Hotchka Movies by the Decade feature #108 :: August 17•23

Walt Disney Pictures

Even though it’s mid-August, Hollywood has kicked things up a notch, delivering new movies this week across every decade, many of which went on to earn Oscar nominations … and a few Razzies. 1922 represents with three new silent films, while 1932 gave us a musical with a revolutionary musical number, and a comedy with the Four Marx Brothers. 1942 gave us a classic Disney animated film, and a seven-time Oscar nominee with not one but two leading men. 1952 had another Oscar nominee, while 1962 tackled Jules Verne, and poked fun at Hollywood in Italy. 1972 produced a harrowing backwoods drama, while 1982 dabbled in some sword & sorcery, and looked ahead to 1984. 1992 took us to an Australian ballroom, and 2012 had a spooky, 3D, stop motion animated film, and gave us the last screen appearance of a legendary singer. Can you guess what some of these films are? Read on to learn more about them and other movie celebrating anniversaries this week!

1922

August 20 – A Bill of Divorcement (UK)

• Cast: Constance Binney, Fay Compton, Malcolm Keen, Henry Victor, Henry Vibart, Martin Walker, Fewlass Llewellyn, Dora Gregory, Sylvia Young
• Director: Denison Clift
• Production Company: Ideal Film Company
• Trivia: The film was released in the US on April 15, 1923. Based on Clemence Dane’s play A Bill of Divorcement. Malcolm Keen and Fewlass Llewellyn reprised their roles from the play.

August 20 – More to Be Pitied Than Scorned (USA)

• Cast: J. Frank Glendon, Rosemary Theby, Philo McCullough, Gordon Griffith, Alice Lake, Josephine Adair
• Director: Edward LeSaint
• Production Company: Waldorf Pictures Corporation, distributed by CBC Film Sales Corporation
• Trivia: First film from CBC Film Sales Corporation, which would become Columbia Pictures. The film is assumed to be lost.

August 22 – In the Name of the Law (USA)

• Cast: Ben Alexander, Johnny Thompson, Josephine Adair, Ralph Lewis, Claire McDowell, Emory Johnson, Johnnie Walker, Ella Hall, Richard Morris
• Director: Emory Johnson
• Production Company: Emory Johnson Productions, distributed by Film Booking Offices of America
• Trivia: Released in the UK on February 11, 1924. One of the first films to portray law enforcement in a serious way. Filmed almost entirely in San Francisco. The film’s original and alternate title is The Midnight Call.

1932

August 17 – The Last Mile (USA)

• Cast: Howard Phillips, Preston Foster, George E. Stone, Noel Madison, Alan Roscoe, Paul Fix, Al Hill, Daniel L. Haynes, Frank Sheridan, Alec B. Francis, Edward Van Sloan, Louise Carter, Ralph Theodore, Jack Kennedy, Albert J. Smith, William Scott, Kenneth MacDonald, Walter Walker, John T. Prince
• Director: Samuel Bischoff
• Production Company: K.B.S. Productions, distributed by Sono Art-World Wide Pictures
• Trivia: Based on John Wexley’s 1930 Broadway play, The Last Mile. Howard Phillips appeared in both the play and movie, but in different roles.

August 18 – Love Me Tonight (USA)

• Cast: Maurice Chevalier, Jeanette MacDonald, Charles Ruggles, Charles Butterworth, Myrna Loy, C. Aubrey Smith, Elizabeth Patterson, Ethel Griffies, Blanche Friderici, Joseph Cawthorn, Robert Greig, Bert Roach, George ‘Gabby’ Hayes, William H. Turner
• Director: Rouben Mamoulian
• Production Company: Paramount Pictures
• Trivia: The premiere was held on August 13, 1932. Opened in London on November 9, 1932, but did not get a general UK release until April 24, 1933. Adaptation of the play Le Tailleur au château (The tailor at the castle) by Paul Armont and Léopold Marchand. The staging of the song ‘Isn’t It Romantic?’ was revolutionary for the time as it combined the song with editing, as it is passed from one singer or group to another in different locations. Selected for preservation in the National Film Registry in 1990. The pre-Code film was edited by eight minutes for post-Code releases, and the footage is presumed lost. One deletion was made because Myrna Loy’s negligee was deemed ‘too revealing’.

