Movies: 2833

The American film noir, The Maltese Falcon (1941), follows a San Francisco private detective as he navigates the schemes of three immoral adventurers who are all vying for possession of a valuable falcon statuette. Directed and written by John Huston in his debut as a director, the movie is based on Dashiell Hammett’s 1930 novel of the same name. At the start of the film, Spade and Archer take on a new case when Ruth Wonderly arrives seeking assistance in finding her sister, who has supposedly run off to San Francisco with a man named Floyd Thursby. After ...

The American science fiction comedy film, The Invisible Woman (1940), was directed by A. Edward Sutherland. It follows wealthy lawyer Richard Russell as he funds Professor Gibbs, a dotty old inventor, in creating an invisibility device. The first person to test the machine is Kitty Carroll, a former department store model who had been fired from her job. With the successful use of the device, Kitty seeks revenge on her cruel ex-boss, Mr. Growley. Meanwhile, as the Professor and invisible Kitty visit Russell’s lodge, gangster Blackie Cole enlists his dim-witted henchmen–including ‘Hammerhead’ ...

Directed by Joe May, The Invisible Man Returns (1940) is an American horror science fiction film that follows the story of Sir Geoffrey Radcliffe. Despite being wrongfully convicted for the murder of his brother Michael, Radcliffe is sentenced to death. In a desperate attempt to prove his innocence, Dr. Frank Griffin, brother of the original invisible man, administers an invisibility drug to Radcliffe. With his execution looming, Radcliffe mysteriously disappears from his cell. Meanwhile, Detective Sampson of Scotland Yard begins to piece together the truth while Radcliffe races against time to find the real murderer ...

Brigham Young (1940) is a biographical western film featuring talented actors Tyrone Power, Linda Darnell, and Dean Jagger. It depicts the true story of Young’s rise to become the leader of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints after the tragic assassination of Joseph Smith in 1844. The film follows Young’s journey to guide his followers across the Rocky Mountains and establish their settlement in Salt Lake City. Along the way, we witness the struggles faced by two members of his group, Jonathan Kent ...

Johnny Apollo (1940) is an American crime film directed by Henry Hathaway and starring Tyrone Power and Dorothy Lamour. Bob Cain, Jr.’s father, known as ‘Pop’ Cain, is sent to prison for embezzlement. Despite their previous close relationship, Bob becomes estranged from his father and drops out of college in search of employment. However, his efforts are unsuccessful due to his father’s infamous reputation. Bob eventually finds work under an alias but is terminated upon the discovery of his true ...

The historical film, Tower of London (1939), was both directed and produced by Rowland V. Lee. Set in the 15th century, it follows Richard Duke of Gloucester as he eliminates those in line for the throne with the help of his executioner Mord. With each kill, he revels in removing a miniature figurine from a dollhouse representing his victims until he is the only one left. Upon the death of his brother King Edward IV, Richard becomes King of England as Richard III and must defeat Henry Tudor to maintain control.

Directed by Rowland V. Lee, Son of Frankenstein (1939) tells the story of Baron Wolf von Frankenstein, the son of infamous scientist Henry Frankenstein. In an attempt to redeem his father’s name, Wolf moves his wife Elsa and young son Peter to their family castle. However, he quickly realizes that this will not be an easy task as the villagers hold a deep resentment towards the Frankenstein family due to past events involving Henry’s Monster. The only person who offers Wolf any friendship is Inspector Krogh, a local police officer with an artificial arm from a childhood encounter with the creature. While ...

The Real Glory (1939) is an adventure film by Samuel Goldwyn Productions, released by United Artists in the weeks following Nazi Germany’s invasion of Poland. Directed by Henry Hathaway and based on Charles L. Clifford’s 1937 novel of the same name, the film is set during the Moro Rebellion in the early 20th century, when the Philippines was under American occupation. The island of Mindanao is plagued by Alipang and his Muslim Moro guerrillas, who raid villages and take women and children as slaves. In an effort to protect the Filipinos without maintaining ...

Spawn of the North (1938) is an American adventure film featuring George Raft, Henry Fonda, and Dorothy Lamour as rival fishermen in Alaska. Directed by Henry Hathaway, the story follows Jim Kimmerlee, owner of a salmon cannery, who reunites with his old friend Tyler Dawson after his hunting trip for seals. Nicky Duval, Jim’s sweetheart and proprietor of the local hotel, is also happy to see Tyler back in town. However, their cheerful reunion is dampened by the ongoing ...

Souls at Sea (1937) is an American historical adventure film directed by Henry Hathaway and starring Gary Cooper and George Raft. Based on a story by Ted Lesser, the film follows the journey of a first mate on a slave ship who leads a mutiny to overthrow the captain and free the enslaved passengers. Abolitionist Michael ‘Nuggin’ Taylor takes on an undercover mission to disrupt illegal slave trading, despite both the United States and Great Britain having laws ...

