The MoFo Top 100 of the 1930s: The Countdown

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  1. Captains Courageous
  2. I Was a Fugitive From a Chain Gang
  3. Dodsworth
  4. Obviously this is in
  5. Obviously this out
  6. Black Cat
  7. Looks like it's in
  8. Might be Top Five
  9. The Most Dangerous Game
  10. Jezebel
  11. The Roaring Twenties
  12. The Invisible Man
  13. Bride of Frankenstein
  14. not going to make it
  15. should have put it in the Hall of Fame
  16. sadly no shot
  17. Likely will make it
  18. Ninotchka
  19. Pygmalion
  20. Make Way For Tomorrow
  21. Top Hat
  22. Won't make it y'all missed out
  23. Another one that didn't make the cut
  24. And this one didn't make it
  25. Neither did this one(but not a one-pointer)



Bright light. Bright light. Uh oh.
I have one tape with all of the following in order: Animal Crackers, Monkey Business, Horse Feathers and Duck Soup. It's great, especially the last two. I put Horse Feathers in my Top 100 over Duck Soup more because everybody seems to love Duck Soup but many people have never watched Horse Feathers. Whenever I feel really bad or think that maybe even my life sucks, I put on Horse Feathers and Duck Soup and just laugh until I cry. I do think that if every child watched the final five minutes of Duck Soup every year in school that there would be no wars.

]
Of course, the mirror scene is really "borrowed" from the "French Chaplin" Max Linder's Seven Years Bad Luck


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I'm only sure of 5-6 of the films that made it

10. The Man Who Knew Too Much (???)
09. Bringing Up Baby
08. M
07. All Quiet on the Western Front
06. Modern Times
05. Mr Smith Goes to Washington
04. It Happened One Night
03. Gone with the Wind
02. Wizard of Oz
01. City Lights



Any predictions for the Top 10 order?
I reckon #8 will probably come straight after #9 whilst #5 will likely appear slightly ahead of #3

Seriously though - I shall just continue to Faildict as per normal.



I had the Renoirs at #1 and #2 with the slight edge to Illusion. Could watch them on constant repeat. Absolutely love both.

I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang was my #17.

My List
#1. La Grande Illusion (Jean Renoir)
#2. The Rules of the Game (Jean Renoir)
#3. Make Way For Tomorrow (Leo McCarey)
#4. The Scarlet Empress (Josef von Sternberg)
#5. Port of Shadows (Marcel Carné)
#6. Not making it
#7. Humanity and Paper Balloons (Sadao Yamanaka)
#8. The Roaring Twenties (Raoul Walsh)
#9. Definite
#10. Pygmalion (Anthony Asquith, Leslie Howard)
#11. The Story of the Last Chrysanthemums (Kenji Mizoguchi)
#12. Not making it
#13. Dr. Jekyll and Mr Hyde (Rouben Mamoulian)
#14. Definite
#15. Love Me Tonight (Rouben Mamoulian)
#16. Not making it and I'm a bit surprised
#17. I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (Mervyn LeRoy)
#18. Definite
#19. No chance
#20. City Girl (F.W. Murnau)
#21. Vampyr (Carl Theodor Dreyer)
#22. A Day in the Country (Jean Renoir)
#23. Not making it and I'm surprised
#24. Trouble in Paradise (Ernst Lubitsch)
#25. 42nd Street (Lloyd Bacon)



#1. The Wizard of Oz
#2. Gone with the Wind
#3. City Lights
#4. M
#5. It Happened One Night
#6. All Quiet on the Western Front
#7. Modern Times
#8. Bringing Up Baby
#9. Mr Smith Goes to Washington
#10. Freaks

^ My guess



I love I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang and I had it at #5. It's the template for the modern action movie, and it definitely could have not have been made only a couple years later without a few changes to comply with the Hayes Code. And I just realized only one film from my list won't make it, even though that director has several other films on the list. So eight of the top ten films will be from my list, barring some surprise.


