All this fuss over one lady in a painting. Laura! Loads of men want her, she has a song that’s quite memorable, and everyone in this movie talks about her constantly. Otto Preminger directs Gene Tierney, Vincent Price, Dana Andrews, and Clifton Webb. It’s a great cast, and the film comes just as we’re entering the film noir era. But it’s far too pretty to be noir.

Everybody Luvs "Laura"

Shelly Brisbin with Annette Wierstra and Erika Ensign

The Movie: review/commentary on a single classic film

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James Cagney became a star, Mae Clark took a grapefruit to the face and Jean Harlow made an impression. It’s an early “talkie” by William Wellman that’s both a blueprint for what would come later, and a uniquely brutal take on the gangster genre.

The Public Enemy

Shelly Brisbin with Dr. Drang and Nathan Alderman

The Movie: review/commentary on a single classic film

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Here’s a Billy Wilder master class that some people call one of the greatest comedies ever - “The Apartment.” We’ll see about that! It was among the inspirations for “Mad Men,” so there’s that, too. Jack Lemon, Shirley MacLaine and Fred McMurray are your leads. Welcome to the swinging’ 60s, businessman style.

The Apartment

Shelly Brisbin with Jean MacDonald, Annette Wierstra and Nathan Alderman

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It’s the best-loved of the four movies Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant made together, and the one that also stars Jimmy Steward. Another George Cukor production, this was Hepburn’s triumphant entry into MGM, and her middle finger to the “box office poison” label of the late 1930s. “Hullo, George!”

The Philadelphia Story

Shelly Brisbin with Annette Wierstra, Paul Sabourin, Micheline Maynard and Judy Samelson

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Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford, Rosalind Russell, Paulette Goddard and a stellar cast of supporting actresses are just doing the best they can, moving through their upper-class New York world.

"The Women"

Shelly Brisbin with Annette Wierstra, Deborah Stanish, Lisa Schmeiser and Judy Samelson

George Cukor made “women’s pictures.” It wasn’t usually meant as a compliment, at least when assessing him against others of the time, and it wasn’t even universally true. “The Women,” though, with an all-female cast and a lot of things to say about female friendship, frenemyship and how a woman was required to move through the world at the time of the film, is a great one. And we have an all-female panel to break the whole thing down.

The Movie: review/commentary on a single classic film

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Bogart, Huston and Holt go hunting for gold in Mexico, and they find it. But it’s unlikely they’ll get to keep it. John Huston’s 1947 “Treasure of the Sierra Madre” includes some of the best performances of the three lead actors’ careers, and a lot of visual flourishes, social commentary and a giant blob of irony.

Huston's "Treasure of the Sierra Madre"

Shelly Brisbin with Dr. Drang

The Movie: review/commentary on a single classic film

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John Sturges’ “Bad Day at Black Rock” takes place soon after World War II, but it feels like something out of the Old West. You could also call it “daylight noir.” Spencer Tracy faces off against Robert Ryan, Lee Marvin, Ernest Borgnine and a whole bunch of townspeople with something to hide. We talk about filmmaking techniques, performance and how a one-armed dude survives his 24 hours in Black Rock.

Bad Day at Black Rock

Shelly Brisbin with Dr. Drang, Philip Michaels and Nathan Alderman

The Movie: review/commentary on a single classic film

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Or. What if Santa Claus Pushed You off a Tower?

One of Alfred Hitchcock’s earliest American films is among the most enjoyable to watch. Joel McCrea is the reporter of the title, off to find out what’s happening in Europe for the benefit of a prewar American audience. Spies, murder and amazing character actors abound, along with some extraordinary Hitchcock set pieces.

The Joy of Foreign Correspondent

Nathan Alderman with Shelly Brisbin and Micheline Maynard

The Movie: review/commentary on a single classic film

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The usually affable Joel McCrea is sort of the hero, but not exactly lovable. And Ginger Rogers may have done everything Fred Astaire did “backwards and in heels” but here, she is not living her best life. “Primrose Path” takes an unrelenting look at a dysfunctional family. It was unusual for its time, and gives the two leads a lot to do.

A Walk Down the "Primrose Path"

Shelly Brisbin with Nathan Alderman

Old Movies, New Things: discs, books and other physical objects

Sightings: classics on TV, streaming, and (someday) the festival circuit

The Movie: review/commentary on a single classic film

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Foreign Correspondent (1940)

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Hark! Is that the sound of a zither? Carol Reed’s The Third Man (1949) stars Orson Welles and Joseph Cotten, not necessarily in order of screentime, it’s a post-war noir classic, set in Vienna, with compelling photography, plot and performances. This episode is also The Incomparable’s second look at this film.

The Third Man Again

Shelly Brisbin with Dr. Drang, Jean MacDonald, Micheline Maynard, Philip Michaels and David J. Loehr

The Movie: review/commentary on a single classic film

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Support this show and other shows like it on The Incomparable network by becoming a member. Members get early access to podcasts, bonus episodes, and more.