Magic Lantern Video & Book Store

Hollywood Film Festival
movies about the movies,
about Hollywood,
and about cinema history

here on page 1: brief essay links selected films, A to Z A thru F on page 2: selected films, G thru L • M thru R on page 3: selected films, S thru Z documentary films

see also films made on location in West Los Angeles (Culver City, Venice, Santa Monica & Malibu)
at Magic Lantern's Culver City, California Film Festival Page

There was a cycle of movies made during the mid-to-late 1970s about Tinseltown, Old Hollywood and its Golden Age including the Silent Film era. The pictures include "Fedora" [1978], "Inserts" [1975], "Valentino" [1977], "Nickelodeon" [1976], "Silent Movie" [1976] by Mel Brooks, "The Wild Party" [1975], "The Last Tycoon" [1976], "Hearts of The West" [1975], "The Day of The Locust" [1975], "The World's Greatest Lover" [1977], "Gable and Lombard" [1976], "Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood" [1976], "Goodbye, Norma Jean" [1976], "Bud and Lou" [1978] about Abbott & Costello, and "W.C. Fields and Me" [1976]. "Bogie" [1980] and "Mommie Dearest" [1981] soon followed as well.

Selected  Films,  A to Z
A thru F {just below} • G thru L • M thru R • S thru Z

Fiction About Hollywood & Cinema, 1915 to present

"Movies About The Movies: Hollywood Reflected" [1997] by Christopher Ames Univ Press of KY 9x6 pb [3/98] for $19.95 Univ Press of KY 9¼x6¼ hardcover [5/97] for $32.50 covers "What Price Hollywood?" [1932], "A Star Is Born" [1937], "Stand-In" [1937], "Boy Meets Girl" [1938], "Sullivan's Travels" [1941] by Preston Sturges, "In A Lonely Place" [1950] starring Humphrey Bogart, "Sunset Boulevard" [1950] by Billy Wilder, "The Bad & The Beautiful" [1952], "Singin' In The Rain" [1952], "The Star" [1952], "A Star Is Born" [1954], "Pennies From Heaven" [1981], "Purple Rose of Cairo" [1985] by Woody Allen, "The Player" [1992] by Robert Altman, "Last Action Hero" [1993], and others

"A Movie Star" [Keystone/Triangle Jan 1916] /tt0007098/ with Mack Swain & Louella Maxim

"A Small Town Idol" silent feature
[Mack Sennett/A.P.I. Feb 1921]

Ben is falsely accused of a crime and runs away to Hollywood, where he finds stardom; he then returns home to attend the debut of his new smash Western at the Bijou. Directed by Erle C. Kenton & Mack Sennett; starring Ben Turpin, Marie Prevost, Phyllis Haver, Ramon Navarro, Charlie Murray, Louise Fazenda, Jim Finlayson, Andy Clyde, Billy Bevan, Heinie Conklin & The Mack Sennett Beauties { Film was re-released as a sound feature by Vitaphone/Warner Bros. in 1939: credits at IMDb } silent version credits at IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia silent version available on "Lost Comedy Classics of The Silent Screen" [2013] with 6 silent shorts Alpha Home Ent. b&w silent DVD [7/2013] for $5.98

"A Star Is Born" [1937]

"A Star Is Born" remake [1954]
directed by George Cukor

"A Star Is Born" remake [1976]

more details (synopses, videos & DVDs, books & ebooks, links, merchandise) on
Magic Lantern's "A Star Is Born" Movies Page

"A Studio Stampede" aka "Out of Control"
silent 2-reeler [Vogue/Mutual March 1917] /tt0008636/
starring Ben Turpin; behind the scenes in movie land "where bickering actors, a clueless crew, and
unwanted guests have the frustrated film director pulling his hair out in clumps!"

"A Vitagraph Romance" [Vitagraph Sept 1912]
An early 10-minute short drama that peeks behind the scenes of movie making; written & directed by
James Young; starring Clara Kimball Young, James Morrison, Edward Kimball & Marion Davies, with cameos
from practically everyone at the Vitagraph Studio; VHS/DVD/Blu-ray not available • full credits at IMDb

"Abbott & Costello In Hollywood" [M.G.M. 1945] /tt0037492/

"Abbott & Costello Meet The Keystone Kops"
[Universal Pictures Feb 1955]

Circa 1912, Harry & Willie buy the defunct Edison Studios from a crook; after they realize that they were hood-winked, they follow the crook to Hollywood and find him posing as a film director with plans to steal the studio payroll; includes old time steam & handcar railroad footage and biplane stunts. Directed by Charles Lamont; starring Bud Abbott & Lou Costello, Fred Clark, Lynn Bari, 'Slapsie Maxie' Rosenbloom, Frank Wilcox & Roscoe Ates, with cameos by Mack Sennett and original Keystone Cops Heinie Conklin, Harold Goodwin & Hank Mann color photo {at left} poster in 3 sizes from Amazon from $5.99 available on DVD as part of "Best of A&C, Volume 4" [2005] Universal Studios Home Ent b&w DVD set [10/2005] 6 movies on 2 disks for $24.49 Universal b&w VHS [1/98] out of prodn/used full credits at IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia

