Old movies are better. I’m not sure why. They are usually in black and white. Actors tend to be overly dramatic. The special effects are not up to the current “tobacco”. But still, old movies are the best. Well, not all old movies. Some are garbage.

Actors:

Woody Allan, June Allison, Fred Astaire, Lauren Bacall, Humphrey Bogart, Wallace Barry, Humphrey Bogart, Charles Boyer, James Cagney, Charlie Chaplin, Gary Cooper, Montgomery Cliff, Joan Crawford, Bette Davis, Marlene Dietrich, Henry Fonda, Glen Ford , Clark Gable, Greta Garbo, Judy Garland, Cary Grant, Audrey Hepburn, Charles Laughton, Katharine Hepburn, Buster Keaton, Ray Malland, Fredrick March, Shirley McClain, Marilyn Monroe, Merle Oberon, Martha Ray, Red Skelton, Barbara Stanwyck, Jimmy Stewart, Elizabeth Taylor, Shirley Temple, Rudolf Valentino, Robert Wagner, John Wayne, Jane Wyman, . Some of these are still among the living.

One good thing is that Ted Turner kept a lot of old movies and we can watch these actors without being interrupted by commercials on TV.

Thanks Ted!

What a great contribution to the people of the world who like old movies. Instead of rotting in cans in some warehouse, they are preserved for generations to enjoy. I could just hug Ted Turner and all those who have preserved our film heritage.

Unfortunately, some movies are lost forever.

I know you can add many names to the list above. Who are your favorite actors from the past?

The directors

To tell the truth, I don’t pay much attention to directors, except for Alfred Hitchcock, whose name will only drag me to his movies. Some well-known directors are Woody Allan, Frank Capra, Charlie Chaplin, George Cukor, Victor Fleming, John Ford, Howard Hawks, Alfred Hitchcock, John Ford, Michael Powell, Nicholas Ray, Preston Sturges, and Billy Wilder.

Some of these are still at it.

Many actors are also directors. Many actors and directors are also writers. Billy Wilder is a famous writer. I think he directed the very funny. Some like it hot.

That’s all I know about the writers, except that a dangerous US senator branded them “communists” and destroyed many careers by “blacklisting.” I will not give you the honor of mentioning his name.

The dialogue:

Writers are key to a good movie and while I’ve mostly ignored them so far, here’s some of their dialogue courtesy of [http://famous-movie-quotes.org:]

White House: (1942)

Renault: What the hell brought you to Casablanca?

Rick: My health. I came to Casablanca for the waters.

Renault: The waters? What waters? We are in the desert.

Rick: I was misinformed.

Ferrari: We might as well be frank, sir. It would take a miracle to get you out of Casablanca, and the Germans have banned miracles.

Ilsa: Play it (again), Sam, play “As Time Goes By”.

Fahrenheit 451 (1966)

Montag: Well, it’s a job like any other. Good job with a lot of variety. On Monday, we will burn Miller. Tuesday, Tolstoy. Wednesday, Walt Whitman. Friday Faulkner. And Saturday and Sunday, Schopenhauer and Sartre.

No Country for Old Men (1007):

Moss: If I don’t come back, tell mom I love her.

Carla Jean: Your mother is dead, Llewelyn.

Moss: Well, then I’ll tell him myself.

Good dialogue still exists, but you may find it in short supply today. Writers create good dialogue but destroy it with obscene words. We all know that some people are foul-mouthed, but we don’t need to hear it and neither do our children. The filmmakers want to make things as realistic as possible. I mean, make it unrealistic but still nice.

Is it true that old movies are better?

I do not think. Private Ryan is a fairly new movie, but from my point of view as a former combat infantryman, it will become a classic just as it did. All calm on the west front. Great acting by Tom Hanks and great directing by Steven Spielberg made it so.

There are many old movies that have been remade, such as mutiny on board and titanic. I like the remakes of the first but not so much, of the second. The special effects in the latest version of titanic was what it was about, but I like the older versions more convincing. (Yes, I like the latest version too.)

So what do you think? Do you think old movies are better?