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The Ray Harryhausen Film Study
For a couple of years now, I’ve been teaching a series of classic film courses. Film Noir, Screwball Comedy, and Hitchcock are some of the topics we’ve tackled. Starting this week, we’re kicking off...
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Ray Harryhausen Film Notes: MIGHTY JOE YOUNG (1949)
The following are my notes as I presented to my Film Study course, Ray Harryhausen. In this week’s class we discussed the big ape that continues to capture our hearts, sixteen years after the famous...
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Top Picks for 2019 TCM Film Festival
Every year, devoted fans and attendees giddily await the full schedule release of the Turner Classic Movies Film Festival. This year, the anticipation was even more palatable as this is the 10th...
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Ray Harryhausen Film Notes: THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD (1958)
*The following are my notes as part of an ongoing Ray Harryhausen film study course, which I currently instruct in Lawrence, Kansas. We are about to set sail for a new type of adventure in our quest...
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Ray Harryhausen Film Notes: 20 MILLION MILES TO EARTH (1957)
*The following are film study notes, as part of an ongoing Ray Harryhausen course I instruct in Lawrence, Kansas. What do you do when you’re a hard-working special effects guy, but need a European...
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Fangirling Doris Day
My love for Doris Mary Ann von Kappelhoff is no secret. As a classic film obsessive, I’m often asked who my favorite (male and female) movie stars are. With zero hesitation, Cary Grant and Doris Day....
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BORDER INCIDENT (1949)
Next month marks the 70th anniversary of the gripping film noir, Anthony Mann’s BORDER INCIDENT (1949). It’s a violent, intense, shocking, and visually stunning peek into the slave labor conditions of...
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My aunt Carolyn
I don’t usually post items so personal. Something so removed from my classic film thoughts. But as my family will come together today to honor my aunt Carolyn’s life, I felt compelled to share a few...
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THAT TOUCH OF MINK (1962)
Doris Day was 40 years old when Delbert Mann’s THAT TOUCH OF MINK (1962) premiered, cementing her ridiculous (yet popular) reputation as the “world’s oldest professional virgin.” At this point, she...
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Announcement: It’s the 8th Annual WHAT A CHARACTER! Blogathon
It’s hard to believe we’ve been hosting this blogathon for eight years now. But perhaps not that shocking considering that discussing those scene-stealing character actors is a crowd-pleasing pastime...
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WHAT A CHARACTER! BLOGATHON: Day 1
Today we bring you the first day of the 8th annual WHAT A CHARACTER! BLOGATHON, hosted by yours truly and my fellow co-hosts, your ambassadors of classic film: Paula of Paula’s Cinema Club...
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Seeing Donald Pleasence
Seeing Donald Pleasence As a (slightly rusty) artist, I’m always people watching. I don’t sketch as much as I used to, and now it’s mostly dogs, but I still find myself looking deeply at people...
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Frank McHugh, Everybody’s Pal
Frank McHugh was never destined to be the top banana in a film. He lacked any traditional leading man looks. His voice was never skilled to ever become a songbird. And other than portraying a dancing...
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The Billy Wilder Film Study
Starting in early September, I started teaching this semester’s selection in my ongoing classic film series- BILLY WILDER, a Film Study. I will share with you my film notes. The below are my brief...
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Becoming a Mensch: THE APARTMENT (1960)
*The following are my film study notes, from the Billy Wilder Film Study course I taught in the Fall of 2019. THE APARTMENT (1960), a Film Study By Kellee Pratt Becoming a mensch. That’s the real theme...
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Do Moms Deserve a 2nd Chance For Love?
Motherhood is historically a symbol of nurturing love and sacrifice. If a mother is married, and her partner/spouse dies, as a widow her role as mother marches on. But does that mark an end to her...
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ACE IN THE HOLE (1951)
Film Study: ACE IN THE HOLE (1951) (The following are my notes from my Billy Wilder Film Study class, from the Fall of 2019. It goes deep into details and background. I don’t recommend reading any...
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Billy Wilder Film Study: SOME LIKE IT HOT (1959)
SOME LIKE IT HOT (1959): Film Study *(the following is based on a prior article on this film but with substantial research and content added for the purpose of a Billy Wilder Film Study course taught...
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Nicholas Ray’s In A Lonely Place
IN A LONELY PLACE (1950) This is one of many postwar films where Hollywood takes an introspective, and in the case of the film noirs like this, a darker view of itself. Not unlike private dicks such...
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Celebrating Life, Death, and Ricky Gervais in GHOST TOWN (2008)
Brit funny man Ricky Gervais is known for his brutal humor, as the controversial host of the Golden Globes, as the creator/writer/star of the original (2001 British version) “The Office,” and for his...
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