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1-19 of 19
- Typical Soviet "industrial drama" (or "production drama"). The handsome hero is a young man out of college, assigned to his first important engineering job in far-off Sibirsk. The hero tries to cope with serious industrial problems (some caused by his own carelessness), and in one case his old crane operator is seriously injured in a crane accident. At the same time the hero faces a romantic dilemma. He is torn between two loves, his current fiancée and his old flame, who shows up unexpectedly, still hoping to win him back. Many problems, many conflicts, subjecting the hero to a "sleepless night." Will he manage to resolve all his dilemmas?
- Two pairs of lovers try to thwart an arranged marriage at Costa Rican fiesta time.
- Adaptation of Thurston's Irish novel, "Masquerader". Tells the sinister story of a distinguished British gentleman (Mosjoukine), who, while serving as a member of the House of Commons, also becomes a morphine addict and is tormented by a double of himself.
- Tried and true story of three young buddies thrust into danger (in this case, World War I aviation), some of whom come back, while some are less lucky. Films about WWI fliers had been spectacularly successful in the U.S. in the early 1930s, like "Wings," "Hell's Angels," and "Dawn Patrol." The Fox Studio evidently hoped this particular story, written by Furthman and others, had enough box office potential that Fox filmed it in 2 versions, the original English-speaking one (see under "Body and Soul" (1931)), and this Spanish-language "Cuerpo y alma" [literal translation of "Body and Soul"]. In the Spanish version the three fliers were played by Lewis (Farrell's role), Alcantara (Bogart), Nieto (Dillaway) and the two women by Custodio (Landi) and Soler (Loy). It's ironic that this Spanish version actually ran a half-hour longer than the original English one (99 min. vs. 70 min.), although it's the same story filmed in the same sets. Perhaps Fox was so disappointed with the English-speaking result that after completion the studio cut it down radically (to play on US screens as part of a double feature), while the Spanish version actually preserved intact the complete original story...? (Something similar did happen that same year to the English and Spanish versions of "Dracula.")
- 20021h 45mNot Rated7.3 (37)Several of the interviews in this documentary were filmed at a symposium about the career and biography of Michael Chekhov, which was held in the US in the 1990s. The participants in the symposium shared their memories about being taught by, or working with, the late, great actor, director, and drama coach, Russian-born Chekhov (1891-1955), who was the nephew of the Russian writer Anton Chekhov (1860-1904). Many film clips, plus some rare stills of Chekhov & Shdanoff themselves, are added, to illustrate the interviews and commentaries. One of the participants, actress Mala Powers, is mentioned in the film's credits also as executor of Michael Chekhov's estate & foundation, and undoubtedly played an important role in getting this documentary made.
- Filmic insert to Eisenstein's modernized, free adaptation of Ostrovskiy's 19th-century Russian stage play, "The Wise Man" ("Na vsyakogo mudretsa dovolno prostoty"). The anti-hero Glumov tries to escape exposure in the midst of acrobatics, derring-do, and farcical clowning. Several members of Eisenstein's troupe at the legendary "Proletkult" stage theatre in Moscow briefly appear in this little film.
- Soviet proletarian film about anti-war strike at St Petersburg factory, 1914. Resembles Pudovkin's classic "End of St. Petersburg," made 4 years earlier: backward lad (Poslavsky) from poor village comes to town desperate for work. He's hired as replacement (scab) worker at big metallurgical factory, which is in the throes of a strike organized by the Bolsheviks (communists). The Bolshevik strikers are led by Ivan Shtraukh (brother of the more famous Russian actor Maxim Shtraukh). At first, the deceitful industrialist's son (Fedosev) involves the naive Poslavsky in an attempt to murder Shtraukh, but the attempt only wounds the heroic organizer. Will Poslavsky follow through with the planned killing, or will he redeem himself by going over to the side of the strikers?
- A lonely wife of a workaholic husband on the magical Isle of Capri meets a charming and attractive young man. An exciting affair must end when word gets back to the husband and he becomes ill. Then the daughter enters the scene.