August 18 – Die verkaufte Braut (Munich)

• Cast: Jarmila Novotná, Willi Domgraf-Fassbaender, Otto Wernicke, Karl Valentin, Liesl Karlstadt, Paul Kemp, Annemarie Sörensen, Max Schreck, Hans Appel, Ernst Ziegler, Therese Giehse, Beppo Brem
• Director: Max Ophüls
• Production Company: Bavaria Film
• Trivia: The wide German release began on September 2, 1932. Released in the US on April 26, 1934 under the title The Bartered Bride. Based on the comic opera of the same name by Czech composer Bedřich Smetana.

August 19 – The Age of Consent (USA)

• Cast: Dorothy Wilson, Arline Judge, Richard Cromwell, Eric Linden, John Halliday, Aileen Pringle, Reginald Barlow
• Director: Gregory La Cava
• Production Company: RKO Radio Pictures
• Trivia: Based on the play Cross Roads by Martin Flavin. First film for Dorothy Wilson, who was ‘discovered’ working as a secretary at RKO.

August 19 – Horse Feathers (USA)

Paramount Pictures

• Cast: Groucho Marx, Harpo Marx, Chico Marx, Zeppo Marx, Thelma Todd, David Landau
• Director: Norman Z. McLeod
• Production Company: Paramount Pictures
• Trivia: The film’s New York City premiere was held on August 10, 1932. It was released in London on September 15, but did not get a full UK release until February 27, 1933. Several of the film’s gags were taken from the Marx Brothers’ stage comedy from the 1900s, Fun in Hi Skule. During filming, Chico Marx was in a car accident and shattered his kneecap. In some scenes, he can be seen limping. A double had to be used for some action scenes which is noticeable since he is several inches taller than the other brothers. Believing Thelma Todd was acting when she fell out the boat and cried for help, Groucho Marx kept rowing unaware she was unable to swim. Crew members had to rescue her. About two minutes of material was edited out of the pre-Code film for post-Code re-release. While the edited material survives, some dialogue and action is missing from the end of the edits. Zeppo Marx plays Groucho’s son in the film even though they are just 11 years apart in age. A scene where the four Marx Brothers play poker while the college burns down around them was filmed but cut from the movie.

August 19 – Mr. Robinson Crusoe (USA)

• Cast: Douglas Fairbanks, William Farnum, Earle Browne, Maria Alba
• Director: A. Edward Sutherland
• Production Company: Elton Productions, distributed by United Artists
• Trivia: Opened in London on October 14, 1932, receiving a general UK release on April 17, 1933. Douglas Fairbanks Sr’s penultimate film and one of his few talkies. Filmed on location in Tahiti. Working titles include Tropical Knight, A Modern Robinson Crusoe and Robinson Crusoe of the South Seas. Sound equipment failed during filming on location and the dialogue had to be dubbed back in California. Alfred Newman recycled his main theme from The Hurricane for the film. The music was adapted into a pop song, ‘Moon of Manakoora’, which became a hit for Bing Crosby.

1942

August 20 – The Talk of the Town (USA)

• Cast: Cary Grant, Jean Arthur, Ronald Colman, Edgar Buchanan, Glenda Farrell, Charles Dingle, Clyde Fillmore, Emma Dunn, Rex Ingram, Leonid Kinskey, Tom Tyler, Don Beddoe
• Director: George Stevens
• Production Company: Columbia Pictures
• Trivia: Opened in the UK in December 1942. Adapted from a story by Sidney Harmon. The second pairing of Cary Grant and Jean Arthur. Lloyd Bridges appears in an uncredited role, one of 20 he made in 1942. The working title was Mr. Twilight but Grant insisted it be changed so the film didn’t appear to be about a single male character. He felt Ronald Colman would steal the show with the better role. The title The Talk of the Town was registered to Universal, so Columbia had to give them the title Sin Town in exchange. The film was unusual at the time for having African-American actor Rex Ingram in a non-stereotypical role, and it featured both Grant and Colman as the leading men. Audiences were left guessing who Jean Arthur would end up with at the end. Two endings were filmed, and the one used was determined by test audience screenings. The film earned seven Oscar nominations including Outstanding Motion Picture.

