Action in the North Atlantic 1943  N/R, 127 min.
Genre: Adventure
Director: Lloyd Bacon
Cast: Humphrey Bogart, Raymond Massey, Julie Bishop, Alan Hale, Ruth Gordon, Sam Levene, Dane Clark, Minor Watson, Glenn Strange, Frank Puglia
The U.S. Merchant Marine is the focus of this film as the convoys continue to deliver needed supplies to Europe during World War II while sailing through U-Boat infested waters.
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 After the Thin Man 1936  N/R, 113 min.
Genre: Mystery
Director: W.S. Van Dyke
Cast: William Powell, Myrna Loy, James Stewart, Elissa Landi, Sam Levene, Joseph Calleia, George Zucco, Paul Fix, Jessie Ralph, Alan Marshal
Nick, Nora, and Asta are back in another delightfully clever film in which one of Nora's upper-crust relatives might be a murderer. William Powell and Myrna Loy are incomparable as Nick and Nora Charles, and Asta, of course, is the terrier with an attitude.
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And Justice for All 1979  R, 117 min.
Genre: Drama / Thriller
Director: Norman Jewison
Cast: Al Pacino, John Forsythe, Jack Warden, Lee Strasberg, Jeffrey Tambor, Christine Lahti, Sam Levene, Craig T. Nelson, Robert Christian, Thomas G. Waites, Larry Bryggman, Dominic Chianese, Victor Arnold, Vincent Beck, Michael Gorrin
Idealistic lawyer Arthur Kirkland (Al Pacino) is a Baltimore defense attorney who is trying to uncover corruption within Maryland's legal system. When Judge Henry T. Fleming (John Forsythe) demands that Kirkland defend him after he is accused of assaulting a woman, Kirkland has no choice but to take the case. Now, honest lawyer Kirkland tries to find justice in the court system while also trying to make the system work. Pacino earned a Best Actor Oscar nomination.
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The Babe Ruth Story 1948  N/R, 106 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Roy Del Ruth
Cast: William Bendix, Claire Trevor, Charles Bickford, Sam Levene, William Frawley, Paul Cavanagh, Mark Koenig, Mel Allen, Harry Wismer, Lloyd Gough
William Bendix is a good George Herman "Babe" Ruth in this biography of the famed slugger but–the "Babe" is portrayed as a self-centered child who never was forced to grow up and take responsibility for his actions.
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 The Big Street 1942  N/R, 88 min.
Genre: Drama / Comedy
Director: Irving Reis
Cast: Henry Fonda, Lucille Ball, Barton MacLane, Eugene Pallette, Hans Conried, Agnes Moorehead, Sam Levene, Ray Collins, George Cleveland, Marion Martin
Henry Fonda plays a nightclub busboy who is in love with a beautiful singer (Lucille Ball). She ignores him until she experiences a crippling accident and must rely on his attentions in this comedy/drama.
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Boomerang! 1947 N/R, 88 min.
Genre: Drama / Mystery
Director: Elia Kazan
Cast: Dana Andrews, Jane Wyatt, Lee J. Cobb, Arthur Kennedy, Sam Levene, Ed Begley, Taylor Holmes, Robert Keith, Karl Malden, Cara Williams, Philip Coolidge, William Challee, Bert Freed, Lucia Backus Seger, George Petrie
When a New England priest is murdered, John Waldron (Arthur Kennedy) is arrested. He is beaten into confessing that he is the killer and then tried for the crime. Based on the true story of a 1924 murder case that is still unsolved, the film follows State's Attorney Henry Harvey (Dana Andrews) as he works to sort out the facts.
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Crossfire 1947 N/R, 86 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Edward Dmytryk
Cast: Robert Young, Robert Mitchum, Robert Ryan, Gloria Grahame, Sam Levene, Paul Kelly, Jacqueline White, Steve Brodie, George Cooper, Lex Barker, Richard Benedict, Tom Keene, William Phipps, Marlo Dwyer, Harry Harvey
Racial prejudice is the theme of this film about a war veteran (Robert Ryan) who cold-bloodedly kills a Jew (Sam Levene). The police (Robert Young and Robert Mitchum) set a trap through which they plan to catch the killer. The film received five Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, Supporting Actor (Ryan), Supporting Actress (Gloria Grahame), Director, and Writing.
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Designing Woman 1957 N/R, 120 min.