"Alex In Wonderland" [Dec 1970] /tt0065380/

"Alice In Movieland" short [Paramount Novelty June 1928]

movie information difficult to find; MM starred alongside Buster Keaton in "The General" [1927] Produced by Charles Mintz; starring Marion Mack & Ben Turpin • bare credits at IMDb

"Alice in Movieland" 2-reeler short [Warner Bros./Vitaphone March 1940 & Dec 1946]

Beautiful small town girl gets a train ticket to Hollywood and dreams a possible outcome; railroad porter offers supportive advice • Produced by Gordon Hollingshead; directed by Jean Negulesco; screenplay by Owen Crump & Cyrus Wood, from an original story by Ed Sullivan; starring Joan Leslie {as Joan Brodel}, Clarence Muse, Nana Bryant, Clara Blandick, David Bruce, Lucia Carroll, Richard Clayton, Maurice Costello, Garrett Craig, Richard Cramer, Peggy Diggins, Ann Edmonds, Paulette Evans, Frank Faylen, William Forrest, Inez Gay, Sol Gorss, John Ridgely, Phyllis Hamilton, Stuart Holmes, Lois Landon, Ethelreda Leopold, Frank Mayo, Philo McCullough, Charles Morton, Jack Mower, Alexander Pollard, Sally Sage, Larry Steers, Frank Wilcox, Jack Wise, Maris Wrixon; with cameo appearances by Alan Hale, Marion Mack, Ronald Reagan, Alexis Smith, Jane Wyman, Craig Stevens full credits at IMDb • watch full movie [10/2015 upload; 21:40] online at YouTube

"American Movie" [Sony Pictures Classics Nov 1999]

Milwaukee filmmaker Mark struggles over three years to finish his dream film, a short horror movie, while fighting internal and external roadblocks (gambling and alcohol addiction, dysfunctional family and neighbors). Difficult to determine whether this is a true documentary or a 'mockumentary'; in any case, the filmmakers got their dream movie finished. DVD extras include 22 deleted scenes and Mark Borchardt's completed short film "Coven" • Co-produced by Michael Stipe & director Chris Smith; starring Mark Borchardt, Tom Schimmels, Monica Borchardt, Alex Borchardt, Chris Borchardt, Ken Keen, Mike Schank, Matt Weisman, Bill Borchardt, Cliff Borchardt, Tom Beach, Joan Petrie, Robert Richard Jorge, Dean Allen, Tommy Dallace, Miriam Frost & Billy Crystal; won Grand Jury Prize at Sundance Film Festival, tied for People's Choice Award at Denver Intl. Film Festival Sony Pictures Home Ent. color DVD [5/2000] for $14.86 full credits at IMDb • official movie site

"An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn"
[Hollywood Pictures Feb 1998]

About a movie director who wants his name taken off the credits; this movie was so bad (after studio editing) that the real-life director demanded that his name be taken off the credits; definite candidate for worst film of all time. Co-produced, written & edited by Joe Eszterhas; directed by Arthur Hiller; starring Eric Idle, Ryan O'Neal, Coolio, Chuck D., Richard Jeni, Sandra Bernhard & Cherie Lunghi; cameos by Sylvester Stallone, Whoopi Goldberg, Jackie Chan, Robert Evans, Robert Shapiro, Shane Black, Gary Franklin, Joe & Naomi Eszterhas, Larry King, Peter Bart, Dominick Dunne, Billy Bob Thornton, Harvey Weinstein, Billy Barty & Stanley Ralph Ross; won astounding Razzie Awards 'grand slam' including Worst Picture, plus Razzie Worst Film of The Decade Disney Video color DVD [4/2004] for $17.99 Disney Video color VHS [2/99] out of prodn/used full credits at IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia

"Argo" [G.K. Films/Warner Bros. Oct 2012?]

"Based on a declassified true story" While the world watched the news about the 66 American diplomats held hostage in Tehran during 1979, a C.I.A. team worked to rescue six Americans who managed to flee to the home of the Canadian ambassador; the plan requires making a fake Hollywood movie with real Hollywood stars and execs • Co-produced by George Clooney; directed by & starring Ben Affleck; script by Chris Terrio, based on an article by Joshuah Bearman; also starring Taylor Schilling, Bryan Cranston, John Goodman, Kyle Chandler, Victor Garber, Michael Cassidy, Clea DuVall, Alan Arkin, Rory Cochrane, Adrienne Barbeau, Titus Welliver & Michael Parks DVD/Blu-ray not yet available • full credits at IMDb

  "The Artist" modern silent film
[France Oct 2011, Weinstein USA Nov 2011]

"The most effervescent delight in years." — Time Magazine reviewer Richard Corliss Black-and-white silent feature filmed in Los Angeles & Hollywood, California. Movie star George Valentin is uncertain how the new sound movies will affect his career; he meets and falls in love with an extra player who is destined for stardom. • Written & directed by Michel Hazanavicius; starring Jean Dujardin {won award at Cannes}, Bérénice Bejo, John Goodman, Missi Pyle, Malcolm McDowell, Penelope Ann Miller, James Cromwell & Ed Lauter DVD/Blu-ray not yet available • full credits at IMDb

"The Bad and The Beautiful"
[M.G.M./Loew's Dec 1952]