August 21 – Bambi (USA)

• Voice Cast: Bobby Stewart, Donnie Dunagan, Hardie Albright, John Sutherland, Peter Behn, Tim Davis, Sam Edwards, Paula Winslowe, Stan Alexander, Tim Davis, Sterling Holloway, Will Wright, Cammie King, Ann Gillis, Fred Shields, Margaret Lee, Mary Lansing, Perce Pearce, Thelma Boardman
• Director: David Hand, James Algar, Samuel Armstrong, Graham Heid, Bill Roberts, Paul Satterfield, Norman Wright
• Production Company: Walt Disney Productions, distributed by RKO Radio Pictures
• Trivia: The London premiere was held on August 8, 1942, with the New York City premiere on August 13. The film began an engagement in Salt Lake City on August 14. Released in the UK on January 1, 1943. Opened in Canada on July 24, 1945. Animating Bambi’s father’s antlers was a challenge to even the most skilled animators due to the complex perspectives required so a plaster cast was made of real antlers that were filmed at all angles and rotoscoped onto animation cells. Walt Disney insisted that children voice the younger versions of the animals, an unusual practice at the time. The character of Thumper was created specifically for the film (originally named Bobo) to add some comic relief. Flower is also a creation for the film not found in the original novel. Disney animators spent a year studying and drawing deer and fawns to perfect the look of Bambi and his parents and friends. The first Disney feature in which none of the songs are sung by the characters in the film. The first Disney animated feature to not include humans, and the last until 1973’s Robin Hood. Though the death of Bambi’s mother is considered one of the most heart-breaking and emotional scenes ever committed to film, the death is in fact never shown on screen and is only signaled by the sound of a gunshot on the soundtrack. Selected for preservation in the National Film Registry in 2011.

August 21 – The Pied Piper (USA)

• Cast: Monty Woolley, Roddy McDowall, Anne Baxter, Otto Preminger, J. Carrol Naish, Lester Matthews, Jill Esmond, Ferike Boros, Peggy Ann Garner, Merrill Rodin, Maurice Tauzin, Fleurette Zama, William Edmunds, Marcel Dalio, Marcelle Corday, Odette Myrtil, Jean Del Val, Rudolph Anders, Henry Rowland, Helmut Dantine, George Davis
• Director: Irving Pichel
• Production Company: 20th Century Fox
• Trivia: The US premiere was held on July 8, 1942. The film began a New York City engagement on August 12. Adapted from the 1942 novel of the same name by Nevil Shute. Nominated for three Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Actor (Woolley) and Best Black-and-White Cinematography.

1952

August 19 – The Big Sky (USA)

• Cast: Kirk Douglas, Dewey Martin, Elizabeth Threatt, Arthur Hunnicutt, Buddy Baer, Steven Geray, Henri Letondal, Hank Worden, Jim Davis
• Director: Howard Hawks
• Production Company: Winchester Pictures Corporation, distributed by RKO Radio Pictures
• Trivia: The film’s Chicago premiere was held on July 29, 1952. Opened in Canada on October 24 and in the UK on October 31. Based on the novel of the same name by A.B. Guthrie Jr. Arthur Hunnicutt received a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination, as did Russell Harlan for the Black-and-White Cinematography. Montgomery Clift was offered the role that eventually went to Dewey Martin; Charlton Heston, Robert Mitchum and ydney Chaplin were also considered. Howard Hawks wanted Marlon Brando for either of the leads but his asking price was too high. Elizabeth Threatt’s only film, cast for her Native American ancestry. She hated Hollywood and said it was ‘full of fakes’ and never acted again.

August 20 – The Miracle of Our Lady of Fatima (USA)

• Cast: Susan Whitney, Sherry Jackson, Sammy Ogg, Gilbert Roland, Angela Clarke, Jay Novello, Frank Silvera, Richard Hale, Norman Rice, Frances Morris, Carl Milletaire, J. Carroll Naish
• Director: John Brahm
• Production Company: Warner Bros. Pictures
• Trivia: Released in Portugal on March 13, 1953. Promoted as a fact-based treatment of the events surrounding the apparitions of Our Lady of Fátima, in Portugal, in 1917. Max Steiner’s score received an Oscar nomination. The real Lúcia saw the movie in 1952 and did not like it. Gilbert Roland’s agnostic character was created for the film.

1962

August 17 – Guns of Darkness (USA)

• Cast: Leslie Caron, David Niven, James Robertson Justice, David Opatoshu, Derek Godfrey, Ian Hunter, Richard Pearson, Eleanor Summerfield, Sandor Elès
• Director: Anthony Asquith
• Production Company: Associated British Pictures Corporation, Cavalcade Films, distributed by Warner-Pathé Distributors
• Trivia: Originally released in the UK on July 19, 1962. Based on the 1960 novel Act of Mercy by Francis Clifford, which was retitled Guns of Darkness for the American market. Act of Mercy was the film’s working title, but was changed at the last minute to the meaningless Guns of Darkness because the studio felt it was more dramatic sounding, and similar to The Guns of Navarone which also starred David Niven.

