I thought Double Indemnity was Solid noir, but I wanted more. The beginning is slow, and I never quite bought the chemistry between MacMurray and Stanwyck. He calls her “babe” so often I started wondering if he knew her actual name. The cinematography is gorgeous, and the fashion is every bit as glamorous as you'd expect from a film of this era. Stanwyck is terrific, but I was never completely hooked. I thought I had the plot pretty much figured out, though, and the ending proved me wrong. I can see why it’s considered a classic, even if it didn’t quite do it for me.

My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐½

Here he is as the dastardly Rupert of Hentzau. The ultimate opportunist. He was so malevolent and funny. That sword fight was awesome and it's the first time I've cheered when a villain got away. Not sure if it's in the book, but it seemed like such a clever idea to let such a likeable and charismatic villain get away. He stole the film with his wicked and unflappable presence.

I'd only ever seen him in Little Caesar before, in which he doesn't have the most interesting of roles performing as a straight man. So I never rated him as an actor. So when I looked up Rupert on the cast list at the end, I was delighted to see it was him as I vaguely recognised him. Please do let me know if there are any other performances of his I should be checking out.

Interesting to see him sort of playing the antithesis of his father's roles in this.

According to Wikipedia:

Douglas Fairbanks Jr. initially wanted to play Rudolf, but when the role went to Colman, his father, Douglas Fairbanks, told him "not only is The Prisoner of Zenda one of the best romances written in a hundred years and always a success, but Rupert of Hentzau is probably one of the best villains ever written".

I know early musicals are a hit or miss with many people in the classic film community. In contrast to the lavish Technicolor musicals created by MGM during the 1940s… many of these earlier musicals can appear stiff and plotless.

Following the success of MGM’s The Broadway Melody (1929), other production companies began flooding the market with their own musical revues. The influx of so many musicals caused the public to develop an aversion to them. Musicals continued to be made but weren’t particularly popular until the mid-late 1930s.

What I tend to like about these early musicals is their use of two-strip technicolor and multicolor processes. Unfortunately, many early musicals with these colorful scenes can only be found in monochrome.

Personally I’m a huge sucker for old musical films, especially the Technicolor musicals released by MGM and 20th Century Fox during the 1940s-1950s. That being said, I’ve found myself enjoying several older musical films. Maybe it’s because I love the fashion taste from the early sound period (1929-1932) or because I love pre-code cinema… I’m not so sure honestly.

Anyways, here are six lost early musical films that I’d love to see found and restored if possible. Note, some fragments of these films do exist but none of them are known to exist in their entirety.

1.) The Girl from Woolworths (1929) - A First National Pictures inc pre-code musical film starring Alice White. The film was created as a starring vehicle to show off White’s musical talents and featured four songs whose lyrics were written by Al Bryan while the music was written by George W. Meyer. Portions of the vitaphone track for the film do survive but the film itself is lost today. The film contained two technicolor sequences.

2.) The Painted Angel (1929) - A First National Pictures inc pre-code musical film starring Billie Dove and Edmund Lowe. This was the only musical that Billie Dove made during her film career. The film featured four songs whose lyrics were written by Herman Ruby. The music was written by M.K. Jerome. Several vitaphone soundtrack discs survive but the film itself is lost.

3.) Fox Movietone Follies of 1929 - A Fox Film Corporation pre-code musical film starring Lola Lane and Sharon Lynn. This film featured eight songs written by Con Conrad, Archie Gottlerand Sidney D. Mitchell. Some of the revue scenes feature multicolor sequences. All known copies of the film were destroyed in fires that occurred at Fox’s storage facility in New Jersey in 1937. Despite this, some fragments of the film have been found and posted online but the film in its entirety likely doesn’t exist.

4.) Honky Tonk (1929) - A Warner Bros. pre-code musical film starring legendary vaudevillian Sophie Tucker in her feature film debut. Almost every song that Tucker performed in the film was written by Milton Ager and Jack Yellen. Her theme song “Some of These Days” was written by Shelton Brooks. No copies of the film are known to exist but the entire vitaphone soundtrack and film trailer still do.

5.) The Life of the Party (1930) - A Warner Bros. pre-code musical comedy starring Winnie Lightner and Irene Delroy. The film featured four musical sequences and was filmed entirely in two-strip technicolor process 3. The entire film survives in monochrome but the full technicolor version has been lost to time.

6.) Bride of the Regiment (1930) - A Warner Bros. pre-code musical starring Vivienne Segal, Allan Prior, Walter Pidgeon, Louise Fazenda, and Myrna Loy. The film contained seven musical sequences and was filmed entirely in two-strip technicolor process 3. Only a 20 second clip showing Myrna Loy and Walter Pidgeon remains. The rest of the film is considered lost.

The primary reason I’d like to see many of these is for their use of Technicolor and multicolor processes. Considering I’m a fan of Sophie Tucker… I’d love to see her film debut rather than simply listen to the vitaphone track.

Let me know what you all think. Are you fans of early musical films or do you sort of skip over them?

​

I love this movie! I challenge you to find a Hays Code era film queerer than this one. 😅😅

I'm not complaining, but how did Desert Fury make it past the censors? Eddie and Johnny were most definitely a couple. How else can you explain Johnny's jealousy and resentment when Paula seduces his man?

And then you have Mary Astor camping it up as Fritzi—LOVE. She treats Paula more like a lover than a daughter, especially with lines like, "Give me a kiss, baby."

I wonder if all of this subtext was intentional on the part of the writer, director, or actors, or if it genuinely never crossed their minds.

Film starts at 7:15. Kind of fun to not know exactly which film they are going to show.

Currently rewatching this gem. One of the first classic films I saw. I remember seeing this on television one night and found that I was unable to look away. Natalie Wood and Tony Curtis were amazing together. Their chemistry was phenomenal.

No sexual answers, please. Don't be weird.

I just watched it. I liked it, 5 out of 5. What are this sub's thoughts on it?

I've only recently discovered the short but shiny moment of queer visibility that happened 100 years ago. It's called "The Pansy Craze" which overlaps a ton with pre-hays code films. Did everyone know about it already? If not...

In the late 1920s and early 1930s, queer performers were headliners, drawing huge crowds, and appearing in mainstream entertainment. Then came a backlash that pushed that visibility underground.

Sound familiar? Yeah, it's happening again.

I was so engrossed in this topic, that I watched a bunch of pre-code films and created a youtube video about it. What's your favorite pre-code film? Any recommendations?

In the movie, the scene where the female lead Terry (Deborah Kerr) sings was not voiced by the actress herself, but by the famous classical singer and dubbing specialist Marni Nixon. Marni Nixon is very well known for exclusively dubbing the singing scenes of famous actresses of that era, such as Deborah Kerr in The King and I, Audrey Hepburn in My Fair Lady, and Natalie Wood in West Side Story.

Love the elegant green skirt and the "Early Summer" (初夏) typography at the bottom. Sharing this beautiful piece of history with fellow classic film lovers! ✨☺️

I’m currently binging Katharine Hepburn movies and these are the only ones I can’t find streaming anywhere unless I want to buy/rent them. Anywhere legit I can stream these?

I’m thinking Robert Wagner Jr. and Debra Paget, his love interest in “Stars and Stripes Forever” (1952). The only other couple that comes to mind is Rita Moreno and George Chakiris in “West Side Story” (1961). Any other surviving movie couples from way back when you can think of?