Greetings from Amazon.com Delivers Video Classics Editor, Simon Leake FEATURED IN THIS E-MAIL: * Word for Word: "Sullivan's Travels" * New Releases for Sale: "The Apartment," "The Birds," and "12 Angry Men" * This Month's Top Five: "One, Two, Three," "The Lady Vanishes," "Swing Time," and more * Focus on: Thelma Ritter * The Essential Preston Sturges * Advance Orders: "The Naked Kiss," "How to Steal a Million," and "The Wizard of Oz" WORD FOR WORD ************* "There's a lot to be said for making people laugh. Did you know that that's all some people have?" --Joel McCrea as John L. Sullivan in "Sullivan's Travels" You can find "Sullivan's Travels" at <http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/6301232291/entertainmentsit> NEW RELEASES FOR SALE ********************* "The Apartment" (NR) starring Jack Lemmon and Shirley MacLaine; directed by Billy Wilder <http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/6304308396/entertainmentsit> Few actors have explored the more neurotic corners of the fragile male ego as successfully as Jack Lemmon, and he's at his best when he's working with the patron saint of movie cynicism, Billy Wilder. In "The Apartment" Lemmon plays a clerk who loans his apartment to his adulterous superiors, significantly improving his chances of promotion, but things get sticky when he falls for elevator operator Shirley MacLaine, who happens to be having an affair with executive Fred MacMurray. Wilder won three Oscars for "The Apartment," and it deserved every one of them. "The Birds" (PG-13) starring Tippi Hedren and Rod Taylor; directed by Alfred Hitchcock <http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0783235666/entertainmentsit> Hitchcock spent almost three years in preproduction for "The Birds," and the result of this meticulous work was a film that transformed a Daphne du Maurier short story into a chilling and complex study of the breakdown of society. Tippi Hedren plays a young woman who arrives in a small California town only to find herself fighting for survival when birds begin attacking humans. Rich with metaphors and genuinely scary, "The Birds" is the master at his best. "12 Angry Men" (PG-13) starring Henry Fonda and Lee J. Cobb; directed by Sidney Lumet <http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/6301976061/entertainmentsit> Sidney Lumet's gripping courtroom drama (his first movie) stands head and shoulders above most other examples of the genre. A young man is accused of murder, and only one juror (Henry Fonda) believes he is innocent. As Fonda works to change the course of the deliberations, Lumet cranks up the tension, and the atmosphere generated in the cramped jury room is electric. The entire cast is superb, doing justice to Reginald Rose's gripping script, and Fonda is perfect as the idealistic and determined hero. THIS MONTH'S TOP FIVE ********************* Amazon.com's Video Classics editor, Simon Leake, selects five great films to buy. "One, Two, Three" (NR) starring James Cagney; directed by Billy Wilder <http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/6301971744/entertainmentsit> Little seen, but much admired by those who seek it out, "One, Two, Three" is one of Wilder's wildest. James Cagney plays a Coke executive in West Berlin, whose plan to sell soda behind the Iron Curtain is threatened when his boss's daughter marries a no-good godless Communist. This movie is a time capsule of American cold war paranoia, and Wilder delights in skewering the ridiculous attitudes of both sides in the East-West conflict. As the film accelerated rapidly into farce, Cagney's explosive performance--and his delivery of a typically tart script by Wilder and collaborator I.A.L. Diamond--is a joy to behold. "The Lady Vanishes" (NR) starring Margaret Lockwood and Michael Redgrave; directed by Alfred Hitchcock <http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/6303346332/entertainmentsit> A wonderfully witty and thrilling early film from Alfred Hitchcock, "The Lady Vanishes" made Hollywood sit up and take notice of this bold and unique director. The movie boasts a superb ensemble cast (with Basil Radford and Naunton Wayne stealing the show as two dotty Englishmen abroad) and a satisfyingly complex plot involving spies, murder, and musical secret messages. When a fellow passenger disappears from a train, a young woman (Margaret Lockwood) finds herself in the middle of a conspiracy where nothing is what it seems, and before she can save herself and her country she must find out who she can trust. "Swing Time" (NR) starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers; directed by George