August 17 – Two Weeks in Another Town (USA)

• Cast: Kirk Douglas, Edward G. Robinson, Cyd Charisse, Claire Trevor, Daliah Lavi, George Hamilton, Rosanna Schiaffino, James Gregory, Mino Doro
• Director: Vincente Minnelli
• Production Company: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, John Houseman Productions, distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc.
• Trivia: Released in the UK in September 1962. Based on a 1960 novel by Irwin Shaw. Based on the era of Hollywood films being produced in Italy, the movie contains several references to The Bad and the Beautiful, which was also directed by Vincente Minnelli and starred Kirk Douglas. The song ‘Don’t Blame Me’ was also featured in both films. The studio cut about 15 minutes of the film without Minnelli’s participation to make it more family-friendly. The film ended up losing about $3 million. Douglas was to receive 10% of the film’s profits but there weren’t any. Cyd Charisse was cast over Douglas’ objections. Leslie Uggams’ film debut.

August 18 – Eighteen in the Sun (Italy)

• Cast: Catherine Spaak, Gianni Garko, Lisa Gastoni, Luisa Mattioli, Gabriele Antonini, Fabrizio Capucci, Stelvio Rosi, Mario Brega, Franco Giacobini, Ignazio Leone, Oliviero Prunas, Giampiero Littera, Spiros Focás, Thea Fleming
• Director: Camillo Mastrocinque
• Production Company: D.D.L., distributed by Cinedistribuzione Astoria (Italy), Goldstone Film Enterprises (USA)
• Trivia: Opened in the US on December 15, 1964. Also known as Beach Party-Italian Style.

August 19 – The Lion (UK)

• Cast: William Holden, Trevor Howard, Capucine, Pamela Franklin, Christopher Agunda, Ralph Helfer, Paul Oduor, Makara Kwaiha Ramadhani, Samuel Obiero Romboh, Zakee, Zamba
• Director: Jack Cardiff
• Production Company: 20th Century Fox
• Trivia: The London premiere was held on July 26, 1962. Opened in the US on December 21. Originally a local Massai man was suppose to do the wrestling scene with Zamba but at the last minute when he saw the lion he refused. So Ralph Helfer ended up doing the stunt. They had to dye his skin black, which didn’t come off for three months. Pamela Franklin, who had bonded with the lion Zamba before production, was warned to not let him roll on top of her during their wrestling scene as he weighed 529 pounds. Zamba won a PATSY Award for his performance.

August 21 – Jigsaw (UK)

• Cast: Jack Warner, Ronald Lewis, Yolande Donlan, Michael Goodliffe, John Le Mesurier, Moira Redmond, Christine Bocca, Brian Oulton, Ray Barrett, Norman Chappell, John Barron, Joan Newell
• Director: Val Guest
• Production Company: Figaro, distributed by Brittania Films (UK), Beverly Pictures (USA)
• Trivia: Based on the police procedural novel Sleep Long, My Love by Hillary Waugh. The novel’s setting was changed from the fictional Stockford, Connecticut to Brighton, Sussex. The film has no main theme or incidental music from beginning to end.

August 22 – Five Weeks in a Balloon (USA)

• Cast: Red Buttons, Fabian, Barbara Eden, Cedric Hardwicke, Peter Lorre, Richard Haydn, BarBara Luna, Billy Gilbert, Herbert Marshall, Reginald Owen, Henry Daniell, Mike Mazurki, Alan Caillou, Ben Astar, Raymond Bailey, Chester the Chimp
• Director: Irwin Allen
• Production Company: Cambridge Productions, distributed by Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation
• Trivia: The Denver premiere was held on August 10, 1962. The film began a New York City engagement on August 15. Released in the UK on December 6. Loosely based on the 1863 novel of the same name by Jules Verne. Irwin Allen’s last 1960s feature film before moving into producing several sci-fi TV series. Tony Curtis had planned to produce and star in a version of the story in 1955 with Alec Guinness as his co-star, but the film was never made. A British company announced a film in 1956 with Robert Ryan but it too was never made. After securing the rights to the novel, which was in public domain but still under copyright in some countries, Allen wanted the film released in 1962 to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the novel. In the novel the balloon is named Victoria, but Allen changed it to Jupiter for the film. He named the spaceship in Lost in Space Jupiter II. It was the only film produced on the Fox lot in 1962 due to the costs incurred by Cleopatra. The character of Donald O’Shea does not appear in Verne’s novel.

