The Sun Shines Bright (John Ford, 1953)

I wrote about John Ford's The Sun Shines Bright, cited by the man himself as his favorite of his movies, for Spectrum Culture. It's one of my favorite Ford movies as well, a subversive comedy that tackles the legacy of racism and nostalgic martyrdom in the South in a way that is sentimental and weighted toward sympathy for a dying breed even as it hides surprisingly bold critiques of contemporary racial and social division in plain sight. Olive Films put the film out on Blu-Ray out last year, and I can't recommend it enough.

The Band Wagon (Vincente Minnelli, 1953)

As a belated celebration of Vincente Minnelli's 110th birthday, I wrote some brief thoughts on his excellent Astaire vehicle and cinematic masterclass The Band Wagon for Movie Mezzanine. I was also spurred on by a brief, friendly debate on Twitter (referenced in the piece) over whether this film was superior to Singin' in the Rain, and I slightly frame my article around the contrast between the two. Outside the silly preferential debates, this is a great film, and like An American in Paris, blatantly theatrical in a way that shows the limitless of cinema.

My full piece is up now at Movie Mezzanine.