This Is The Army" - From immigrant lad to All-American success story, Irving Berlin showed his abiding love for his adopted country with, among other cultural accomplishments, decades of Broadway hits, the unofficial national anthem "God Bless America" and the World War II spirit-lifter "This Is the Army". On stage it featured 350 real-life GIs, giving their singing-and- dancing all to raise nearly $2 million (then an astronomical sum) for Army Emergency Relief. "Thank Your Lucky Stars" - Bette Davis, Humphrey Bogart, Errol Flynn, and Dinah Shore come out to play in the joyous World War II-era "Thank Your Lucky Stars". A breezy, behind-the-Hollywood-scenes story about young talents hoping for a big break glitters with specialty numbers featuring Golden Era greats. Dig in! "Hollywood Canteen" - The Hollywood Canteen was a club for GIs where Joan Crawford might over-easy you some eggs and John Garfield might scrub out the frying pan. The movie "Hollywood Canteen" is a snappy, starry salute to that World War II landmark. Dazzle the troops and modern fans in "a great big scrambled vaudeville show with enough talent to have made a dozen fine movies.".
Dark Victory" (1939): A young socialite is diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor and must decide whether she'll meet her final days with dignity. Bette Davis enjoyed one of her signature roles as a spoiled socialite facing terminal illness - with friend Reagan among those helping her toward a last chance to give her life meaning. "Knute Rockne All-American" (1940): "I've decided to take up coaching as my life work," Knute Rockne says. Coach he does, revolutionizing football with his strategies, winning close to 90 percent of his games, and helping establish the University of Notre Dame's "Fighting Irish" as a gridiron powerhouse. But victories alone do not mean success to Rockne. He wants to shape his players into responsible and honorable men. This famed sports biopic combines a passion for the game (and footage of actual Notre Dame contests) with two superb performances: Pat O'Brien in the title role and Ronald Reagan as George Gipp, the gifted but doomed halfback whose deathbed plea to "win one for the Gipper" remains one of cinema's most memorable quotes. And for the rest of his life, Reagan would often be called the Gipper. "Kings Row" (1942): It's a quaint turn-of-the-century small town with shady streets, swimming holes and the clip-clop of horse and buggy. But that peaceful exterior conceals human lives twisted by cruelty, murder and madness. "Kings Row" is one of Warner Bros.' most distinguished productions, highlighted by an outstanding cast, haunting James Wong Howe cinematography and a somber, emotion-laden Erich Wolfgang Korngold score. Ann Sheridan, Robert Cummings, Betty Field, Claude Rains and Charles Coburn give indelible performances a and Ronald Reagan's portrayal of Drake, a cheerful ne'er-do-well shattered by tragedy, has been hailed as a career high. "Desperate Journey" (1942): When Flight Lt. Forbes and his crew are shot down after bombing their target, they discover valuable information about a hidden German aircraft factory that must g
This masterpiece by Jean-Pierre Melville (Le doulos, Le cercle rouge) about the French Resistance went unreleased in the United States for thirty-seven years, until its triumphant theatrical debut in 2006. Atmospheric and gripping, Army Of Shadows is Melville's most personal film, featuring Lino Ventura (Le deuxieme souffle), Paul Meurisse (Diabolique), Jean-Pierre Cassel (The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie), and the incomparable Simone Signoret (Casque d'or, Diabolique) as intrepid underground fighters who must grapple with their conception of honor in their battle against Hitler's regime. Audio Commentary, Interviews, Theatrical Trailer. "Le Journal De La Resistance" (1944) - A rare short documentary shot on the front lines in France during the final days of the German occupation.