1972

August 18 – Deliverance (USA)

Warner Bros. Pictures

• Cast: Jon Voight, Burt Reynolds, Ned Beatty, Ronny Cox, Bill McKinney, Herbert ‘Cowboy’ Coward, James Dickey, Billy Redden, Macon McCalman
• Director: John Boorman
• Production Company: Elmer Enterprises, distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures
• Trivia: Premiered in New York City on July 30, 1972, and screened at the Atlanta International Film Festival on August 11. Opened in the UK on September 28, and in Canada on October 14. The screenplay was adapted by James Dickey from his 1970 novel of the same name. Much of the dialogue was taken almost verbatim from the source novel. The film earned three Oscar and five Golden Globe nominations. Selected for preservation in the National Film Registry in 2008. Ned Beatty’s film debut. Beatty’s wife, Belinda Beatty, and director John Boorman’s son, Charley Boorman, have brief appearances as the wife and young child of Jon Voight’s character. Beatty nearly drowned when he was thrown overboard from the canoe and was sucked under by a whirlpool. Beatty was actually the only cast member with canoe experience. Film debut of Ronny Cox. Burt Reynolds broke his coccyx while going down the rapids when the canoe capsized. The production wasn’t insured to minimize costs, and the actors did their own stunts. To save further costs and add to the realism, local residents were cast in the roles of the hill people. ‘Dueling Banjos’ was the first scene shot. The rest of the movie was almost entirely shot in sequence. Much of the film had to have its color desaturated because the river looked too pretty. This was Burt Reynolds’ breakthrough role that transformed him from TV actor to movie star. Reynolds had been under consideration as Michael Corleone in The Godfather at the same time as Deliverance, and Marlon Brando threatened to quit if he was cast. Jack Nicholson and Brando were originally considered for the leads but their combined salaries adding up to more than $1 million was half the film’s budget so cheaper actors were cast. Donald Sutherland turned down a role in the film because of the violence. He later said he regretted the decision when the film was a hit.

August 18 – Stigma (USA)

• Cast: Philip Michael Thomas, Harlan Cary Poe, Josie Johnson, Peter Clune, William Magerman, Connie Van Ess, ‘Cousin Brucie’ Morrow
• Director: David E. Durston
• Production Company: Stigma Company, distributed by Cinerama Releasing
• Trivia: Philip Michael Thomas’ second film credit. The director discovered him in a play.

1982

August 17 – The Flight of Dragons (UK, Direct-to-Video)

• Voice Cast: Victor Buono, James Gregory, James Earl Jones, Harry Morgan, John Ritter, Larry Storch, Don Messick, Bob McFadden, Alexandra Stoddart, Nellie Bellflower, Paul Frees, Ed Peck, Jack Lester
• Director: Arthur Rankin Jr., Jules Bass
• Production Company: Rankin/Bass Productions, Topcraft Limited Company, distributed by Warner Bros. Television Distribution
• Trivia: The US TV premiere was September 4, 1983. Received a limited US theatrical release on April 3, 1986. Released in Canada on January 3, 1989. Loosely combines the speculative natural history book of the same name (1979) by Peter Dickinson with the novel The Dragon and the George (1976) by Gordon R. Dickson. Aired in the US as an ABC Saturday Night Movie on August 2, 1986. The last film project of Victor Buono.

August 20 – Class of 1984 (USA)

• Cast: Perry King, Merrie Lynn Ross, Timothy Van Patten, Stefan Arngrim, Michael Fox, Roddy McDowall, Keith Knight, Lisa Langlois, Neil Clifford, Al Waxman, Erin Flannery, David Gardner, Linda Sorensen, Teenage Head
• Director: Mark Lester
• Production Company: Guerrilla High Productions, distributed by Citadel Films (Canada), United Film Distribution Company (United States)
• Trivia: Screened at Cannes on May 19, 1982. Released in Canada on June 3, 1983. The Michael Fox in the credits is Michael J. Fox, appearing in the film before his breakout role on Family Ties. The film was banned in several countries for lewd content. Four minutes and fourteen seconds were cut for the UK release. It was finally released uncut in the UK in 2005. The film was banned outright in Finland, both the theatrical run and the video release, with an uncut DVD finally being released in 2006. Upset at the violent content after a screening, Screenwriter Barry Schneider had his name taken off the credits. This was Helena Quinton’s first and only film. She was so upset about being pressured into stripping totally naked in a room full of people for one scene that she quit acting. The film nearly received an X-rating in the US. The rape scene and the table saw death scene had to be edited down to secure an R-rating. Only one set was built for the film, the auto shop. The rest was filmed on location.

