The Bad Seed 1956  N/R, 129 min.
Genre: Mystery / Drama / Horror / Thriller
Director: Mervyn LeRoy
Cast: Nancy Kelly, Patty McCormack, Eileen Heckart, Henry Jones, Evelyn Varden, William Hopper, Paul Fix, Jesse White, Frank Cady, Gage Clarke, Joan Croydon, Shelley Fabares, Patricia Morrow, Adele Taylor, John Truax
What happens when Christine Penmark (Nancy Kelly) fears that her adorable eight-year-old daughter, Rhoda (Patty McCormack), loves nothing more than to commit murder? Matters reach new heights when Rhoda's classmate drowns while at a class picnic, and Christine becomes convinced that Rhoda was involved. Christine fears that Rhoda's problems stem from the fact that Christine, herself, is the daughter of a convicted murderess, and she fears that Rhoda is a "bad seed." Christine gives Rhoda barbiturates to end her life and then shoots herself. Christine dies but Rhoda survives–until she is hit by a bolt of lightening. Kelly received an Oscar nomination for Best Actress, and both McCormack and Eileen Heckart (for her role as a victim's mother) received Best Supporting Actress nominations.
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Finders Keepers 1951   N/R, 75 min.
Genre: Comedy
Director: Frederick De Cordova
Cast: Tom Ewell, Julie Adams, Evelyn Varden, Dusty Henley, Harold Vermilyea, Douglas Fowley, Richard Reeves, Jack Elam, Herbert Anderson, Harvey Lembeck
A little boy finds money that had been hidden by bank robbers and brings it home in his wagon. Thus starts a chain of events as his dad, who is on patrol, his grandmother, and mother all fuss on what should be done with it. Meanwhile, the robbers are out to get the loot back. This could have been much better. 1 User Review
| User Review |
| | Great Memories | Anonymous 01/15/2007 | | Every year or so my father would break out old 16mm home movies, and this classic that we also had on 16mm. We looked forward to watching it all most as eagerly as we did the Wizard of Oz. I highly recommend introducing this short (11 minutes or so) movie to any child 10 or younger. It is very cute. We rescently dubbed this film onto a DVD and my 17 and 19 year old of course didn't get it's greatness, but it still brings back fond memories for my siblings and I who are now 55, 52, 45, 41, and 40. |
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 Night of the Hunter 1955  N/R, 93 min.
Genre: Drama / Thriller
Director: Charles Laughton
Cast: Robert Mitchum, Shelley Winters, Lillian Gish, James Gleason, Evelyn Varden, Peter Graves, Don Beddoe, Billy Chapin, Sally Jane Bruce, Corey Allen, Gloria Castillo, Mary Ellen Clemons, Cheryl Callaway, Paul Bryar, Kathy Garver
This is a skillfully produced story of an evil man, Preacher Harry Powell (Robert Mitchum), on the trail of two children (Billy Chapin and Sally Jane Bruce) whose mother Willa (Shelley Winters) he has married and then murdered. He wants the $10,000 that is hidden in the little girl's doll and is willing to patiently follow their path to the end.
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Phone Call from a Stranger 1952  N/R, 96 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Jean Negulesco
Cast: Bette Davis, Shelley Winters, Gary Merrill, Michael Rennie, Keenan Wynn, Evelyn Varden, Warren Stevens, Beatrice Straight, Craig Stevens, Helen Westcott, Ted Donaldson, Hugh Beaumont, Harry Cheshire, Ken Christy, Cliff Clark
While flying to Los Angeles, David L. Trask (Gary Merrill) makes with fellow passengers–ex-stripper Bianca Carr (Shelley Winters), troubled Dr. Robert Fortness (Michael Rennie), and travelling salesman Eddie Hoke (Keenan Wynn). The plane crashes, and Trask is the sole survivor. Now, Trask visits the families of the victims, and, in the process, brings comfort to them and changes his own life forever.
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Pinky 1949 N/R, 102 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Elia Kazan
Cast: Jeanne Crain, Ethel Barrymore, Ethel Waters, Nina Mae McKinney, William Lundigan, Basil Ruysdael, Griff Barnett, Evelyn Varden, Raymond Greenleaf, Arthur Hunnicutt
The absurdity of racial prejudice is shown in this film about a Black woman (Jeanne Crain) who passes for White in the Deep South. Crain was nominated for a Best Actress Oscar, and both Ethel Barrymore and Ethel Waters were nominated for Best Supporting Actress.
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When Willie Comes Marching Home 1950 N/R, 82 min.
Genre: Comedy / Drama
Director: John Ford
Cast: Dan Dailey, Colleen Townsend, Corinne Calvet, William Demarest, Jimmy Lydon, Lloyd Corrigan, Evelyn Varden, Mae Marsh, Kenneth Tobey, Charles Trowbridge, Luis Alberni, Whit Bissell, David McMahon, Paul Harvey
A young soldier's (Dan Dailey) dreams of fighting in World War II are thwarted by duty in the United States; however, he finds another chance for danger when he is chosen for a mission with the French Resistance Forces.
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| 1. The Bad Seed (1956)
2. Finders Keepers (1951)
3. Night of the Hunter (1955)
4. Phone Call from a Stranger (1952)
5. Pinky (1949)
6. When Willie Comes Marching Home (1950)
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