could be a fun challenge. Can you fine film lovers help me identify all the films in this video ... the oldest one posted on the official TCM YouTube page?

Here's what I got so far, but usually my mind goes blank or I simply haven't seen the film so have no idea. And, of course, if any of my guesses are wrong, please correct me. Here goes:

0:08-0:14: Sunset Boulevard

0:14-0:18: Bugsy

0:18-0:20: ? Alfie?

0:20-0:21: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof

0:22-0:29 The Birds

0:29-0:33: Chinatown

0:33-0:34: Funny Face

0:34-0:35: ?

0:35-0:39: ?

0:39-0:41: I know it's Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers, but I can't tell which of their films specifically

0:41-0:46: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

0:47-0:50: A River Runs Through It

0:50-0:53: Crimson Tide

0:53-0:54: ?

0:54-0:55: ?

0:55-0:57: Chinatown again

0:57-0:58: Astaire/Rogers again, but?

0:59-1:03: Network

1:03-1:06: Glory

1:07-1:08: Lawrence of Arabia

1:09-1:12: ?

1:13-1:16: Moonstruck

1:17-1:18: Cleopatra

1:19-1:20: ?

1:21-1:22: ?

1:23-1:27: ?

1:28-1:32: Sophie's Choice

1:33-1:36: The Graduate

1:37-1:40: Boyz n the Hood

1:41-1:43: ?

1:43-1:49: Close Encounters of the Third Kind

1:50:1:53: Annie Hall

1:54:1:57: Rocky

1:58-2:01: The Last Detail

2:02-2:03: Lawrence of Arabia again?

2:04-2:06: Easy Rider

2:07-2:12: ?

2:13-2:17: My Fair Lady

THE END

Edited November 8Nov 8 by Bright Eyes

0:35-0:39 is The King and I. After that could be Swing Time but I can't be sure.

0:53 might be From Here to Eternity.

0:54-55 is Mildred Pierce.

1:19 is The Quiet Man.

Pretty sure 1:21 is Notorious.

1:41 is Heaven Can Wait.

2:07 is The Natural.

Edited November 8Nov 8 by Vee

1:23-1:27 is also Funny Face

47 minutes ago, I Am A Swede said:

1:23-1:27 is also Funny Face

I had a slight remembrance it was, but wasn't sure. Thankyou, and thank you @Vee for filling in all those blanks, it's a tremendous help. I erred on thinking Swing Time as well as I've seen most of the Astaire/Rogers pictures, but wasn't confident since it's been awhile.