A studio head calls together a director, a screenwriter, and a leading actress who explain in flashback why they refuse to work with a cut-throat Hollywood producer. Directed by Vincente Minnelli; starring Kirk Douglas, Lana Turner, Walter Pidgeon, Dick Powell, Barry Sullivan, Gloria Grahame, Gilbert Roland, Leo G. Carroll, Vanessa Brown, Francis X. Bushman & Barbara Billingsley; won Oscars for Best Screenplay, Best Supporting Actress (GG), Best B&W Cinematography {Br5uce Surtees}, Best Set Decoration, nomination for Best Actor (KD); nominated for BAFTA, DGA & WGA awards; listed on National Film Registry (2002) Turner b&w DVD [2/2002] for $17.99 M.G.M. b&w VHS [9/98] out of prodn/used Rhino/W.E.A. soundtrack CD [6/96] out of prodn/used full credits from IMDb

"Bad Girls From Mars"
[American Independent Prodns video release Jan 1990]

Somebody is killing off the lead actresses of the B-movie 'Bad Girls From Mars' so casting agents refuse to send new girls; the producers are making lots of money from the insurance, so they hire actress Emanuelle from France, who likes to party . . . • Co-produced, co-written & directed by Fred Olen Ray; co-produced by Grant Austin Waldman; co-written by Mark Thomas McGee; starring Edy Williams, Oliver Darrow, Brinke Stevens, Jay Richardson, Jeffrey Culver, Bob Ruth, Dana Bentley, Jasae, Al Bordighi, Jerry Miller LionsGate color DVD [3/2005] for $9.99 full credits at IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia watch official trailer [3/2010 upload; 1:21] online at YouTube

"The Barefoot Contessa" [Sept 1954]

"Barton Fink" [1991]
by Joel & Ethan Coen /title/tt0101410/

"Behind The Screen" [Mutual short Nov 1916]

Overworked movie studio employee Charlie helps a girl to get work as an actress while his co-workers are striking against the tyrannical boss. 15-minute b&w silent short co-produced, co-written, directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin; also starring Edna Purviance & Eric Campbell • full credits at IMDb available on several VHS & DVD collections see the Charlie Chaplin Page / DVD Collections Section;

"Beware of A Holy Whore" [Germany 1971] /tt0067962/
Written & directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder

"The Big Knife" [1955]
based on the stageplay by Clifford Odets

"The Big Picture" [Columbia Sept 1989]

A high-minded film student wins a national prize that includes access to bigwigs in Hollywood; after a series of compromises, his film project has lost the original vision, and the filmmaker has lost his soul. Co-written & directed by Christopher Guest; starring Kevin Bacon, Emily Longstreth, J.T. Walsh, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Michael McKean, Kim Miyori, Teri Hatcher, Dan Schneider, Jason Gould, Fran Drescher, Suzy Cote, Eddie Albert & June Lockhart Sony widescreen color DVD [10/2002] out of prodn/used Sony color VHS [4/97] out of prodn/many used full credits from IMDb 27"x39" poster available at AllPosters.com

"Birth of Babylon" [2001]
Director: Alex Monty Canawati /tt0252947/

sequel "Return To Babylon" [2008]
Director: Alex Monty Canawati /tt0255820/

"Bombshell" [M.G.M. Oct 1933]
Directed by Victor Fleming; starring Lee Tracy, Jean Harlow, Frank Morgan, Franchot Tone & Pat O'Brien
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombshell_(film)

"Boy Meets Girl"  [Warner Bros. Aug 1938]

Two screenwriters devise a plot for the studio's cowboy star that involves a baby; the baby becomes a star, and the cowboy and his agent run off with the mother and the kid. Directed by Lloyd Bacon; script by Bella & Samuel Spewack from their Broadway play; starring James Cagney, Pat O'Brien, Marie Wilson, Ralph Bellamy, Frank McHugh, Dick Foran, Bruce Lester, Ronald Reagan {bit part} & Penny Singleton M.G.M. b&w VHS [9/98] out of prodn/used full credits from IMDb "Studio One" telecast June 1949: video/kinescope not availaible • credits from IMDb playscript of "Boy Meets Girl" [1935] and "Spring Song" [1934] Dramatist's Play Service 7½x5¼ pb [10/46] for $7.50 credits of 1935 Broadway play

"Breakfast in Hollywood" [1946]
comedy directed by Harold Schuster, starring Tom Brenneman, with Hedda Hopper, Nat Cole Trio, Spike Jones
watch full b&w movie [1:27:29] online at YouTube

"Broken Embraces" [Spain March 2009, USA Nov 2009]
Co-produced, written & directed by Pedro Almodóvar; starring Penélope Cruz
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broken_Embraces

"Buffalo Bill and The Indians, or Sitting
Bull's History Lesson" [De Laurentiis June 1976]

Before the invention of the motion picture, the traveling Wild West shows of Buffalo Bill and others created 'The Show Business'. Directed by Robert Altman; based on the stage play by Arthur L. Kopit; starring Paul Newman {as 'Buffalo Bill' Cody}, Joel Grey, Geraldine Chaplin, Frank Kaquitts, Will Sampson, Pat McCormick, Shelley Duvall, Noelle Rogers & Burt Lancaster MGM/UA widescreen DVD [5/2001] for $17.98 MGM/UA color VHS [5/2000] for $14.95 full credits from IMDb Bantam movie tie-in pb [1976] out of print/used based on the 1969 stage play "Indians: A Play" by Arthur L. Kopit Bantam movie tie-in pb [1976] out of print/used

