Scarface (1932)
[This was a program note written to accompany the October 10, 1972, showing of Scarface in “The Cinema of Howard Hawks,” an Office of Lectures & Concerts Film Series at the University of...
View ArticleOut of the Past: The Front Page
[Originally published in Movietone News 54, June 1977] Billy Wilder’s chief motives in making the third film version of the 1928 Hecht–MacArthur Broadway smash were plain, and he admitted them: he...
View ArticleVideophiled: ‘Ride the Pink Horse’
Ride the Pink Horse (Criterion, Blu-ray, DVD) – It wouldn’t be fair to call this film unknown—ask any die-hard film noir fan—but outside of classic movie buffs and noir aficionados, Ride the Pink Horse...
View ArticleBlu-ray: The original 1931 ‘The Front Page’ rescued from video neglect
The Front Page (Kino Classics, Blu-ray, DVD) – The original 1931 screen version of the rapid-fire newspaper comedy written for the stage Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur stars Pat O’Brien as the crack...
View ArticleReview: The Front Page
[Originally published in Movietone News 36, October 1974] The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes and Avanti! bombed. The Front Page may well make lots of dollars. I like to see Billy Wilder on top, but...
View ArticleBlu-ray: ‘His Girl Friday’ meets ‘The Front Page’ on The Criterion Collection
Criterion His Girl Friday (Criterion, Blu-ray, DVD) should really be listed as a double feature, for the “bonus” movie—a new edition of the original screen version of The Front Page, adapted from the...
View Article