Genre: Comedy
Director: Vincente Minnelli
Cast: Gregory Peck, Lauren Bacall, Dolores Gray, Sam Levene, Mickey Shaughnessy, Chuck Connors, Tom Helmore, Jesse White, Edward Platt, Alvy Moore
George Wells won the Oscar for Best Story or Screenplay for this tale about a sports writer, Mike (Gregory Peck), who falls in love with and marries a fashion designer, Marilla (Lauren Bacall). After the excitement of courtship ends, Mike and Marilla realize that they face problems combining their very different worlds of sports and fashions.
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A Dream of Kings 1969 R, 107 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Daniel Mann
Cast: Anthony Quinn, Irene Papas, Inger Stevens, Sam Levene, Val Avery, Radames Pera, Peter Mamakos, Alan Reed, Zvee Scooler, Alberto Morin
Matsoukas (Anthony Quinn) is a marriage counselor living in the Greek section of Chicago who wants to take his ailing back to Greece–a trip he can ill afford.
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God Told Me To 1976 R, 88 min.
Genre: Horror / Thriller
aka: Demon
Director: Larry Cohen
Cast: Tony Lo Bianco, Deborah Raffin, Sandy Dennis, Sylvia Sidney, Sam Levene, Robert Drivas, Mike Kellin, Richard Lynch, Sammy Williams, Jo Flores Chase, Andy Kaufman
The perpetrators of murders without motives freely admit their guilt with the statement that "God told me to." Detective Peter Nicholas (Tony Lo Bianco) investigates, and the answers appear to lie with a Christ-like figure and aliens.
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Golden Boy 1939 N/R, 98 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Rouben Mamoulian
Cast: Barbara Stanwyck, Adolphe Menjou, William Holden, Joseph Calleia, Lee J. Cobb, Sam Levene, Edward Brophy, Don Beddoe, Frank Jenks, Charles Halton
In William Holden's first starring role, he delivers a fine performance as Joe Napoleon, who dreams of being a violinist but turns to boxing as a more viable means of earning money.
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 I Dood It 1943 N/R, 102 min.
Genre: Musical
aka: By Hook or By Crook
Director: Vincente Minnelli
Cast: Red Skelton, Eleanor Powell, Richard Ainley, Patricia Dane, Thurston Hall, Lena Horne, John Hodiak, Butterfly McQueen, Sam Levene, Hazel Scott
Joseph Rivington Reynolds (Red Skelton) is a valet who marries a dancing star (Eleanor Powell)–whom he idolizes–when she wants to make her boyfriend jealous.
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The Killers 1946 N/R, 105 min.
Genre: Drama / Romance
aka: Ernest Hemingway's The Killers
Director: Robert Siodmak
Cast: Burt Lancaster, Ava Gardner, Edmond O'Brien, Albert Dekker, Sam Levene, William Conrad, Virginia Christine, John Miljan, Donald MacBride, Vince Barnett, Charles McGraw, Charles D. Brown, Jack Lambert, Queenie Smith, Jeff Corey
Ernest Hemmingway's story is the springboard for this tale about killers (Charles McGraw and William Conrad) who murder an aging prizefighter Ole "Swede" Anderson (Burt Lancaster). Insurance investigator Jim Rearden (Edmond O'Brien) looks for "Swede's" beneficiary, and, in a series of flashbacks, he connects "Swede" to an unsolved robbery. It was "Swede" and his ex-girlfriend Kitty Collins (Ava Gardner) who conspired to take the goods, double-cross crime boss Big Jim Colfax (Albert Dekker), and then take off on their own. And, no, they do not live happily ever after.
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Last Embrace 1979 R, 102 min.
Genre: Mystery
Director: Jonathan Demme
Cast: Roy Scheider, Janet Margolin, Christopher Walken, Sam Levene, John Glover, Charles Napier, Jacqueline Brookes, David Margulies, Lou Gilbert, Andrew Duncan
Roy Scheider plays a paranoid government agent who believes that someone is trying to kill him. He meets a graduate student (Janet Margolin) and the suspense begins.
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The Mad Miss Manton 1938 N/R, 80 min.
Genre: Comedy
Director: Leigh Jason
Cast: Barbara Stanwyck, Henry Fonda, Sam Levene, Frances Mercer, Stanley Ridges, Vickie Lester, Whitney Bourne, Hattie McDaniel, Penny Singleton, Grady Sutton
This comedy/mystery is about a high-living socialite (Barbara Stanwyck) and her friends who get involved in a murder mystery and are determined to solve the case.
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The Purple Heart 1944 N/R, 99 min.