"Café Society" [May 2016]
by Woody Allen, starring Jeannie Berlin, Steve Carell, Jesse Eisenberg, Blake Lively, Parker Posey, Kristen Stewart, Corey Stoll, Ken Stott
watch 4/2016 official trailer #1 [1:53] at YouTube

"Californication" [Showtime 2007-2014] /tt0904208/
the seventh season (2014) will be the last one
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Californication_(TV_series)
http://www.sho.com/site/californication/
http://www.amazon.com/Californication-Season-1-David-Duchovny/dp/B0013ZGN9I/
http://www.amazon.com/Californication-Season-2-David-Duchovny/dp/B001AQR39O/
http://www.amazon.com/Californication-Season-3-David-Duchovny/dp/B003FSTN8O/
http://www.amazon.com/Californication-Season-4/dp/B005HMHPE0/
http://www.amazon.com/Californication-Season-5-David-Duchovny/dp/B009DA74ES/
http://www.amazon.com/Californication-Season-6/dp/B00CYQXCDK/

"Call My Agent !" TV mini-series [France TV2 Nov 2015]
(original title: "Dix Pour Cent (Ten Percent)")

Season 1 was 6 episodes, Nov 2015 and Season 2 was 6 episodes, April-May 2017; an important motion picture talent agency in Paris, France goes into crisis when the founder dies suddenly • Co-produced & co-written by Dominique Besnehard; co-written by Fanny Herrero; starring Camille Cottin, Thibault de Montalembert, Grégory Montel, Liliane Rovère, Fanny Sidney, Stéfi Celma, Nicolas Maury, Laure Calamy, François Civil, Ophélia Kolb, Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu, Gabrielle Forest, Isabelle Candelier, Jean-Yves Chatelais; with celebrity guest actors as themselves: Isabelle Adjani, Nathalie Baye, Ramzy Bedia, François Berléand, Juliette Binoche, Cécile de France, Julien Doré, Virginie Efira, Françoise Fabian, Audrey Fleurot, Julie Gayet, Christopher Lambert, Fabrice Luchini, Guy Marchand, Line Renaud, Laura Smet, Joey Starr, Norman Thavaud Region 1 DVD/Blu-ray not available (2018) F.T.D seasons 1 & 2 French-language color DVD set [9/2017] 4 disks for €21,19 PAL format via Amazon.FR F.T.D staffel 1 German-French color DVD [9/2017] 2 disks - import/used in PAL format F.T.D staffel 1 German-French color DVD [9/2017] 2 disks for €16,98 - PAL format via Amazon.DE full credits at IMDb • series entry at Wikipedia watch official promo videos online at YouTube: 6/2015 season #1 promo [3:40] • 4/2017 season #2 promo [2:03]

"The Canyons" [IFC Films Summer 2013?]

Low budget film with funding mostly from Kickstarter; story explores 'the dark side of Hollywood', centered on a scheming and very wealthy movie producer who makes movies to satisfy his father’s demands that he maintain a viable career, while his girlfriend is hiding an affair with an actor from her past • Directed by Paul Schrader; script by Bret Easton Ellis; starring Lindsay Lohan, pornstar James Deen, Gus Van Sant, Nolan Gerard Funk, Amanda Brooks, Tenille Houston, Lauren Schacher, Philip Pavel, Jarod Einsohn & Alex Ashbaugh DVD/Blu-ray not yet available • full credits at IMDb

"The Carpetbaggers"
[Embassy/Paramount April 1964]

The hard-driven heir to an industrial fortune {obviously based on Howard Hughes} builds airplanes, directs movies and breaks the hearts of friends & lovers. Directed by Edward Dmytryk; script by John Michael Hayes, based on the bestselling novel; starring George Peppard, Alan Ladd, Robert Cummings, Martha Hyer, Elizabeth Ashley, Lew Ayres, Martin Balsam, Ralph Taeger, Archie Moore, Leif Erickson, Carroll Baker, Arthur Franz & Tom Tully Paramount widescreen color DVD [4/2003] out of prodn/used Paramount color VHS [6/94] out of prodn/many used full credits from IMDb

"The Carpetbaggers" [1961 novel] by 'international bestselling author' Harold Robbins A real potboiler, full of gratuitous sex scenes that were toned down in the movie. Forge/Doherty mass pb [5/2007] for $7.99 Pocket mass pb [6/93] out of print/used Buccaneer Books 9x6 hardcover [6/93] for $31.50

"The Cat's Meow"  [LionsGate April 2002]

A version of events on Wm. Randolph Hearst's yacht Oneida, during a star-studded party off the coast of California in November 1924, and the possible connection to the death of studio head Thomas H. Ince; real-life passengers included Hearst, his girlfriend actress Marion Davies, Charlie Chaplin, Ince, actress Margaret Livingston, columnist Louella Parsons, author Elinor Glyn and others. Directed by Peter Bogdanovich; script by Steven Peros, based on his stage play; starring Cary Elwes, Kirsten Dunst, Edward Herrmann, Eddie Izzard, Joanna Lumley, Jennifer Tilly, Claudia Harrison, Victor Slezak & James Laurenson Lionsgate widescreen color DVD [9/2003] for $12.99 Vidmark/Trimark color VHS [8/2002] out of prodn/used R.C.A. soundtrack CD [4/2002] out of prodn/used full credits from IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia watch official trailer [10/2012 upload; 2:11] online at YouTube

