Reel Classics - Where Black Meets White

When the “YES” men start telling you “NO”, you are probably approaching the trash-lined gutters along Sunset Boulevard.  Hollywood is clearly sending you a message.  You are no longer needed . . . or are you?!?!  Well, if director Billy Wilder has anything to say about it then go on and second ...

I mean, look, The Third Man is a damned classic.  Scripted by Graham Greene and featuring some incredible performances from its leads, Carol Reed’s film is a masterpiece that never falters in its step to wedge paranoia straight down your throat. Holly Martins (played by Joseph Cotten) is thrust ...

“Do it first. Do it yourself. And keep doing it.” When it comes to gangster pictures, there is no better film than Howard Hawks’ Scarface. From the single shot opening in which Italian immigrant gangster Antonio "Tony" Camonte (played ...

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari is the tale of a madman told through the eyes of another madman; a film so daunting it’s horrifying. Yes, here it is: the very first horror film and still its influence is felt. There is no argument there. It is also, with its exaggerated backgrounds and sharp angles, German  ...

“At first glance, everything looked the same. It wasn’t. Something evil had taken possession of the town.” Oh, to travel back to the 1950s.  If I could, I would just sit myself in a drive-in theater with a big ol’ bucket of popcorn and watch flick after flick of whatever science fiction schlock ...

"Nine times out of ten, if you follow the money you will get to the truth." Infidelity made private investigator and war veteran Jake Gittes (Jack Nicholson) the man he is today.  We know this having seen the excellent Chinatown, but Gittes admits as much in the opening line of The Two  ...

"Forget it, Jake, it's Chinatown." Chinatown is a film for lovers of Los Angeles.  It is for snoops; for film noir followers; and for anyone who loves a classic detective yarn.  It is also a classic American film, well-written by screenwriter Robert Towne, expertly directed by Roman Polanski, and  ...

Though director Fritz Lang is most remembered for masterpieces like Metropolis, M, The Big Heat, and his numerous other notable expressionistic films, Secret Beyond the Door is no exception to the Master of Darkness’s signature style. Starring Joan Bennett and Michael Redgrave, this  ...

Being a hitman isn’t as exciting as some movies might make it out to be. Of course, I’m not speaking from experience, but rather referring to the lonely perspective of Cleveland hitman Frank Bono (played by Allen Baron, who also serves as the writer and director), the protagonist of the bare-bones ...

“I’m a very reckless person, Chris. And you’re a very cautious one.” Shameless love affairs, parties lasting past dawn, regretful one-night-stands…all this in a film released in what year? 1933. Yep, you got that right. Just her second film ever but also marking the first starring role for the one and  ...