Stevens <http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/078062579X/entertainmentsit> If everyone watched a Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers movie once a month, the world would be a better place. The combination of grace and giddiness in their greatest films casts a spell that still charms more than half a century later. "Swing Time" was their sixth collaboration, and the formula was polished to perfection: a throwaway plot and an accomplished, funny supporting cast providing a backdrop for dazzling song-and-dance numbers. Highlights include "Pick Yourself Up" and the Oscar-winning "The Way You Look Tonight." "My Darling Clementine" (NR) starring Henry Fonda and Victor Mature; directed by John Ford <http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/6301798759/entertainmentsit> The late Victor Mature turns in a terrific performance as the tubercular Doc Holliday, matching perfectly Henry Fonda's Wyatt Earp, in John Ford's stunning version of the events leading up to the gunfight at the O.K. Corral. Earp is leading a cattle drive west with his brothers when a stopover in the wild town of Tombstone ends in the murder of his youngest brother. He takes up the badge he had turned down earlier and tames the wide-open town with his brothers (Ward Bond and Tim Holt), all the while waiting for the wild Clantons (led by Walter Brennan's ruthless Old Man Clanton) to make a mistake. "Pickup on South Street" (NR) starring Richard Widmark, Jean Peters, and Thelma Ritter; directed by Samuel Fuller <http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/630196697X/entertainmentsit> Candy (Jean Peters) has her purse picked on the subway by small-time thief and ex-con Skip (Richard Widmark), but neither of them realizes that the purse contains microfilm bound for Communist spies and that they are being watched the whole time by Federal agents. Sam Fuller's grim film noir is a terrific early example of his antiheroic style, and the violence that permeates this movie is still shocking. Widmark's performance as the amoral protagonist is brave, brutal, and compelling. FOCUS ON: THELMA RITTER *********************** She rarely topped the bill, but Thelma Ritter was one of Hollywood's greatest character actors, earning six Academy Award nominations for Best Supporting Actress. Whether she was dispensing wit in "All About Eve," or breaking hearts in "Pickup on South Street," her performances were always perfectly pitched. Amazon.com contributor Ali Davis surveys the career of the versatile Ms. Ritter. Classics THE ESSENTIAL PRESTON STURGES ***************************** Clever, sassy, and incredibly funny, the films of Preston Sturges provide a sparkling alternative to the current deluge of gross-out comedies. Combining satire, slapstick, smart scripts, and great actors, his movies were funny without being sentimental, and he pulled no punches when it came to criticizing the follies of America in the '40s. Check out Amazon.com's Sturges Essentials at Classics ADVANCE ORDERS ************** Order these titles now, and we'll ship them to you as soon as they're released. "The Naked Kiss" (NR) starring Constance Towers; directed by Samuel Fuller <http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/6302969220/entertainmentsit> Maverick director Fuller is at his iconoclastic best in this wild story of a prostitute trying to go straight. Fuller had an amazing ability to transform B-movie material into something special, and this film is a perfect example. "How to Steal a Million" (NR) starring Audrey Hepburn and Peter O'Toole; directed by William Wyler <http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/6303631851/entertainmentsit> William Wyler's delightfully lightweight romantic-comedy caper movie benefits from the sparkling comic chemistry between Hepburn and O'Toole, but watch out for equally amusing performances from Hugh Griffith (as Hepburn's father) and the legendary Moustache as a bumbling museum guard. "The Wizard of Oz" (G) starring Judy Garland; directed by Victor Fleming http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00000JS61/entertainmentsit There's no film like "Oz," there's no film like "Oz," there's no film like "Oz." This new edition of "The Wizard of Oz" is the digitally remastered print that played in theaters for the film's 60th anniversary. Also included on the tape are a behind-the-scenes special hosted by Angela Lansbury, outtakes, and the original trailer. ****** You'll find more great videos, articles, and interviews in Amazon.com's Video Classics section at Classics
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