"Chaplin"  [TriStar Dec 1992]

Lovingly made bio-film covering Charlie Chaplin's early life in England, his professional success and personal failures in Hollywood, and his exile in Switzerland. Produced & directed by Richard Attenborough; color cinematography by Sven Nykvist; starring Robert Downey Jr. {as Charlie}, Geraldine Chaplin, Paul Rhys, Moira Kelly, Anthony Hopkins, Pene-lope Ann Miller, Dan Aykroyd, Marisa Tomei, Kevin Kline, Maria Pitillo, Deborah Moore, Diane Lane & Nancy Travis; Oscar noms for Best Actor [RD], Best Original Score, Best Art Direction; won BAFTA for Best Actor [RD] Lions Gate letterbox-widescreen color DVD [5/98] for $10.99 Lions Gate widescreen color VHS [3/98] out of prodn/used Lions Gate color VHS [1/99] out of prodn/used Sony soundtrack CD by John Barry [12/92] for $9.98 full credits from IMDb • film entry at Wikipedia

Magic Lantern's Charlie Chaplin [1889-1977] Page
'Perfect Charlie' film fansite
SM's 'Chaplin' film fansite

"The Cinema Travellers" [festival circuit 2016-17]  

For seven decades, showmen riding cinema lorries have brought the wonder of the movies to faraway villages in India once every year. But their patrons are lured away by slick digital technology as their cinema projectors crumble and film reels become scarce. Film is framed as the story of a benevolent showman, a shrewd exhibitor, and a maverick projector mechanic who bear a beautiful burden - to keep the last traveling cinemas of the world running. Produced, written & directed by Shirley Abraham & Amit Madheshiya DVD/Blu-ray not yet available • full credits at IMDb • official movie website • movie entry at Wikipedia

"The Circus Animals [2012]
A film by Nicholas Bateman; said to be inspired by "The Circus Animals' Desertion" (1939) by W.B. Yeats
full credits from IMDb • watch the full movie free online [1:00:16] at YouTube

"Contempt" {'Le Mépris'}
[France Dec 1963, USA Oct 1964]

Godard's view of commercial Hollywood filmmaking and human relationships is mischievous, rebellious, subversive & contemptuous. A respected Italian screenwriter of an innovative production of "Homer's Odyssey" struggles to please the American producer, the German director (real-life director Fritz Lang - at age 72), and the writer's unhappy sexpot French wife. Adapted & directed by Jean-Luc Godard, from the 1954 novel by Alberto Moravia; cinematography in Franscope by Raoul Coutard; starring Michel Piccoli, Jack Palance, Brigitte Bardot, Giorgia Moll & Fritz Lang, with cameos by Godard & Coutard LionsGate widescreen color Blu-ray [2/2010] for $25.99 Criterion widescreen color DVD [12/2002] 2 disks for $30.49 The DVD set includes "The Dinosaur and The Baby" TV documentary [61 minutes 1967], a conversation between Jean-Luc Godard and Fritz Lang; two on-set interviews with Godard: "Bardot et Godard" [8 minutes 1964], and "Paparazzi" [22 minutes b&w 1964]; plus other extras Embassy/Nelson Ent. color VHS [3/91] out of prodn/used full credits from IMDb • Rialto movie site • movie entry at Wikipedia

"Contempt" aka 'Il Disprezzo' [1954] by Alberto Moravia, translated by Angus Davidson New York Review of Books 7¾x4¾ pb [7/2004] for $10.17 New York Review of Books 8x5 pb [9/99] out of print/used

"Crash and Burn" TV series [FX Channel 2013?]
Announced 2/2013: FX Channel has signed exec-producer Gale Anne Hurd and Universal Cable Productions to develop a period drama series about
a stuntman in the 1970s in the pre-CGI, post-Vietnam film industry balancing his home life, union demands, and the dangerous nature of his profession;
Jeffrey Lieber will write the pilot script 'loosely inspired by' Kevin Conley’s 2008 nonfiction book "The Full Burn" {see below} • not yet listed at IMDb

"The Full Burn: On the Set, At The Bar, Behind The Wheel, and Over The Edge With Hollywood Stuntmen" [2008] by Kevin Conley Kindle Edition from Bloomsbury USA [1/2011] for $9.99 Bloomsbury USA 8½x5½ pb [4/2009] for $12.00 Bloomsbury USA 9½x6½ hardcover [6/2008] out of print/90+ used

"Crashing Hollywood" sound short
[Educational Films April 1931]
Directed by Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle; starring Virginia Brooks, Rita Flynn, Phyllis Crane, Edward J. Nugent, Wilbur Mack,
Walter Merrill, Bryant Washburn, George Chandler & Betty Grable; DVD/Blu-ray not available • credits at IMDb

"Crashing Hollywood" feature film
[R.K.O. Radio Pictures Jan 1938]

A screenwriter meets an ex-con on the train to Hollywood, and agrees to collaborate on a gangster movie; the movie is a hit, but the real gangster portrayed in the film is not happy about it. Directed by Lew Landers; script based on a 1922 Broadway stageplay; starring Lee Tracy, Joan Woodbury, Paul Guilfoyle, Lee Patrick, Richard Lane & Bradley Page DVD/Blu-ray not available • full credits at IMDb

