Meet Me in St. Louis. 1944. USA. Directed by Vincente Minnelli

These notes accompany the screenings of Vincente Minnelli’s Meet Me in St. Louis on July 27, 28, and 29 in Theater 2.

Over the years, I have had three close friends who were so devoted to Vincente Minnelli (1903–1986) that they wrote extensively about the Meet Me in St. Louis director. Read more

Laura. 1944. USA. Directed by Otto Preminger

Last week I mildly berated Andrew Sarris for pretty much ignoring Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger in his auteurist bible, The American Cinema. This week, with Laura by Otto Preminger (1905–1986), we have an example of just how influential Sarris was and is. Read more

The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp. 1943. Great Britain. Directed by Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger

These notes accompany the screenings of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger’s The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp on July 13, 14, and 15 in Theater 2.

The idiosyncratic and overlapping careers of Michael Powell (1905–1990) and Emeric Pressburger (1902–1988) are arguably the strongest challenge to the auteur theory, which holds that a single artist, the director, is the primary creative force behind a film. Read more

Day of Wrath. 1943. Denmark. Directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer

These notes accompany the screenings of Carl Th. Dreyer’s Day of Wrath on July 6, 7, and 8 in Theater 3.

Despite being one of the greatest film directors, Carl Th. Dreyer (1889–1968) will probably always be considered an acquired taste. His best films are much too austere and demanding for even many serious moviegoers. Read more

Ninotchka. 1939. USA. Directed bu Ernst Lubitsch

Oops! I almost left out Ninotchka. Somehow, this 1939 masterpiece slipped through the cracks. I apologize for whatever inconvenience this violation of my self-imposed chronology may cause, although I don’t think the Prime Directive has been threatened. Read more

Air Force. 1943. USA. Directed by Howard Hawks

These notes accompany the screenings of Howard Hawks’s Air Force on June 22, 23, and 24 in Theater 3.

Howard Hawks’s Air Force and John Ford’s They Were Expendable are the cream of a very abundant crop of Hollywood World War II films. Read more

Native Land. 1942. USA. Directed by Leo Hurwitz, Paul Strand

These notes accompany the screenings of Leo Hurwitz and Paul Strand’s Native Land on June 15, 16, and 17 in Theater 2.

For a number of reasons, I had some hesitation about including Native Land in our series. First of all, with two directors, it tends to undermine the argument that film art is a medium with a single primary creator. Read more

Prelude to War. 1942. USA. Directed and produced by Major Frank Capra

These notes accompany the screenings of Frank Capra’s Why We Fight WWII propaganda films on June 8, 9, and 10 in Theater 3.

Because everyone went to the movies during World War II, the American government found the film industry to be more helpful in propagandizing the populace than at any time before or since. Americans were movie-mad and generally believed whatever they saw at the local theater. Read more

Casablanca. 1942. USA. Directed by Michael Curtiz

These notes accompany the screenings of Michael Curtiz’s Casablanca on June 1, 2, and 3 in Theater 1.

In a recent Internet posting, the Writers Guild of America chose Casablanca as the greatest screenplay of all time. The list of 101 titles included only two foreign films—Renoir’s Grand Illusion and Fellini’s 8 1/2—worth including. I don’t know how people find time for such insipid silliness, but they do. Read more

The Lady Eve. 1941. USA. Written and directed by Preston Sturges

These notes accompany the screenings of Preston Sturges’s The Lady Eve on May 25, 26, and 27 in Theater 3.

Preston Sturges (1898–1959) was in that fraternity of Hollywood scriptwriters (along with Billy wilder, John Huston, Joseph L. Mankiewicz, Blake Edwards, and Elaine May, to name just a few) who ultimately weren’t content to let someone else direct their scripts. Sturges’s own transition took a long time; he wrote part or all of 17 films between 1930 and his directorial debut a decade later. Read more