August 20 – The Beastmaster (USA)

• Cast: Marc Singer, Billy Jacoby, Tanya Roberts, Rip Torn, John Amos, Josh Milrad, Rod Loomis, Vanna Bonta, Ben Hammer, Ralph Strait, Tony Epper, Paul Reynolds, Donald Battee
• Director: Don Coscarelli
• Production Company: Beastmaster N.V., ECTA Filmproduktion, GmbH & Co., K.G., distributed by MGM/UA Entertainment Co.
• Trivia: Began a limited US theatrical release on August 16, 1982. Opened in Australia on October 14, and in the UK on April 28, 1983. Loosely based on the 1959 novel The Beast Master by Andre Norton. The film was not a box office success but developed a cult fan base after television exposure on HBO, TBS and TNT. The film was shown so often in HBO that Dennis Miller joked HBO stood for ‘Hey, Beastmaster’s On’. TBS’ frequent airings also led to a similar joke that TBS stood for ‘The Beastmaster Station’. In 1993, TNT programming exec stated the film’s broadcasts were second in popularity to Gone With the Wind. Director Don Coscarelli constantly feuded with producers while making the film. He originally wanted Demi Moore for the role of Kiri, but he was overridden and Tanya Roberts was cast. The role of Maax was written for Klaus Kinski but a salary dispute resulted in him not being cast. The black panther in the film is actually a tiger died black as tigers are easier to work with while filming. The tiger was not allowed on set when children or other animals were present. The film was originally to be released on December 25, 1982, but when United Artists acquired domestic release rights, it was booked for a Summer release. The eagle often refused to fly on cue. To shoot footage of it in the air, it was dropped from a trapdoor in a hot air balloon. Coscarelli has stated that the original film negative was lost after it had been stored in a house that was then sold. It is not known what happened to the film after that.

August 23 – Pieces (Spain)

• Cast: Christopher George, Linda Day George, Frank Braña, Paul L. Smith, Edmund Purdom, Ian Sera, Jack Taylor, Isabelle Luque, Gérard Tichy, May Heatherly
• Director: J. Piquer Simon
• Production Company: Almena Films, Fort Films, Spectacular Film Productions, distributed by International Films Distribution (Spain), Artists Releasing Corporation, Film Ventures International (U.S.)
• Trivia: Released in Italy on October 8, 1982, in the US on September 23, 1983, and received a limited UK release on May 4, 1984. The Spanish title Mil gritos tiene la noche translates to The Night Has 1000 Screams. A Spain/US/Puerto Rico co-production, the film set in Boston was shot mainly in Valencia, Spain with some exteriors shot in the Boston area. The film was confiscated in the UK during the ‘video nasty’ controversy. None of the female stars of the film knew how to play tennis even though they were supposed to be professional players. A coach had to be hired so they could convincingly lob a tennis ball. The look of the killer was based on the comic book character ‘The Shadow’.

1992

August 20 – Strictly Ballroom (Australia)

Ronin Films

• Cast: Paul Mercurio, Tara Morice, Bill Hunter, Pat Thomson, Gia Carides, Peter Whitford, Barry Otto, John Hannan, Sonia Kruger, Kris McQuade, Lauren Hewett
• Director: Baz Luhrmann
• Production Company: M&A Productions, Ronin Films
• Trivia: Screened at Cannes on May 10, 1992, and at the USA Film Festival on September 26. Released in the UK on October 16, 1992, and in the US on February 12, 1993. Baz Luhrmann’s theatrical directorial debut. The film is the first of his ‘Red Curtain Trilogy’ of theatre-motif-related films. Fran’s house was a set built on to an existing railway station. In the most expensive shot in the entire film, a train was hired to pass by the house twice. The first scene filmed was the big finale at the dance competition. It was filmed at a real dance competition during the 1-hour lunch break. Paul Mercurio danced the final sequence with a sprained ankle. Mercurio was a trained ballet dancer and he attended an intensive six-week boot camp to learn the ballroom choreography. The jacket he wears in the finale took more than six weeks to make, with some of the ornaments imported from Spain. Mercurio almost did get the role however because at 28 he was almost a decade older than his character.