"Crazy  To  Act" [1927 silent]
starring Oliver Hardy /tt0246538/

"David  Holzman's  Diary" [1967]
Written & directed by Jim McBride; starring L.M. Kit Carson & Eileen Dietz /tt0062864/

"Day For Night" aka "La Nuit Américaine" [France May 1973, U.S.A. Sept 1973] Co-written & directed by François Truffaut; starring Jacqueline Bisset, Valentina Cortese, Dani, Alexandra Stewart, Jean-Pierre Aumont, Jean Champion, Jean-Pierre Léaud, François Truffaut, Nike Arrighi & Nathalie Baye; won Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, Oscar nominated for Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Supporting Actress (VC); listed on Time Magazine's All-TIME 100 Movies (5/2005); full credits at IMDb

"The Day of The Locust"
[Paramount May 1975]

	Directed by John Schlesinger; starring Donald Sutherland, Karen Black, Burgess Meredith, William Atherton, Geraldine Page, Richard A. Dysart, Bo Hopkins, Pepe Serna, Lelia Goldoni & Billy Barty Paramount widescreen color DVD [6/2004] for $14.23 Paramount color VHS [6/93] out of prodn/used full credits from IMDb
	"The Day of The Locust" [Jan 1939 classic] by Nathanael West listed on Time Magazine's All-TIME 100 Novels (10/2005) NAL pb [9/83] for $5.95 Amereon hardcover [12/97] for $19.95 DH Audio ABR [9/87] 2 tapes out of print/used

"The Deal" [video release Jan 2009]

Filmed in Los Angeles, the Czech Republic, and South Africa; a movie about XIXth Century British diplomat Benjamin Disraeli gets a greenlight only if the producers hire an action star, who happens to be Afro-American; production halts when the action star is kidnapped . . . • Co-written & directed by Steven Schachter; co-written by & starring William H. Macy; based on the novel by Peter Lefcourt; also starring Meg Ryan, Jason Ritter, Fiona Glascott, LL Cool J, Elliott Gould, Sharon Raginiano, John Carson, David Hunt & Kate Blumberg Peace Arch widescreen color Blu-ray [1/2009] for $8.49 Peace Arch Films widescreen color DVD + digital [1/2009] for $6.99 Peace Arch Trinity widescreen color DVD [1/2009] for $4.72 full credits at IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia

"The Deal: A Novel of Hollywood" [1991] by Peter Lefcourt Producer Charlie Berns has hit bottom when his nephew brings him a spec script about Queen Victoria, Ben-jamin Disraeli & William Gladstone; the project morphs into "Lev Disraeli, Freedom Fighter" starring an Afro-American actor and begins filming in Yugoslavia . . . Kindle Edition from Washington Square Press [2004 edition] for $15.99 Washington Square Press 8½x5¼ pb [12/2002] for $21.95 Random House 9½x6½ hardcover [4/91] out of print/used Blackstone Audio UNABR audio CD [1/2008] 6 disks for $19.95

"The Death Kiss" [Tiffany Pictures/Sono Art-World Wide Dec 1932]

The leading actor is shot & killed during filming at Tonart Studios; at first thought to be an accident, that changes when the lethal bullet is found to be .38 caliber while the prop guns are all .45 caliber . . . • Directed by Edwin L. Marin; written by Gordon Kahn, Barry Barringer & Joe Traub, based on the novel by Madelon St. Dennis; starring David Manners, Adrienne Ames, Bela Lugosi, John Wray, Vince Barnett, Alexander Carr, Edward Van Sloan, Harold Minjir, Barbara Bedford, Al Hill, Harold Waldridge, Wade Boteler, Lee Moran, King Baggot, Edmund Burns, Clarence Muse, Frank O'Connor; premiere print was partly hand-tinted Kino Lorber Films restored b&w Blu-ray [10/2014] for $19.99 American Pop Classics restored b&w DVD [10/2015] for $10.99 Alpha Video b&w DVD [10/2014] for $4.99 full credits at IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia • watch full movie [12/2013 upload; 1:10:32] online at YouTube based on the 1932 novel by Madelon St. Dennis Walter J. Black hardcover [1932] long out of print/scarce

"The Disaster Artist" [Dec 2017]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMKX2tE5Luk [2:15] /tt3521126/

"Dog Years" [2017] starring Burt Reynolds
Burt plays an aging movie star who forces an emotionally unstable girl (Modern Family's Ariel Winter) assigned to be his driver
to take him on a tour of the landmarks of his youth.

"Don’t Shoot The Piano Player" [in development?]
Announced 1/2012: This remake based on the David Goodis novel “Down There” is not a remake of the 1960 film “Shoot the Piano Player” by François Truffaut
that was also based on the Goodis novel. The new film is about a Hollywood composer who loses everything; written & directed by Alexandre Nahon;
Vincent Gallo is signed to star; still 'in development' 3/2016 • IMDb entry gone 2019

"Eisenstein In Guanajuato" [Submarine NL limited USA release Feb 2016]

