An Englishman on a Ruritanian holiday finds himself caught up in courtly intrigue. Ronald Colman is delightfully genteel in duel lookalike roles as both the Englishman and the soon-to-be coronated king. He’s helped along the way by David Niven and C. Aubrey Smith. It’s a quick adventure tale filled with romance, moats, fencing, and evil usurpers (one gleefully played by Douglas Fairbanks Jr.).
Oscar Nominations: Best Art Direction; Best Music, Score
I wish this had been a bit longer to fully flesh out the motivations and actions of the characters better. Feeling neglected from the long hours her husband, William Powell, puts in as a lawyer as well as receiving evidence of a potential liaison on his part, Myrna Loy succumbs to her own dalliance. Probably because of the Hays Code, these affairs, and their consequences, are both alluded to more than seen. Loy and Powell have great chemistry as always, but they are given little time to really play off each other. Una Merkel is also wonderful as Loy’s friend who always seems to be around.
This is the strongest performance by Joan Crawford I’ve seen thus far. After being offended by her snobbish employers, she runs off to the city with her musician boyfriend. When he abandons her, she manages to find herself an alcoholic sugar daddy to marry. The ending is a bit contrived and everything is wrapped up a bit too easily, but Joan makes it worth watching. Though all these ups and downs, Crawford brings a complete range and humanity to the Sadie character.
The only thing I knew about the Dickens novel was the opening line. Though I have no idea if it adheres closely to the Dickens’s story, this version is an engaging story of various individuals (aristocrats, hoi polloi, and Londoners) in Paris and London during the years surrounding the French Revolution. Basil Rathbone is perfectly evil as the Marquis who begins the tale, crushing everyone beneath his whims. He is paralleled by Ronald Colman who portrays a superbly clever and noble version of lawyer Carton who is willing to make great sacrifices for the one he loves. 
Oscar Nominations: Best Picture; Best Film Editing
This is such a dark and dismal portrayal of a newspaper editor who, desperate to sell more papers, revives a twenty year old story about a murderer who has since put her life together. I found it intriguing that Edward G. Robinson, known best for portraying gangsters, is the editor and he assigns the story to Boris Karloff, whose career is filled with playing ghoulish characters. The story projects where it’s going a mile away, but that does not make the events any less heartbreaking. In a later year, I could see Marian Marsh, as the murderer’s grown daughter, winning a Best Supporting Actress nomination simply for her monologue toward the end of the film.
Oscar Nomination: Best Picture
I had started watching the English version of this but quickly switched to the superior German. Partially it was a better print, but also the story and actors seemed more naturally fit for German. Marlene Dietrich is shrewd and seductive as a cabaret singer performing at the titular location, but Emil Jannings is genius portraying the fall of a prim, sheltered teacher who spirals downward after meeting Dietrich’s character. It’s a shame the direction Jannings and his career not long after this film.
Although there’s plenty of films where he’s not, I always expect Edward G. Robinson to play the tough guy. Here he gets to do both as a mild mannered clerk who just happens to share the same face as a ruthless killer. There’s sometimes a bit of unevenness in his meek portrayal, particularly when he’s ‘interacting’ with the gangster, but it’s great to watch him work both sides. Jean Arthur brings her spunky best as his co-worker and love interest. The story is light and takes some inexplicable jumps (Donald Meek plays a character that only shows up in the beginning and end), but it’s worth watching Robinson act against himself.
Bette Davis carries this film. Leslie Howard is a man with a disability who falls in love with Davis’s character. Davis is perfection in portraying the absolute highs and lows of her character. Howard is adequate as the man who is strung along by her, willing to sacrifice his livelihood, financially and occupationally, just to be with her. Even when he feels he has moved on, she is able to pull him back into her web.
Oscar Nomination: Best Actress in a Leading Role (write-in)
I started this thinking that I really don’t get much out of the legend of Robin Hood and its many iterations. Watching this version, I finally understood why the story has been adapted so many times, though people should probably just watch this one. This has adventure, romance, humor, and even some dark bits. It doesn’t even overstay its welcome. The scenery and costumes are absolutely gorgeous. I imagine the budget in tights for the men was a tidy sum just in itself. Errol Flynn is excellent as Robin of Locksley: attractive, athletic, and light spirited. Olivia de Havilland captures Maid Marian wonderfully. Claude Rains, Basil Rathbone, and the rest of the supporting cast elevate the already great production.
Oscar Wins: Best Art Direction; Best Film Editing; Best Music, Original Score
Oscar Nomination: Best Picture
This is like the granddaddy of all disaster films. I’m super happy that an English version was finally re-found. Luckily it starts with a Biblical quote so you can be certain that what comes next is all fiction. They don’t even bother at all giving a real explanation for the disaster just a vague ‘barometer falling’ and an unexplained solar eclipse. The viewer just needs to know that the world is falling apart. And indeed those lovely models of NYC fall apart in hundreds of different ways. Luckily there’s enough to salvage for the survivors to be clothed and fed beautifully, but the story then becomes rather drawn-out and boring. Poor Peggy Shannon has to spend too much time running, and swimming, away from awful men. In all seriousness when rebuilding a new society, you really shouldn’t hold yourself to the stodgy conventions of the old. Build back better!