Genre: Action / Drama
Director: Lewis Milestone
Cast: Dana Andrews, Richard Conte, Farley Granger, Kevin O'Shea, Don "Red" Barry, Trudy Marshall, Sam Levene, Charles Russell, Richard Loo, Philip Ahn, John Craven, Tala Birell, Peter Chong, Benson Fong, Nestor Paiva
This excellent World War II film tells the story of an American crew whose plane was downed, and they were captured after raids on Tokyo early in the War. The hardships, including torture and subsequent trials, encountered by the crew are presented well in this good movie. Fine performances.
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 Shadow of the Thin Man 1941 N/R, 98 min.
Genre: Mystery
Director: W.S. Van Dyke
Cast: William Powell, Myrna Loy, Barry Nelson, Donna Reed, Sam Levene, Alan Baxter, Loring Smith, Henry O'Neill, Will Wright, Louise Beavers
Master sleuths Nick and Nora Charles (William Powell and Myrna Loy) are at it again. Of course, their dog Asta is in the middle of things as they investigate mysterious events at the local racetrack.
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Shopworn Angel 1938 N/R, 85 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: H.C. Potter
Cast: Margaret Sullavan, James Stewart, Walter Pidgeon, Hattie McDaniel, Nat Pendleton, Sam Levene, Alan Curtis, Charley Grapewin, Charles D. Brown, Jimmy Butler
A self-centered actress (Margaret Sullavan) plays with the affections of a soldier (James Stewart) from Texas who is on his way to battle. Typically good Sullavan/Stewart matchup.
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Slaughter on Tenth Avenue 1957 N/R, 103 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Arnold Laven
Cast: Richard Egan, Jan Sterling, Dan Duryea, Julie Adams, Walter Matthau, Charles McGraw, Sam Levene, Mickey Shaughnessy, Harry Bellaver, Nick Dennis
District attorney William Keating (Richard Egan) looks into the murder of longshoreman Solly Pitts (Mickey Shaughnessy) and finds Mob leader Al Dahlke (Walter Matthau) is behind most of the crime on the N.Y.C. docks.
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Such Good Friends 1971  R, 100 min.
Genre: Comedy
Director: Otto Preminger
Cast: Dyan Cannon, James Coco, Jennifer O'Neill, Ken Howard, Nina Foch, Laurence Luckinbill, Burgess Meredith, Sam Levene, Louise Lasser, William Redfield
A witty script is behind this comedy about Richard Messinger's (Laurence Luckinbill) minor surgery that leads to revelations for his wife, Julie (Dyan Cannon), and death for Richard through a series of errors by those treating him. 1 User Review
| User Review |
| | Underated 70's comedy deserving re-appraisal | Tap Reffahs 10/22/2007 | Sharp vivid and under rated 70's comedy with Elaine May script, and exceptional performance by Dyan Cannon in a sassy turn that fits the era, her unique and delightful personality deserving of more credit for this - and better roles like it to have vaulted her into the first rank of actresses in the 70's.
Preminger assembled a cast of pros that had performed with his direction before, such as Burgess Meredith, and newcomer Jennifer O'Neill, so refreshing in "Summer of '42". Her lustrous beauty - in addition to Dyan Cannon's effervescent smile and the cast of talented stage and screen talents - should have jelled into a strong comedy of it's era - having fallen through the cracks at the time - it is damn good and deserving of the audience that has become loyal to it through the years, awaiting a DVD release pronto - and the long delayed and deserved praise NOW. |
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 Sweet Smell of Success 1957 N/R, 96 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Alexander Mackendrick
Cast: Burt Lancaster, Tony Curtis, Susan Harrison, Martin Milner, Sam Levene, Barbara Nichols, Jeff Donnell, Edith Atwater, Emile Meyer, Joseph Leon
This top-notch film reveals the corrupt world of gossip columnists. Burt Lancaster plays J.J. Hunsecker, the columnist who has press agent Sidney Falco (Tony Curtis) try to break up his sister's (Susan Harrison) romance.
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| 1. Action in the North Atlantic (1943)
2. After the Thin Man (1936)
3. And Justice for All (1979)
4. The Babe Ruth Story (1948)
5. The Big Street (1942)
6. Boomerang! (1947)
7. Crossfire (1947)
8. Designing Woman (1957)
9. A Dream of Kings (1969)
10. God Told Me To (1976)
aka: Demon
11. Golden Boy (1939)
12. I Dood It (1943)
aka: By Hook or By Crook
13. The Killers (1946)
aka: Ernest Hemingway's The Killers
14. Last Embrace (1979)
15. The Mad Miss Manton (1938)
16. The Purple Heart (1944)
17. Shadow of the Thin Man (1941)
18. Shopworn Angel (1938)
19. Slaughter on Tenth Avenue (1957)
20. Such Good Friends (1971)
21. Sweet Smell of Success (1957)
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