August 21 – Christopher Columbus: The Discovery (USA)

• Cast: Marlon Brando, Tom Selleck, Georges Corraface, Rachel Ward, Robert Davi, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Oliver Cotton, Benicio del Toro, Simon Dormandy, Michael Gothard, Branscombe Richmond, Christopher Chaplin
• Director: John Glen
• Production Company: Christopher Columbus Productions, Quinto Centenario, distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures
• Trivia: Opened first in Germany on August 20, 1992. Released in the UK on September 11, 1992. The last project developed by the father and son production team of Alexander and Ilya Salkind (Superman). The film was released for the 500th anniversary of Columbus’ voyage. The role of Columbus was intended for Timothy Dalton, and the role of Queen Isabella was intended for Isabella Rossellini. The pair backed out when original director George Pan Cosmatos was replaced by John Glen shortly before shooting began. Glen had directed Dalton in his two outings as James Bond. Tom Selleck won the Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actor. Marlon Brando was nominated in the same category, and the film scored for more nominations for Worst Picture, Worst Director, Worst New Star (Corraface) and Worst Screenplay. Brando wanted his name removed from the credits as he felt the film did not accurately portray Columbus’ complicity in the genocide of Native Americans. John Glen had Michael Gothard on stand-by if Brando did not show up for filming, and he actually shot a scene when Brando failed to report to the set. Selleck told Glen he’d quit if Brando didn’t show and word got to Brando so he did show up the next day with the Gothard scene being re-shot. This was the last film on which Gothard worked. Selleck said the only reason he agreed to be in the movie was to work with Brando. The heavy robes and cloaks Brando wore in this movie were to hide the radio equipment used to feed him his lines and directions throughout the film. The Salkinds’ original choice for director was Ridley Scott, who turned them down but four months later began work on his own Columbus film 1492: Conquest of Paradise. The Salkinds sued for stealing their idea, but lost after it was proven that the idea of a Columbus film predated theirs.

August 21 – Light Sleeper (USA)

• Cast: Willem Dafoe, Susan Sarandon, Dana Delany, David Clennon, Mary Beth Hurt, Victor Garber, Jane Adams, Robert Cicchini, Sam Rockwell, David Spade
• Director: Paul Schrader
• Production Company: Seven Arts, distributed by Fine Line Features
• Trivia: Screened at Sundance on January 24, 1992, and opened in the UK on March 13. Paul Schrader financed the first three weeks of production himself as the fundraising process was on-going when production began. While the film is set during a New York City sanitation strike, the actual sanitation collection department was on the job, often inadvertently collecting the prop trash that was part of the production design. Final acting role of Paul Jabara.

August 21 – Rapid Fire (USA)

• Cast: Brandon Lee, Powers Boothe, Nick Mancuso, Raymond J. Barry, Kate Hodge, Tzi Ma, Tony Longo, Michael Paul Chan, Dustin Nguyen, Brigitta Stenberg, Basil Wallace, Al Leong, François Chau
• Director: Dwight H. Little
• Production Company: 20th Century Fox
• Trivia: Opened in the UK on November 20, 1992. Brandon Lee broke a toe while filming a scene in which he had to kick open a large oak door. Filming was brought to a halt for the day, and the scene was never included in the film. Lee wanted John Woo to direct but the producers wanted a more straightforward kung fu action movie as opposed to the type of films Woo was known for. An early title for the film was Moving Target. A sequal was being developed with Angela Bassett starring with Lee, but Lee died while filming The Crow and the script was rewritten into Die Hard with a Vengeance. Joel Silver had tried to buy that script for Lethal Weapon 4.

August 21 – The Gun in Betty Lou’s Handbag (USA)

• Cast: Penelope Ann Miller, Eric Thal, Julianne Moore, William Forsythe, Alfre Woodard, Cathy Moriarty, Xander Berkeley, Ray McKinnon, Andy Romano, Faye Grant, Michael O’Neill, Christopher John Fields, Billie Neal, Marian Seldes, Meat Loaf, Catherine Keener
• Director: Allan Moyle
• Production Company: Touchstone Pictures, Interscope Communications, Nomura Babcock & Brown, distributed by Buena Vista Pictures
• Trivia: Stanley Tucci appears in an uncredited role. Chris Isaak was the first choice to play Alex (Eric Thal). Darryl Hannah was cast as Betty Lou but dropped out before production began.

August 21 – Waterland (UK)

• Cast: Jeremy Irons, Sinéad Cusack, Ethan Hawke, John Heard, Grant Warnock, Lena Headey, Pete Postlethwaite, Cara Buono, David Morrissey, Maggie Gyllenhaal
• Director: Stephen Gyllenhaal
• Production Company: Palace Pictures, Fine Line Features, Pandora Cinema, Channel Four Films, British Screen Productions, distributed by PolyGram Filmed Entertainment (United Kingdom), Fine Line Features (United States)
• Trivia: Screened at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 12, 1992, and opened in the US on October 30. Based on Graham Swift’s 1983 novel of the same name. The film moved the location from England to Pittsburgh and eliminated many historical references. Film debuts of Lena Headey and Maggie Gyllenhaal. Jeremy Irons and Sinéad Cusack are married in real life.

