A great night to be at the movies
1 North West Frontier 1959 (Adventure Drama) Original Uncut British Version - Kenneth More, Lauren Bacall
A British army officer captain Scott is given the task to escort young prince Kishan to a safe place after his father The Maharaja has been killed during a Muslim uprising in North West Frontier part of British India . The old train engine "Empress of India" provides the dangerous and thrilling journey for the little crew. A masterpiece of J Lee Thompson, the famous directer of "The Guns of Navarone and Mackenna's Gold. Kenneth More and Lauren Bacall played the leading roles of Captain Scott and Mrs.Wyatt.
2 Becket 1964 Richard Burton, Peter O'Toole (History Drama)
Becket is a 1964 Anglo-American dramatic film adaptation of the play Becket or the Honour of God by Jean Anouilh made by Hal Wallis Productions and released by Paramount Pictures. It was directed by Peter Glenville and produced by Hal B. Wallis with Joseph H. Hazen as executive producer. The screenplay was written by Edward Anhalt based on Anouilh's play. The music score was by Laurence Rosenthal, the cinematography by Geoffrey Unsworth and the editing by Anne V. Coates.
The film stars Richard Burton as Thomas Becket and Peter O'Toole as King Henry II, with John Gielgud as King Louis VII, Donald Wolfit as Gilbert Foliot, Paolo Stoppa as Pope Alexander III, Martita Hunt as Empress Matilda, Pamela Brown as Queen Eleanor, Siân Phillips, Felix Aylmer, Gino Cervi, David Weston and Wilfrid Lawson
3. The Bicycle Thief (Ladri di biciclette) 1948 : A classic Italian drama
The Bicycle Thief, sometimes named as Bicycle Thieves, is an Italian drama film and widely regarded as a masterpiece of Italian neorealism. It received an Academy Honorary Award in 1950 and just four years after its release, was deemed the greatest film of all time by filmmakers and critics.
It is also one of the top 10 among British Institute's list of films. It ranked 4 in Empire magazines "The 100 best films of world cinema in 2010.
Antonio Ricci finds a work of hanging posters around war torn Rome. His wife Maria sells the family's bed linens to get a bicycle from pawnshop so he can take his job. However disaster strikes the bicycle is stolen and with his lively son Bruno, Antonio combs the city, growing increasingly desperate for justice.
Adam remembers this film from decades ago, it was shown on BBC in the late 1950s or 1960s. A masterpiece
4 Amarcord (1973) - Federico Fellini
We are finishing tonight's feast with Federico Fellini's marvellous Amarcord which Adam saw decades ago, but the memory has remained. Please watch, you will enjoy. It is worth watching multiple times.
Amarcord is a 1973 Italian comedy-drama film directed by Federico Fellini, a semi-autobiographical tale about Titta, an adolescent boy growing up among an eccentric cast of characters in the village of Borgo San Giuliano (situated near the ancient walls of Rimini) in 1930s Fascist Italy. The film's title (pronounced is a univerbation of the Romagnolo phrase "a m'arcord" ("I remember").The title then became a neologism of the Italian language, with the meaning of 'nostalgic revocation'.
Titta's sentimental education is emblematic of Italy's "lapse of conscience."] Fellini skewers Mussolini's ludicrous posturings and those of a Catholic Church that "imprisoned Italians in a perpetual adolescence' by mocking himself and his fellow villagers in comic scenes that underline their incapacity to adopt genuine moral responsibility or outgrow foolish sexual fantasies.
The film won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, and was nominated for two more Academy Awards: Best Director and Best Original Screenplay.