Biofilm by British director Peter Greenaway about Sergei Eisenstein's stay in Mexico back in 1930; announced 7/2012 with intention to shoot in Mexico during November & December, release film in 2013 • Written & directed by Peter Greenaway; cinematography by Reinier van Brummelen; starring Elmer Bäck, Luis Alberti, Maya Zapata, Lisa Owen, Stelio Savante, Rasmus Slätis, Jakob Öhrman, Alan Del Castillo & Raino Ranta Blu-ray not available (2019) Strand Home Video widescreen color DVD [5/2016] for $17.99 Axiom Films widescreen color DVD [2016] out of prodn/used latest info at IMDb • producer's movie page • watch 2/2015 official trailer [1:42] online at Vimeo script for "Eisenstein In Guanajuato" [2014] by Peter Greenaway Dis Voir 7½x8¼ pb [3/2014] for $21.68

"Elle Voulait Faire du Cinéma (She Wanted To Make Movies)"
TV biopic [I.N.A. Paris 1983]

91-minute color TV biopic written & directed by Caroline Huppert; starring Christine Pascal {as Alice Guy-Blaché}, André Dussollier {as Léon Gaumont}, Rosy Varte {as Madame Guy}, Roland Blanche, Philippe Lemaire {as Gustave Eiffel}, Robin Renucci {as Ferdi-nand Zecca}, Hubert Saint-Macary {as Louis Feuillade}, Jean Pignol, Roland Amstutz, Betty Assenza, François Berléand, Gérard Boucaron, Jean-Pierre Dougnac, Jean-Marie Galey, Camille Grandville, Jean-François Kopf, Alain Marcel {as Auguste Lumière}, Jean-Gabriel Nordmann {as Louis Lumière}, Pierre Plessis, Tonie Marshall, Rosette (Quere), Rosine Rochette, Brigitte Roüan {as Madame Gaumont}, Coralie Seyrig, Luc Béraud, Jean Cortot, Jean-Michel Ribes, Jacqueline Huppert, Denys Granier-Deferre, Marie Renoir, Robert Boner, Marc Andréoni, Fabienne Berthaud, Martine De Coninck, Françoise Goussard, Réginald Huguenin, Roger Gerard VHS/DVD/Blu-ray not available • credits at IMDb

"Even The Rain (Tambien La Lluvia)"
[USA Oct 2010, Spain Jan 2011]

A Spanish film crew arrives in Bolivia to make a movie about Columbus in the New World, but their main local actor keeps wandering off to help Bolivians who are on strike over corporations who stole their water rights. Directed by Icíar Bollaín; screen-play by Paul Laverty; starring Gael García Bernal, Luis Tosar & Juan Carlos Aduviri; Spain's official entry for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar DVD/Blu-ray not yet available • credits at IMDb • official movie site

"The Evidence of The Film"
silent short [Thanhouser Jan 1913]

A dishonest stock broker finds a scapegoat willing to accept $20,000 to go to jail in his stead; but the setup occurs in the middle of an outdoor film shoot and his scam is caught on film! • Directed by Lawrence Marston & Edwin Thanhouser; starring William Garwood, Marie Eline & Riley Chamberlin; listed on National Film Registry (2001), a print exists at the Library of Congress DVD/Blu-ray not available • credits at IMDb

"F. Scott Fitzgerald In Hollywood" TV movie
[U.K. Dec 1975, USA May 1976]

100-minute color ABC-TV show about F. Scott Fitzgerald's two stays in Hollywood to write for the studios: in 1927 as an acclaimed novelist and in 1937-1940 with money and family and drinking problems. Directed by Anthony Page; written by James Costigan; starring Jason Miller {as Scott}, Tuesday Weld {as Zelda Fitzgerald}, Julia Foster {as Sheilah Graham}, Dolores Sutton {as Dorothy Parker}, Susanne Benton, Michael Lerner, Tom Ligon, John Randolph, Tom Rosqui, Audrey Christie, Hilda Haynes, Paul Lambert, Joseph Stern, Jacque Lynn Colton, Norma Connolly, Sarah Cunningham, James Woods VHS/DVD/Blu-ray not available • full credits at IMDb

"The Falcon In Hollywood" [1944] starring Tom Conway
Magic Lantern's 'The Falcon' Books, Movies & TV Page

"The Father of My Children (Le Père de Mes Enfants)"
[France July 2009, IFC Films USA May 2010]

Loosely based on the life of French film producer Humbert Balsan; when a minor film producer realizes that his company is going bankrupt, he commits suicide; the second half of the film looks at the impact of that act. Written & directed by Mia Hansen-Løve; starring Chiara Caselli, Louis-Do de Lencquesaing, Alice de Lenc-quesaing, Alice Gautier, Manelle Driss, Eric Elmosnino, Sandrine Dumas & Dominique Frot; won Special Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival, won Lumiere Award for Best Screenplay DVD/Blu-ray not yet available • full credits at IMDb • official movie site

"Felix In Hollywood" silent cartoon short  [Pat Sullivan Cartoons July 1923]

Felix is the pet of a down-on-his-luck actor; they decide to go to Hollywood and look for movie work . . . • Produced by Pat Sullivan; written, directed & animated by Otto Messmer bare credits at IMDb • watch full cartoon - no sound [11/2010 upload; 9:20] online at YouTube available on "Presenting Felix The Cat: The Otto Messmer Classics, 1919-24" [1999] contains 16 vintage Felix cartoons "restored to their original projection speed with Dave Wickerham's rich new organ scores" Image Ent. b&w DVD [4/99] out of prodn/used

"Finding Bliss  [LightShow May 2010]

