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A group of unique directors and the essential works that you've got to see.

||| Frank Capra |||
Frank Capra

It goes without saying that Capra is one of the greatest and most beloved directors of all time, especially renowned for his madcap romantic comedies. He is one of the few directors who ever managed to balance whimsy with meaningfulness without loosing the ability to entertain.

Only Frank Capra, with his light hand and good sense of allowing the actors to be their roles, could carry off this tale of a naive average American used by an unscrupulous politician through a nationwide goodwill drive. No one was ever better at having strong yet vulnerable women not only aid, but often come to the rescue, of the leading man.

Frank Capra's final film is a hilarious translation of a Damon Runyon tale set in 1930s New York, as gangster Glenn Ford repays street peddler Bette Davis for her "good luck" apples by passing her off as a well-to-do society lady for her visiting daughter (Ann-Margret in her film debut). This excellent and thoroughly enjoyable remake of his own 1933 "Lady for a Day" is a beautiful swan song to a master storyteller. Widescreen!

In this black comedy about two sweet old ladies whose basement holds a murderously funny secret, Capra utilizes star Cary Grant to his zany, patented “double take” best. Capra’s brilliance in comic casting is demonstrated with such reliable character actors as Raymond Massey, Peter Lorre and Jack Carson who manage to play their parts to the hilt without chewing up the scenery.

Recommended by CarrieSpecht

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Mary Pickford: Muse of the Movies

By EdwardHavens

September 8th, 2009

More than the life story of the legendary silent movie star, Nicholas Eliopoulos's documentary "Mary Pickford: Muse of the Movies" presents the rich history of the birth of cinema itself.

Mary Pickford: Muse of the Movies

If people today know “America’s Sweetheart” at all, it’s most likely as one of the four founders of United Artists, or as half of the first superstar couple alongside her second husband, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. But with the popularity of silent films now at an all-time low (a Los Angeles movie house called The Silent Movie Theatre only shows them once a week, at best), Ms. Pickford’s once-bright star has pretty much faded from view, and there is no better time for this movie (which as of this writing is having a one-week Oscar-qualifying run in downtown Los Angeles art house) to arrive.

I can recap the highlights of Pickford’s life in this review, from her humble beginnings in Toronto to her early successes on Broadway before being discovered by D.W. Griffith and quickly rising to become the highest paid and most independent of movie stars in the silent era, but no one could do that better than Ms. Pickford herself. Thankfully, Eliopoulos was able to secure hours of audio interviews done by British film scholar Kevin Brownlow, which allows the star, who passed away more than thirty years ago, to essentially narrate her own story. “Muse of the Movies” might have otherwise been a good documentary, with its fine selection of footage from Pickford’s best films as well as rare footage of the star with the likes of Amelia Earhart and Paramount Pictures founder Adolph Zukor. With Pickford telling her own story, “Muse” becomes the most magical of events: the autobiography of the world’s first superstar that we were never given.

But Pickford was so much more than an actor. Before starting United Artists, Pickford would team with Fairbanks and Charlie Chaplin to tour the country to help drum up support for America’s involvement in World War I. Artists, journalists, politicians and foreign diplomats would anxiously await an invitation to join Pickford and Fairbanks at their world-famous home, Pickfair, which would itself become the subject of a weekly radio gossip show. She would become one of the founders of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences and The Society of Independent Motion Picture Producers (whose members helped produce such classics as “Fantasia” and “Citizen Kane”), and helped to establish the Motion Picture Retirement Home.

Even with a wealth of archival footage and some narration assistance by the great Michael York, “Muse of the Movies” breezes by far quicker than its actual one-hundred and two minute running time, leaving viewers with a rare feeling at the movies today: wanting more. More about her philanthropy. More about her personal life. More about her final marriage to the late, great Buddy Rogers.

”Mary Pickford: Muse of the Movies” deserves to be put on the list of not just the best documentaries about cinema but the greatest movies about the movies ever.

My rating: A+