My List:

5. I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (#11)
7. The Grand Illusion (#14)
8. The Lady Vanishes (#22)
10. The Thin Man (#25)
11. Ninotchka (#36)
12. The 39 Steps (#13)
13. Frankenstein (#19)
14 Horse Feathers (#51)
15. A Night at the Opera (#27)
16. The Invisible Man (#30)
17. The Hunchback of Notre Dame (#40)
19. The Awful Truth (#60)
20. Vampyr (#24)
21. My Man Godfrey (#31)
23. Fury (#68)
25. City Girl (#74)
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Like edarsenal, I already my favorite Marx Brothers film A Night at the Opera on the list and I wanted to spread the choices out, so as much as I love Duck Soup I felt I couldn't double-up as there were so many Marx Bros. flicks that were so tempting to pick. Also, ed, nice pick of Dawn Patrol. Wow, do I love that movie! I'm afraid it'll be a no-show also.

As many times as I Am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang has been on, you'd think I'd have watched it but no. One day.

Top Ten tomorrow, I can only guess that three more from my list will maybe make it. Hopefully. I take nothing for granted at this point.
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A bunch more of mine made it, including I Am A Fugitive from a Chain Gang, which I feared was one of the two that wouldn't make it from my list. Now that it showed I will have six in the top ten reveals. Duck Soup was all the way up at my number four.

3. Duck Soup (#12)
4. The Bride of Frankenstein (#18)
5. The Informer (#93)
6. Grand Illusion (#14)
7. Make Way for Tomorrow (#32)
9. Fury (#68)
12. The 39 Steps (#13)
14. Ninotchka (#36)
15. I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (#11)
16. Rules of the Game (#15)
17. Public Enemy (#42)
18. Stagecoach (#23)
19. A Night at the Opera (#27)
20. My Man Godfrey (#31)
21. Angels with Dirty Faces (#37)
22. Jezebel (#29)
24. The Roaring Twenties (#21)
25. Destry Rides Again (#72)

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I've probably seen Duck Soup sometime in the past, but don't remember it, so didn't make my list. Generally I like the Marx Brothers and so do you guys! I believe that was 3 of their films that made the countdown so far.

I Am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang, has to be the longest title on the countdown. It was another 30s HoF nomination. Good film! but my list was full so I had to cut it to make 25. Still glad it made the countdown.
Duck Soup is my favorite Marx Bros. film. I had it at #7. Herman J. Mankiewicz was the producer, who likewise produced W.C. Fields' Million Dollar Legs, which is my favorite Fields. Both films share a similar off-beat zaniness. He also co-wrote Citizen Kane, which ain't too shabby.

"Chain Gang" is an important milestone film. But it didn't make my top 25. However Scarface (also Muni) was my number 25..

~Doc



I had never heard of Chain Gang until Camo recommended it to me. I liked it enough the first time to include it on my list, but when I watched it a second time for a HoF it went up a few more places. My wife loved it too.

I liked Duck Soup but it ended up being my least favorite of the Marx Brothers movies I watched.

3. The Adventures of Robin Hood (#33)
4. King Kong (#16)
5. Of Mice and Men (#46)
8. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (#28)
9. The Scarlet Empress (#63)
11. I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (#11)
12. The Blue Angel (#38)
13. Dark Victory (#52)
14. Jezebel (#29)
15. Horse Feathers (#51)
16. The Story of the Last Chrysanthemum (#45)
18. The Young in Heart (#65)
19. City Girl (#74)
21. Pepe Le Moko (#54)
22. Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (#47)
24. The Thin Man (#25)
25. Make Way for Tomorrow (#32)



Gave Mr. Smith Goes To Washington an airing and despite a few personal niggles with it actually quite enjoyed it on the whole and whilst it eventually didn't quite make my ballot it certainly was in contention for a spot. Given the general demographic of the site I'm actually surprised it's not a little higher.

Seen: 62/91
My list:  

Faildictions (streamline moderne vsn 3.01):
9. Maid Of Salem



I keep thinking I will love this film someday because Stewart is the greatest. It hasn't happened yet though, maybe next time.
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