"Girl meets porn"; a romantic comedy following an aspiring female filmmaker who ends up working as an editor on a 'crossover' adult film • Written & directed by Julie Davis; starring Leelee Sobieski, Matthew Davis, Denise Richards, Jamie Kennedy & Kristen Johnston Phase 4 Films widescreen color DVD [8/2010] for $23.49 full credits from IMDb • official movie site

"Finger of Guilt  [R.K.O. Radio Pictures 1956]

U.K. title "The Intimate Stranger"; the 84-minute US version makes less sense than the 95-minute U.K. version, both long unseen. An executive at a British movie studio gets a strange letter, and another is sent to his wife . . . Directed by Alec C. Snowden & [blacklistee] Joseph Losey; screenplay by [blacklistee] Howard Koch; starring Richard Basehart, Mary Murphy, Constance Cummings, Roger Livesey, & Mervyn Johns DVD/Blu-ray not available • full credits at IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia

"The Five Obstructions" documentary [Denmark 2003] /tt0354575/

"Footprints"
[2009 festival circuit; Paladin April 2011 release]

Set entirely on Hollywood Boulevard; a woman wakes from a deep sleep to find herself lying face-down among the legendary handprints & footprints at the Chinese Theater; with no memory of who she is or how she got there, she spends the day trying to piece together her identity • Co-produced, written & directed by Steven Peros; starring Sybil Temtchine, H.M. Wynant, Pippa Scott, John Brickner, Catherine Bruhier & Charley Rossman DVD/Blu-ray not available • full credits at IMDb • official movie site

"Free and Easy" [M.G.M. March 1930]

Early example of Simultaneous Bilingual Film Production: M.G.M. made a French-language version using title cards ('Le Metteur en Scene') and a Spanish-language version ('Estrellados') and a German-language version. The Chamber of Commerce of a small Kansas town sends the local winner of a beauty contest to Hollywood for a screen test, along with her formidable mother and a hapless gas station attendent designated as her 'agent'; remade as "Pick A Star" [Hal Roach Studios 1937] starring Laurel & Hardy and Patsy Kelly • Co-produced by Edward Sedgwick & Buster Keaton; directed by Edward Sedgwick; starring Buster Keaton, Anita Page, Trixie Friganza, Robert Montgomery, director Fred Niblo, Edgar Dearing, Gwen Lee, John Miljan, Lionel Barrymore, William Haines, William Collier Jr., Dorothy Sebastian, Karl Dane & director David Burton, with cameos by Jackie Coogan, Cecil B. DeMille & Ann Dvorak full credits from IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia English & Spanish versions: Warner Archive Collection b&w DVD [2/2014] for $13.47 M.G.M./Warner b&w VHS [1/93] out of prodn/used available on the T.C.M Triple Feature b&w DVD [12/2004] 3 films on 2 disks - out of prodn/used with "The Cameraman" [1928] & "Spite Marriage" [1929]

jump to page 2

selected films G thru L • M thru R • S thru Z

L i n k s
Hollywood Chamber of Commerce
Hollywood Heritage Society & Museum
Hollywood Sign [est. 1923] official website
Hollywood Walk of Fame [est. 1958] official website

Visit Our Other Online Film Festival Pages
Afro-American Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Atomic Film Festival at Spirit of America Bookstore
Auto-Racing Movies Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Ayn Rand Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Baseball Movies Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Beatnik Film Festival at Maison d'Être Philosophy Bookstore
'Biker Movies' Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Boxing Movies Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Circus Film Festival at Spirit of America Bookstore
Classic Movies & Cinema Masters Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Culver City, California Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Cyber Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Economics Film Festival at Maison d'Être Philosophy Bookstore
Education Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Existentialist Film Festival at Maison d'Être Philosophy Bookstore
Films Noir Festival at BlackHat Mystery Bookstore
Football Movies Film Festival at Magic Lantern
47 Rônin / Chüshingura Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Gangster Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Magic Lantern's Hollywood Film Festival   « « you are here
Horse-Racing Movies Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Human Rights Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Kings & Queens Film Festival at Magic Lantern
'Knights of Yore' Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Labor Movement Film Festival at Spirit of America Bookstore
Movie Musicals Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Muscle-Head Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Native American Film Festival at 'Readers of The Purple Sage' Bookstore
Oscar-Winning Western Movies Page at 'Readers of the Purple Sage' Bookstore
Philosophy Film Festival at Maison d'Être Philosophy Bookstore
Pirate Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Political Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Railroad Film Festival at Spirit of America Bookstore
'Rat Race' Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Road Movies Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Rock Music Film Festival at Spirit of America Bookstore
Samurai Films at Magic Lantern
Science Fiction Film Festival at Magic Lantern
'Shakespeare On Film' Festival Pages at Magic Lantern
Sherlock Holmes Film Festival at BlackHat Mystery Bookstore
Sports Film Festival Pages at Magic Lantern
War [& Anti-War] Film Festival Pages at Magic Lantern
Western Movies Film Festival at 'Readers of the Purple Sage' Bookstore

... and others on the Online Film Festivals Index Page

here on Magic Lantern's Hollywood Film Festival Pages

here on page 1: top of this page • essay • links • selected films, A to Z: A thru F

on page 2: top of page 2 • selected films G thru L • M thru R

on page 3: top of page 3 • selected films S thru Z • documentary films

Fiction About Hollywood & Movie-Making

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