The Freshman

Laughs (#79)

A silent comedy wherein Harold Lloyd plays the new kid on campus, who has big dreams of being the star football player and having everybody like him.  He even has a jaunty little handshake, which he's certain will help him make lots of friends (but sadly I couldn't find a clip of it).

This is considered the first sports movie.  It was ok, as far as silents go, but I thought it was too long.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tl3OlMEDBuU

The Defiant Ones

Stars - Sidney Poitier (#22); Cheers (#55)

Have I mentioned that I love Sidney Poitier? 

The Defiant Ones tackles racism, with a pair of escaped convicts, one black and one white, chained together and dependent on each other.  It could have been sappy, but it wasn't.  It could have been an edge-of-your-seat adventure, but it wasn't.  It was realistic, and I liked it.

Oh, and I love how buff Tony Curtis and Sidney Poitier are in this poster.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmGyRIK_dqc

AFI Top 100 Songs

For some reason, AFI absolutely loves Judy Garland and Barbra Streisand.  While I can't really dispute "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" at #1 (although I probably would have placed it top 5), I can't for the life of me figure out "The Man That Got Away" at #11.  Wondering what movie it's from?  Exactly.  It's a song you probably don't know unless you're a diehard Judy fan.  I think these songs should be determined by significance in the movie as well as influence on pop culture.

And while I'd love to see Porgy and Bess ("Summertime", #52), I can't find it.  So we'll have to wait on that review.

Here is a lengthy collection of all 100 songs - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pcg9xXjz7ks&list=PLz59ctKeMZfKI3vtr4RqnlhkIkuCrEDlY 

But if you don't have time, then watch this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dIiT51Y5uiM

Safety Last

Thrills (#97)

Well, what do you know?  I saw this movie a few years ago and had forgotten the name of it. 

Safety Last is a silent movie full of slapstick comedy pratfalls.  You know, the kind where he's walking on beams at a construction site, not watching where he's going, and the audience knows he's about to fall when a crane hoists a beam to just the right place and he steps right on to it, remaining oblivious to the danger. 

It's fun, because it's classic old movie comedy.  I'm sure it had its audience roaring.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hr2aj1ibVYE

The Big Broadcast of 1938

Songs - Thanks for the Memory (#63)

The movie itself was just enh.  Millionaire W. C. Fields is financing a luxury liner in a Transatlantic race.  Meanwhile, Bob Hope plays emcee for the ship's entertainment.

The entertainment is, well, varied.  From an out-of-place animated sequence to an operatic solo from Valkyrie to a duet that is quite reminiscent of Snow White and the Prince.

But then there's "Thanks for the Memory".  It might not be remarkable here, but it became Bob Hope's signature song.  And yes, I am old enough to fondly remember him singing it at the end of each Christmas special.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=44Owr4iBctU

AFI Top 100 Thrills

 

Not necessarily 100 thrillers, this list also encompasses action movies, mysteries, and horror films. And then there was the occasional odd fit, like The Wizard of Oz, which I'm sure was just on there so AFI could have Judy Garland on every list. There were a good number (7) that I refused to watch.

 

Robert Mitchum is very scary.  Gaslight remains my favorite psychological thriller, and Raiders of the Lost Ark is the most exciting movie ever.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMIhMlUaBDE

 

AFI Top 100 Passions

 

 

The thing I had to remember when looking at the movies on this list is that "passion" is not the same as "love".  I'd dispute calling some of these films love stories, but I suppose they're passionate, so here they are. 

 

I haven't yet seen Morocco (#83) or Porgy and Bess (#92).

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B_H3atqLp2Q