Happy Easter!
As an Easter treat, here’s the delightfully magical silent short Les oeufs de Pâques. The film was written and directed by Segundo de Chomón for Pathé Frères. A contemporary of Georges Méliès, de...
View ArticleCinefest 35 Storifyed!
In advance of my write-up of Cinefest 35, I’ve curated an account of the Syracuse Cinephile Society‘s final film festival from my and other attendees’ social media postings. You can read our shared...
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For the Love of Film Blogathon 2015
Yesterday I wanted some background noise TV, but when I turned it on an error message popped up on my screen, and that led me to contacting cable support, who worked me through a series of steps only...
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Using a Moment to Define a Character
“You know that scene in Rebecca when Joan Fontaine is exploring the room where everything is monogrammed “Rebecca,” and George Sanders just appears in the window? It’s a ground-floor room, and he’s...
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Supporting the San Francisco Silent Film Festival
As part of my preparation for the San Francisco Silent Film Festival, I renewed my membership to it. As a film fanatic with a particular passion for silents, I recognize that many of the specialty...
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For the Love of Film Blogathon: The Tin Man (1935)
Photo sourced from Benny Drinnon’s movie blog. I’ve been planning a post on The Tin Man for a while, and the For Love of Film: The Film Preservation Blogathon has provided the perfect push to write...
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San Francisco Silent Film Festival Official Press Accreditation
Saturday’s post was the start of my San Francisco Silent Film Festival coverage. I’m happy to announce Spellbound by Movies has received official press accreditation to the festival! In the coming...
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San Francisco Silent Film Festival Preview, Part 1
Photo by Tommy Lau from the San Francisco Silent Film Festival’s Site The San Francisco Silent Film Festival is almost here! Its first film fills the Castro Theatre’s screen on Thursday night. We’ll...
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San Francisco Silent Film Festival Preview, Part 2
Speedy (1928) Photo Courtesy of the Harold Lloyd Trust Saturday morning’s program starts with the family-friendly Speedy (1928), and some parents likely will bring their tots for an outing to this...
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San Francisco Silent Film Festival Preview, Why Be Good? (1929)
My San Francisco Silent Film Festival preview was interrupted due to being felled by a bug, but I want to mention a surefire hit of the fest screening today–Colleen Moore in Why Be Good? (1929). Bodil...
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Coming Back from Hiatus!
I confess I took an unannounced hiatus from Spellbound by Movies. That doesn’t mean I’ve not been indulging in my movie love. I had an overwhelmingly good time at the twentieth San Francisco Silent...
View ArticleFriday Fun: Betty Boop in Tokay
The latest music video vixen is–Betty Boop! About 85 years after her first screen appearance, Max Fleischer‘s cartoon flapper is back on screens dancing her way through pop rock band Dengue Fever‘s...
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The William Wellman Blogathon: Maybe It’s Love (1930)
After William Wellman got sick of his treatment at Paramount Pictures, he showed why his nickname “Wild Bill” stuck. He covered Producer B.P. Schulberg‘s desk in manure and left a note on top of the...
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Tab Hunter Confidential at CAIFF 2015
Today we know that Hollywood heartthrob Tab Hunter had a secret. While he was working hard to become an actor appreciated for more than his looks, he was a gay man living in the closet, and that fact...
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Criterion Blogathon: Judex (1963)
Why the fervor over the Criterion Collection? When DVD technology was new, I read in Movieline and other magazines filmmakers and actors praising the technology and claiming watching DVDs was like...
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Happy Thanksgiving!
Lillian Roth I hope everyone celebrating today had a lovely Thanksgiving! What kind of weekend do you have planned? I’ll be using a good chunk of my long holiday weekend to finish up Michelle Morgan‘s...
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Black Friday Treat: The Bargain of the Century (1933)
Feeling Black Friday fatigue? Here’s a delightful Thelma Todd and ZaSu Pitts comedy teaming, The Bargain of the Century (1933), that pokes fun at battling for bargains for you! The duo’s slapstick...
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Book Review: The Ice Cream Blonde
While Thelma Todd‘s death often overshadows her work, Michelle Morgan has written the biography the actress deserves. Any book about Thelma must mention her death and the mystery that surrounds it,...
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The Casting That Almost Was–Louise Brooks as Dorothy Shaw
When refreshing about Anita Loos for my post on the writer, I stumbled across a reference in Pamela Hutchinson‘s excellent silent film column Silent but Deadly! about a casting that almost was–Louise...
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Quote: Her One Wild Extravagance
“In a dull, miserable existence her one wild extravagance was her weekly orgy at the cinema, where for over two hours she lived in an enchanted world peopled by beautiful women, handsome heroes,...
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