History of Film, Part 3: 1930-1939

A variation on the yearly threads we did a few years ago, with these monthly threads we will talk about individual eras of film, from the obvious classics to the forgotten masterpieces to those giants that might need to be re-evaluated.

In August we continue with the sound revolution. Other than a few holdouts like Charlie Chaplin, directors jumped at the opportunity to add sound to their films. As we saw in films like Singin' in the Rain, the conversion ruined some careers and elevated others. Universal owned the realm of monsters, terrifying people with Dracula and Frankenstein and the Wolf-Man. Walt Disney's empire began to really grow, Jean Renoir pumped out masterpieces, and the Wizard of Oz showed what color can add to film.

Other major films of the era include the original Scarface, the lyrical romanticism of L'Atalante, the racial allegory of King Kong, and the perfect comedy known as Duck Soup. While the 1920's had perfected the silent film, the 1930's was the dawn of a new era.

What are your thoughts? Favorites? Recommendations? Challenges to the canon?

 

You should post a link to this in the previous thread

 

Modern Times and A Night on Bald Mountain are my favorites this year

 

1. Stella Dallas (King Vidor, 1937)
2. All Quiet on the Western Front (Lewis Milestone, 1930)
3. The Story of the Last Chrysanthemum (Kenji Mizoguchi, 1939)
4. Gone with the Wind (Victor Fleming, 1939)
5. King Kong (Merian C. Cooper, Ernest B. Schoedsack, 1933)
6. Freaks (Tod Browning, 1932)
7. It Happened One Night (Frank Capra, 1934)
8. History Is Made at Night (Frank Borzage, 1937)
9. Make Way for Tomorrow (Leo McCarey, 1937)
10. The Wizard of Oz (Victor Fleming, 1939)
11. Broken Lullaby (Ernst Lubitsch, 1932)
12. City Lights (Charlie Chaplin, 1931)
13. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (Frank Capra, 1939)
14. Vivacious Lady (George Stevens, 1938)
15. Holiday (George Cukor, 1938)
16. Stagecoach (John Ford, 1939)
17. The Women (George Cukor, 1939)
18. Tabu (F. W. Murnau, 1931)
19. You Only Live Once (Fritz Lang, 1937)
20. Trouble in Paradise (Ernst Lubitsch, 1932)
21. Bride of Frankenstein (James Whale, 1935)
22. The Tale of the Fox (Irene Starewicz, Władysław Starewicz, 1937)
23. My Man Godfrey (Gregory La Cava, 1936)
24. The Goddess (Yonggang Wu, 1934)
25. Jewel Robbery (William Dieterle, 1932)
26. Bringing Up Baby (Howard Hawks, 1938)
27. You Can’t Take It with You (Frank Capra, 1938)
28. I Am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang (Mervyn LeRoy, 1932)
29. Confession (Joe May, 1937)
30. The Mascot (Władysław Starewicz, Irene Starewicz, 1933)
31. Frankenstein (James Whale, 1931)
32. The Miracle Woman (Frank Capra, 1931)
33. L’Âge d’Or (Luis Buñuel, 1930)
34. Land Without Bread (Luis Buñuel, 1933)
35. Fury (Fritz Lang, 1936)
36. Our Daily Bread (King Vidor, 1934)
37. One Way Passage (Tay Garnett, 1932)
38. Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (Frank Capra, 1936)
39. Stage Door (Gregory La Cava, 1937)
40. Liebelei (Max Ophüls, 1933)
41. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Rouben Mamoulian, 1931)
42. Gold Diggers of 1933 (Mervyn LeRoy, 1933)
43. The Criminal Code (Howard Hawks, 1930)
44. Night Nurse (William A. Wellman, 1931)
45. City Girl (F. W. Murnau, 1930)
46. Happiness (Aleksandr Medvedkin, 1934)
47. Everybody’s Woman (Max Ophüls, 1934)
48. The 39 Steps (Alfred Hitchcock, 1935)
49. Modern Times (Charlie Chaplin, 1936)
50. Top Hat (Mark Sandrich, 1935)

 

Quick LB check says I’ve seen 311 features in this window. Gotta take some time to go through that list.

What would be more helpful to people? Favorites overall? Or underrated ones that probably aren’t in the usual starter kit? Starters for certain actors/directors? Wanna be useful.

 

Gonna quote and respond to all the really cool ones on here later but just making this quote to see what I should try to get in.

 

I love silent film but the addition of sound and being able to hear the performances really elevates the capacity for emotional connection. Watching Stella Dallas shortly after I had my own daughter probably heightened the effect it had on me but seeing the level of sacrifice for the happiness and wellbeing of her daughter really affected me. One of the many great performances from Barbara Stanwyck in this decade, she always brought a ton of charisma and pathos to the screen.

The 30's also introduced actors like James Stewart, Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn who would be favourites of mine for decades to come. Stewart made a couple of really great films with Frank Capra here before they would team up again for their best work the following decade. It Happened One Night is my favourite Capra of the 30's though, which feels like the definitive romantic comedy of this era, and there were a lot of great ones.

Katherine Hepburn and Cary Grant star opposite each other in two of the best, Holiday and Bringing Up Baby, showcasing their mutual ability for wistfulness and absurdity.

History Is Made at Night is one that skews on the more romantic side, with another wonderful pair of performers, Charles Boyer and Jean Arthur.

Ernst Lubitsch had a strong decade with Broken Lullaby being one of the most surprisingly moving films in his oeuvre, and Trouble in Paradise being one of the most charming, largely thanks to the remarkable Kay Francis who was also delightful in One Way Passage and Jewel Robbery that same year.

The Story of the Last Chrysanthemum is probably the first true masterpiece from Kenji Mizoguchi, and there's a raging sadness to it like most of his work that just devastates me.

Gone with the Wind and The Wizard of Oz are two of the earliest films to adopt colour and both do so with a splendour and style that is still impressive today. As is the use of stop motion in King Kong, creating visual spectacle long before any kind of CGI. The animation and designs still look fantastic.

I think Freaks might have been the first film I ever saw from the 30's and I remember being so shocked and enamoured that something like that existed back then, and after seeing so many films from the period my appreciation has only grown. I really wish the original cut had survived.

 

Duck Soup and the Marx Bros comedies in general are something that just don't really work for me sadly. I find them more grating than funny and overall the films just become tedious after a while. The musical performances were probably the one thing I consistently liked about them, those boys can play.