Golden Age of Film

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Have you Seen these Golden Age Films?..

These Classic Golden Age Films were made during the era of the Studio System between 1930 and 1960. All are milestones in Film History, technically or socially; made when moralistic censorship was at its peak. Some may be familiar to you, others you may not have seen. Learn about them here and watch a Golden Age Film soon!

King Kong 

Universal Studios, 1933 dir. Merian C. Cooper

King Kong is the quintessential rampage movie. It starred Bruce Cabot, Fay Wray and Robert Armstrong.

A movie company travel to a remote island to bring back a legendary giant ape and exhibit him as the 'Eighth Wonder of the World.' Of course, Kong has other ideas and escapes as soon as possible, causing chaos and wrecking as much of New York as possible, having first snatched up the company star, Fay Wray, for whom he has developed an obsession. Now, Kong has to be stopped, but how to rescue Fay first...

Of Human Bondage 

RKO, 1934 dir John Cromwell

This story of a selfish woman who repeatedly causes havoc to the life of a gentle, caring man starred Leslie Howard and Bette Davis.

An insecure, club-footed student falls in love with a coarse and thoughtless waitress who rejects him to run off with another man only to return unmarried but pregnant. Each time her life falls apart, she returns to him, just when his life has taken an upturn, but each time she leaves him again to sink lower than before...

Gone With the Wind 

Selznick International Pictures, 1939 dir Victor Fleming

Frequently called 'the Greatest Movie of All Time,' this colour epic starred Vivien Leigh, Leslie Howard and Clark Gable in the title roles.

Set in the Deep South at the onset of the Civil War, Gone With the Wind tells of the attraction of a Southern Belle for her neighbour, who in turn is in love with his cousin, while an interloper in the form of a handsome Northern Carpetbagger takes a shine to our heroine. Her skill in conniving to move closer to the affections of her neighbour evolves into skill at surviving the horrors and ravages of war, and the eventual realisation that her true affections are with the husband who has spurned her.

The Philadelphia Story 

MGM, 1940 dir George Cukor

Starring Katherine Hepburn, Cary Grant and James Stewart in a sparkling comedy about a socialite's forthcoming wedding.

A socialite's ex-husband drops in on his ex-wifes's preparations for her second marriage, in order to keep an eye on the reporter and photographer he has reluctantly allowed to cover the wedding as an altenative to the publishing of scandal involving the bride's father's philandering. Since nobody else is aware of his dilemma, he is no more welcome than the intruders...

The Maltese Falcon 

Warner Bros, 1941 dir John Huston

Early film noir classic starring Humphrey Bogart, Mary Astor, Sidney Greenstreet and Peter Lorre.

A private detective's partner is shot at the start of a new case which has been misrepresented as a missing-persons case. The case turns into a search for a precious ancient artefact which is sought by several strange characters, each of whom try to manipulate the detective but underestimate his tenacity...

I Know Where I'm Going 

Archers, 1945 dirs Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger

Starring Wendy Hiller and Roger Livesey, this beautifully crafted film tells of the erosion of one woman's goal of financial security by love of a man with none.

During the Second World War, a headstrong career woman with clear personal goals travels to join her fiancee, the owner of the company she works for, in order to marry him on the remote Scottish island of Kiloran. Fog and high winds conspire to keep her on the mainland, in the company of a fellow traveller, the Laird and owner of the Island, who is on a short leave from the RAF and wishes to spend it on his own island . The longer she remains in his company, the more desperate she becomes to reach the island and the greater the risks she is willing to take to travel, even at the risk of endangering the lives of others, for she is only too aware how susceptible she is to the Laird's obvious passion for her...

A Matter of Life and Death 

Archers, 1946 dirs Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger

This Archers Production was made in colour, and stars David Niven, Kim Hunter and Roger Livesey.

A bomber pilot radios in his final report to an American operator at his home station. He pours out his heart to her and then bales out of his burning plane into the sea without a parachute - and survives to wash up on the beach and intercept her on her way home. Their romance is threatened when he hears and sees a Heavenly conductor who wants to take him to Heaven where he should have gone all along, as he was supposed to die in the fall. The planning of an appeal to Heaven's tribunal coincides with pressure headaches from a lesion which his new friend a local doctor and surgeon wants to relieve. The race is on to find a suitable defence representative in Heaven who will help him win his case to live and cure the real medical threat to his life at the same time.

It's a Wonderful Life 

Liberty, 1946 dir Frank Capra

One of the most popular films ever made, this delightful Christmas classic shows how one soul affects all those around him, and stars James Stewart, Donna Reed and Lionel Barrymore.

A banker in a small town is under pressure to repay money to a real-estate developer who owns the mortage on the bank and wants to foreclose. In despair, he is about to throw himself into the river when instead he finds himself saving another would-be suicide, his guardian angel. The angel shows him how life would have been had he not lived, in order to show him how much he has improved the lives of the town's inhabitants.

Key Largo 

Warner Bros, 1948 dir John Huston

This dramatic classic stars Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Lionel Barrymore and Edward G. Robinson.

An ex-soldier visits his late buddy's father and widow who manage a hotel in a remote location on the Florida Keys. A gangster and his gang try to push them around when their escape is thwarted by an approaching hurricane.

Singin' in the Rain 

MGM, 1952 dir Stanley Donen

Probably the most famous musical ever made, starring Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds and Donald O'Connor.

This is Hollywood in the 1920s, where the release of the first Talking Picture creates a stir in a rival Studio, who hurry to adapt their latest Silent Picture for sound. A chance meeting leads to romance between the leading man and a new arrival, but his co-star is determined to keep him for herself...

Did you know? 

Some of the facts about the films

Gary Cooper turned down the role of Rhett Butler in Gone With the Wind because he expected the film to be a flop!

Sets from King Kong were burned in the Atlanta Fire scene.

Katherine Hepburn reprised her Broadway role of Tracy Lord in the screen version of The Philadelphia Story.

Roger Livesey shot all his scenes from I Know Where I'm Going in the studio rather than on location, because he was appearing in a play in the West End and couldn't travel to Scotland. A body double played the scenes in longshot.

A Matter of Life and Death was chosen for the first ever Royal Film Performance on November 1, 1946.
The scene where some of the cast gaze down at the workings of heaven through porthole-like windows was the inspiration for a bus station roof in Walsall!

It's a Wonderful Life was considered subversive by the FBI because it criticised bankers...

In order to take advantage of the publicity of the movie Key Largo, the Rock Harbor Post Office changed its name to Key Largo Post Office.

The car driven by Debbie Reynolds in Singin' in the Rain was the same one driven by Mickey Rooney in the Andy Hardy movies.

Watch a clip from King Kong... 


King Kong 1933

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King Kong (1933) Carl Denham Trailer

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Watch a clip from Of Human Bondage... 


Of Human Bondage - Bette Davis

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Watch a clip from Gone With the Wind... 


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gone with wind

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Watch a clip from the Philadelphia Story... 


Katharine Hepburn - Philadelphia Story

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Watch a clip from The Maltese Falcon... 


Maltese Falcon - trailer

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Watch a clip from I Know Where I'm Going... 


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Watch a clip from A Matter of Life and Death... 


A Matter of Life and Death (1946) - David Niven on the beach

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Watch a clip from It's a Wonderful Life... 


It's A Wonderful Life - Trailer

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Watch a clip from Key Largo... 


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Watch a clip from Singin' in the Rain 


Singing in the Rain

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