Tag Archives: 1940s

Stairway to Heaven (1946) Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger, David Niven, Kim Hunter, Robert Coote, Drama, Fantasy, Comedy

stairway-to-heaven-1946
Returning to England from a bombing run in May 1945, flyer Peter Carter’s plane is damaged and his parachute ripped to shreds. He has his crew bail out safely, but figures it is curtains for himself. He gets on the radio, and talks to June, a young American woman working for the USAAF, and they are quite moved by each other’s voices. Then he jumps, preferring this to burning up with his plane. He wakes up in the surf. It was his time to die, but there was a mixup in heaven. They couldn’t find him in all that fog. By the time his “Conductor” catches up with him 20 hours later, Peter and June have met and fallen in love. This changes everything, and since it happened through no fault of his own, Peter figures that heaven owes him a second chance. Heaven agrees to a trial to decide his fate.
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The Thin Man Goes Home (1945) Richard Thorpe, William Powell, Myrna Loy, Lucile Watson, Comedy, Crime, Mystery

the-thin-man-goes-home-1945
Nick and Nora head to Nick’s hometown of Sycamore Springs to spend some time with his parents. His father, a prominent local physician, was always a bit disappointed with Nick’s choice of profession in particular and his lifestyle in general. With Nick’s arrival however the towns folk, including several of the local criminal element, are convinced that he must be there on a case despite his protestations that he’s just there for rest and relaxation. When someone is shot dead on his doorstep however, Nick finds himself working on a case whether he wants to or not.
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Anna Karenina (1948) Julien Duvivier, Vivien Leigh, Ralph Richardson, Kieron Moore, Drama, Romance

anna-karenina-1948
Stefan and Dolly Oblonsky have had a little spat and Stefan has asked his sister, Anna Karenina, to come down to Moscow to help mend the rift. Anna’s companion on the train from St. Petersburg is Countess Vronsky who is met at the Moscow station by her son. Col. Vronsky looks very dashing in his uniform and it’s love at first sight when he looks at Anna and their eyes meet. Back in St. Petersburg they keep running into each other at parties. Since she has a husband and small son, they must be very discreet if they are going to see each other alone.
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L’avventuriera del piano di sopra / The Lady Upstairs (1941) Raffaello Matarazzo, Vittorio De Sica, Clara Calamai, Giuditta Rissone, Comedy

L'avventuriera del piano di sopra AKA The Lady Upstairs (1941)
Misadventures of a young lawyer who, left alone at home for the departure of the jealous wife, is having to help a lady living in a top floor apartment, who asks him to host her to save her from the wrath of her husband. The young man offers his bed to the lady, content to sleep on the couch. The next morning, upon awakening, the lady is already gone, but at the same time is also missing a precious necklace of great value.
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The Glass Key (1942) Stuart Heisler, Alan Ladd, Veronica Lake, Brian Donlevy, Crime, Drama, Film-Noir

The Glass Key (1942)
In this slick updating of Dashiell Hammet’s crime novel, political boss Paul Madvig (Brian Donlevy) falls for reform politician Ralph Henry’s attractive daughter Janet (Veronica Lake), despite the caution of his best friend, Ed Beaumont (Alan Ladd). Paul’s efforts to disassociate himself from the criminal underworld backfire, however, when he is accused of murdering Janet’s disreputable brother, and a casino owner Paul had offended sends his sadistic thugs after Ed in revenge.
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