My personal faves from this era:
10. A Christmas Carol (1938)
While most families grew up watching It's A Wonderful Life as a yearly favorite every holiday season,
for me, I was raised in a household that instead always watched the original full-length feature film adaptation of Charles Dickens' classic tale of Ebenzer Scrooge. An old rich, greedy curmudgeon of a man who learns the value of giving after being visited upon in his "dreams" by three (past, present & future) incarnations of the spirit of Christmas.
Obviously, this is a story that has since had numerous varied versions produced under various titles, but IMO, as one of the first cinematic adaptations, this one's black & white setting has a way of enhancing the story in a manner that comes off much more timeless than in all the other counterparts which followed later.
This quality, combined with the fact that this is a personal childhood favorite of mine, makes the 1938 A Christmas Carol the one that, for me, will most likely always be the best of the bunch.
9. The Wizard Of Oz (1939)
What does Dorothy do when she finds out that she and Toto are not in Kansas anymore?
Following the yellow brick road, she goes off to see the wizard in a pair of ruby slippers, along with three of the most famous McGuffins in film history.
The moral of this story:
no matter where you find yourself, even if it's got a Lollypop Guild, an emerald city, or an army of flying monkeys,
there's still no place like home.
8. Top Hat (1935)
I remember when I made the decision to watch the early dance classics of Swing Time & Top Hat just to see if the all the dancing lived up to all the hype that I had heard about for years.
And while it did, along with Fred Astaire's ability, not only as a dancer, but also as a lead, not to mention the way that all the sets & costumes seemed to shimmer with the black & white quality of the film,
what was a complete surprise for me was Ginger Rogers.
Sure, her dance moves kept up with Fred's every step,
but wow. I didn't realize how the combination of her beauty, personality & charisma would just light up the whole picture. When Top Hat was over, I was left literally stunned by this woman.
7. The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)
Alot of the movies from this period & the '40's are films that I first watched as a kid, & therefore, I tend to like more 'em more for sentimental reasons than because of their place in the movie history hierarchy.
The Adventures Of Robin Hood is a good f'rinstance.
Whenever I watch this movie, it always reminds me of those times when I was at that age in which I still believed heroes where chivalrous, suave, gave to the poor, & were so cool, that even if they were always sporting around in a pair of light green tights, they were still able to score with a really hot maiden.
6. The Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
In this immensely successful sequel (one of the first to be so successful) , the Frankenstein Monster learns to talk, smoke a cigar, and on a social level, put himself "out there".
Now while he & the Bride give a new meaning to the term "made for each other", for any few of you who've never seen this movie,
I won't spoil it for you by revealing whether or not she accepts his proposal or not.
Lest to say that the fact that the name the follow-up film to this follow-up film is Son Of Frankenstein bears no reflection to the outcome of this movie.
5. Swing Time (1936)
In the Modern Times entry at the number one spot of the list, I mention that Charlie Chaplin's physical stunt work provided the same kind of awe-inspiring "awe" back during this era in the same manner that special effects do today.
In these black & white dances classics,
the awe is a result of the complex, stylish dance steps of Fred Astaire & Ginger Rogers.
I can only imagine the wonder & amazement that 1930's movie audiences must have felt back when they first witnessed the fancy footwork and the chemistric choreogrphy from this couple, alongside the camera work, classy costumes & shimmering back sets used to enhance the power of the routines.
4. Dracula (1931)
Before there was Lestat, Blade, Eli or that whimpy, waspy whitey Edward Cullen,
there was Dracula.
And yeah, in the film world, even though Nosferatu came first,
it's well known that it was the tale of the original Count Dracula that Count Orlok was modeled after.
This is the movie that finally brought the one true Master Of The Dead to life.
So, as far as I'm concerned, no matter how many times the current limited brain trust of Hollywood tries to update the concept of the vampire, Dracky is and always will be the O.G. of bloodsucking bloodsuckers, suckas. And while his contributions to the iconography of horror will always be "countless",
we should all try to remember that if it weren't for him, Count Chocula cereal would just be called Chocolate Flavored Cereal Wit' Chocolate Flavored Marshmellows In It.
So y'know....
pay 'em his due propers.
Suckas.
3. Frankenstein (1931)
What Dracula did for Count Chocula cereal, the Frankenstein monster did for Frankenberries.
With the added extra that it will probably make you poop out pink-colored poopoo.
Suckas.
Actually, this thread came along at the right time of the year for me, because the main reason these three early Universal monster flicks (Dracula, Franky & Bride Of Franky) are on my favorite movies of the 30's list is that they've been a regular staple on the television sets of The Mighty Celestial household every Halloween night now for generations. Heck, probably even before television sets were invented.
2. Duck Soup (1933)
A comedy classic, with the Bros. Marx carrying on with their timeless mayhem antics & spouting out lines like "I could dance with you till the cows come home. On second thought, I'd rather dance with the cows till you came home."
For any of you who haven't yet seen this, IMO, the best of the Marx movies, but have decided to give it a view for the first time, I envy you. It will truly be a gala day for you. And if you're anything like Groucho, the Marx's head hermano, a gal a day is enough for you. You probably couldn't handle any more.
1. Modern Times (1936)
Before there were special effects, CGI graphics & matrix-style action sequences in film, there was human physical talent.
And in the early 1900's, the height of this talent was displayed to movie viewing audiences through the almost impossible stunt routines of Charlie Chaplin.
back then, watching his ability to choreograph & incorporate his crazy stunts into the props & background sets (particularly in this film, with the complicated set designs of the factory) must've been the equivalent of watching a summer blockbuster of today.
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