King Solomon’s Mines (1937) is a British adventure film directed by Robert Stevenson. It is based on the 1885 novel of the same name by Henry Rider Haggard. In 1882, Irish dream chaser Patrick ‘Patsy’ O’Brien and his daughter Kathy have been unsuccessful in their search for diamonds in the mines of Kimberley, South Africa. They convince Allan Quartermain to take them to the coast in his wagon. On their journey, they come across another wagon with two injured men. While Umbopa recovers, Silvestra Getto dies after claiming to know the location of the ...

The British espionage thriller film Sabotage (1936) follows a group of terrorists planning attacks in London. In one incident, sand is used to stop an electrical generator, causing a power outage at Karl Verloc’s cinema. When customers request their money back, Verloc sneaks into his living quarters and washes the sand from his hands before pretending to be asleep. He orders his wife to refund the money and mentions that he has other funds coming in. Just as refunds are about to be issued, the lights come back on. The following day, Verloc meets with his contact from an unnamed European country to discuss their plan for future attacks in London. The exact motive ...

Released by Universal Pictures, Dracula’s Daughter (1936) is a chilling vampire horror film that serves as a sequel to the popular 1931 movie, Dracula. Directed by Lambert Hillyer and written by Garrett Fort, the story follows Professor Van Helsing who has just defeated Count Dracula. However, his victory is short-lived when he is apprehended by two Whitby policemen named Sergeant Wilkes and Constable Albert. They had stumbled upon the body of Dracula, with a stake through its heart, as well as Renfield’s lifeless body with a broken neck in Carfax ...

The Man Who Could Work Miracles (1936) is a British fantasy comedy film directed by Lothar Mendes and produced by Alexander Korda. It opens in the celestial realms, where three superhuman entities – potentially gods or angels – are observing the planet Earth. Disheartened by the actions of these ‘animals’, one of the entities is challenged by the other two to prove whether or not these beings are capable of handling the power over reality required to reach the stars. The only limit set for this experiment is that free will cannot be controlled, as ...

The British sci-fi film Things to Come (1936) was produced by Alexander Korda, directed by William Cameron Menzies, and written by H. G. Wells. John Cabal, a businessman, resides in Everytown in southern England in 1940 and is unable to enjoy Christmas due to the possibility of war reported on the news. Harding, his guest, shares his concerns while Pippa Passworthy remains optimistic, believing that the war may not happen or if it does, it will propel technological advancements forward. However, an air raid that night leads ...

Released by Paramount Pictures and directed by Henry Hathaway, Go West Young Man (1936) is a hilarious American comedy adapted from Lawrence Riley’s play Personal Appearance. The storyline follows Mavis Arden, a famous movie star, who becomes entangled with a politician despite the watchful eye of her publicist Morgan. While on her personal appearance tour, Mavis gets stranded at a remote rural boarding house with an overbearing landlady, a practical old maid, and an overly enthusiastic waitress who happens to be a huge fan of her work. To pass the time, ...

Based on the 1908 novel of the same name, The Trail of the Lonesome Pine (1936) is an American adventure romance western film. In the Eastern Kentucky Coalfield, an ongoing feud between the Tolliver and Falin clans has persisted for generations. With the arrival of engineer Jack Hale and his coal and railroad interests, tensions rise. After saving Dave Tolliver’s life and treating his gangrene injury, Hale gains favor with Dave’s cousin June, who was supposed to marry him. Hale also takes an interest in June’s brother Buddie, educating him and becoming a mentor figure. However, members of both families remain wary of this outsider.

Alfred Hitchcock’s espionage thriller film, Secret Agent (1936), is based on the play by Campbell Dixon. During World War I on 10 May 1916, British Captain and novelist Edgar Brodie returns from leave to discover his own obituary in the newspaper. He is then approached by an unknown man, ‘R’, who offers him a secret mission: to eliminate a German agent heading to Arabia with plans to cause chaos in the Middle East. Brodie agrees and is given a new identity as Richard Ashenden, along with a fake death. He is also partnered with an assassin known as ...

The  American horror film, The Raven (1935), directed by Lew Landers and starring Boris Karloff and Béla Lugosi, tells the story of a young dancer named Jean Thatcher who is injured in a car accident. Her father, Judge Thatcher, and fiancé, Dr. Jerry Halden, seek out neurosurgeon Dr. Richard Vollin for assistance. Despite now only conducting research, Vollin is renowned for his skill in performing delicate operations on cranial nerve roots. Initially uninterested in helping due to his insensitivity towards human suffering, ...

In the horror flick Werewolf of London (1935), directed by Stuart Walker, Henry Hull takes on the role of the titular werewolf. The story follows Wilfred Glendon, a wealthy and renowned English botanist who sets off to Tibet in search of an elusive plant known as Mariphasa lupina lumina. This plant is said to only bloom under the light of the moon. While in Tibet, Glendon is attacked and bitten by a wild humanoid creature but manages to obtain a specimen of the rare plant. Back in his London laboratory, he creates a lamp that mimics moonlight in hopes of seeing the ...