- This Czech sophisticated romantic comedy, filmed by director Anton also in a parallel French version ("Une petite femme dans le train"), casts beautiful Czech star Baarova in the role that Meg Lemonnier played in the Gallic version. Both versions seem to owe something to the sophisticated "continental" comedies of Lubitsch and, later, Korda, although Anton was not exactly in their league. It may be coincidence that the original Czech title of this film ("Jsem devce...") can be translated as "I'm a Girl with a Devil in the Flesh." Both Raymond Radiguet's French novel "Le diable au corps" and Garbo's famous MGM film, "Flesh and the Devil" (based on Radiguet's book), would have been well known in Czechoslovakia as well as France, before "Jsem devce..." was filmed. But the Radiguet & Garbo creations were very serious, while the Anton-Lemonnier-Baarova films were light and amusing. Pehaps no connection. (A Czech language web-site today displays a nice poster from the 1933 Czech film: "http://www.csfd.cz/film.php?186".) Lida Baarova (who plays the naughty wife in the Czech film) in her later career experienced less amusing and more serious ups and downs, particularly as a consequence of her brief stardom in Nazi Germany in the last half of the 1930s and in Fascist Italy in the early 1940s. After WW2 Baarova was jailed nearly 2 years in her native Czechoslovakia, and may have come close to the death penalty, accused of "collaborating" with the Fascist film industries.
- The family waits for the returning brother. The young revolutionary emerges from behind the brow of the hill holding a fluttering flag. The enemies fight a bloody battle. The hero and his battalion suffers defeat. The young fighter is imprisoned, but the slogan "Proletars of the world, unite!" makes him escape. He raises a new army around the preserved flag. News are read out back home when the young brother comes home. The two brothers embrace each other. A revolutionary mob proceeds on the street.
- To pay off debts, Kira at 13 is sold by her parents to the old and rich Stavro. Constantly humiliated and beaten she gives birth to Dragomir and Kiralina. The trader Nazid kills Stavro to be able to sell Kiralina to a brothel.
- Parallel French-speaking version of Warners' "High Pressure" (1932), a comedy satire on fast-talking promoters, crazy inventors, and stock market hype. The story line comes from Kandel's stage play "Hot Money," which had played on Broadway a month or two in 1931, before Warners bought screen rights and changed the title.
- Soviet followup to several Hollywood aviation films of the 1930s.3 Russian test pilots risk their lives making a round-the-world, non-stop flight on "Pobeda-1" ["Victory-1"]. Their experimental craft loses radio contact and is alleged by Japanese ( "fascist") radio to have crashed fatally. But hero Klim's mother and brother Sasha never give up hope, and Sasha launches a desperate air search, hoping to find the missing "Pobeda' without loss of life.....
- One of a number of Soviet attempts to do a "western" in a Russian setting. During the Civil War (1918-20) between the Red Army and the White Army, just after the Communist Revolution, the Red Cavalry (the "good guys") are being victimized by rustlers stealing their horses. The hero devises a ruse in hopes of tricking the "bad guys" (the rustlers) and recovering the stolen herd.
- A pictorial detective story of merit, with many lightning changes of disguise by the detective in his pursuit of the lawbreakers.
- Very loyal, respectful survey of 300 years of Russian history, from the "Time of Troubles" (Polish invasion) in 1613 to the 300th anniversary of the Romanov dynasty in 1913.The coronation of the first Romanov, Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov (played by young Michael Chekhov) is an early highlight, after the Russian defenders finally beat off the Polish invaders. (Co-director Larin & several actors were injured in the battle scenes.) Film concludes with celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Russian victory in the War of 1812. Also included is documentary footage of the coronation of the last Romanov, Nicholas II, in 1896.
- World War 2 naval conflict between Germany and the USSR. German submarine torpedoes Russian ship and captures one surviving Russian sailor (Shalnov), hoping to force him to reveal military secrets. Will Shalnov give in, or heroically stand firm against his German captors?
- Docu-drama about political and military conflict during the Russian Civil War in 1918, from an orthodox pro-Communist viewpoint.
- Sophisticated romantic comedy of suspicious husbands, straying wives, handsome lovers, with various misunderstandings thrown in for good measure. (Including a gender-reversal of the old Pirandello plot twist from "The Late Mathias Pascal" of the protagonist changing identities after supposedly perishing in a train wreck.)