2002

August 23 – Amy’s Orgasm (USA, limited)

• Cast: Julie Davis, Nick Chinlund, Caroline Aaron, Mitchell Whitfield, Jennifer Bransford, Jeff Cesario, Mary Ellen Trainor, Charles Cioffi, Tina Lifford, Michael Harris, Vincent Castellanos, Julie Bowen, Andrea Bendewald
• Director: Julie Davis
• Production Company: Catchlight Films, Serious Dan, Withoutabox, distributed by Magic Lamp
• Trivia: Screened at the Santa Barbara Film Festival on March 8, 2001, the Athens Film Festival on September 20, 2001, and at TIFF on May 10, 2003. The film’s title was shortened to Amy’s O for display in many video stores.

August 23 – The Guru (UK)

• Cast: Jimi Mistry, Heather Graham, Marisa Tomei, Dash Mihok, Michael McKean, Christine Baranski, Ronald Guttman, Thomas McCarthy, Emil Marwa, Ajay Naidu, Bobby Cannavale, Malachy McCourt, Sanjeev Bhaskar, Anita Gillette, Rizwan Manji, Damian Young, Dwight Ewell, Sakina Jaffery
• Director: Daisy von Scherler Mayer
• Production Company: StudioCanal, Working Title Films, distributed by Universal Pictures
• Trivia: Received a limited US release on January 31, 2003, following the January 23 premiere. It received a wider US release on February 14, 2003. The were no sets built for the film. Everything was shot on location. During the early stages of writing the script, the writer wanted the character of Kitty to be Martha Stewart or Madonna. They would have played themselves had one of them been cast.

August 23 – Tadpole (USA)

• Cast: Aaron Stanford, Sigourney Weaver, John Ritter, Bebe Neuwirth, Robert Iler, Kate Mara, Adam LeFevre, Peter Appel, Ron Rifkin
• Director: Gary Winick
• Production Company: Miramax, InDigEnt, Dolly Hall Productions, IFC Productions, distributed by Miramax
• Trivia: Screened at Sundance on January 11, 2002. Began a New York City and Los Angeles engagement on July 19, and went into limited US release on August 2. The film did not open in the UK until June 20, 2003. During various unused takes, local residents Jerry Seinfeld, Joel Coen and Frances McDormand happened to wander through the frame. Aaron Stanford’s feature debut.

2012

August 17 – Compliance (USA)

• Cast: Ann Dowd, Dreama Walker, Pat Healy, Bill Camp, Philip Ettinger, James McCaffrey, Ashlie Atkinson, Stephen Payne
• Director: Craig Zobel
• Production Company: Dogfish Pictures, Low Spark Films, Bad Cop / Bad Cop, Muskat Filmed Properties, distributed by Magnolia Pictures
• Trivia: Screened at Sundance on January 21, 2012, and opened in a limited release in Canada on August 10. Opened in the UK on March 22, 2013. Closely based upon an actual strip search phone call scam that took place in Mount Washington, Kentucky in 2004. The phone conversations were performed on a working phone line installed in the set for the film. Pat Healy was on the phone downstairs of the set as the other cast members were upstairs. The phone line broke down during filming and Healy was brought up to deliver his lines off-camera.

August 17 – Cosmopolis (USA, limited)

• Cast: Robert Pattinson, Sarah Gadon, Paul Giamatti, Kevin Durand, Abdul Ayoola, Juliette Binoche, Emily Hampshire, Bob Bainborough, Samantha Morton, Zeljko Kecojevic, Jay Baruchel, Philip Nozuka, Mathieu Amalric, Patricia McKenzie, K’naan
• Director: David Cronenberg
• Production Company: Alfama Films, Prospero Pictures, Kinologic Films, France 2 Cinéma, Téléfilm Canada, Talandracas Pictures, France Télévisions, CanalPlus, Rai Cinema, Radiotelevisão Portuguesa, Ontario Media Development Corporation, Astral Media, The Harold Greenberg Fund, Jouror Productions, Leopardo Filmes, distributed by Entertainment One
• Trivia: While the film did not hit the US until August 17, 2012, it had been playing around the world since its May 25 debut in France. It also screened at Cannes on that date. It received a limited release in Canada on June 8 and the UK on June 15. Based on the novel of the same name by Don DeLillo. Robert Pattinson’s first film after completing the Twilight films. Colin Farrell was originally cast but had to drop out because of scheduling conflicts with Total Recall. David Cronenberg wrote the script in six days. Cronenberg shot the scenes in chronological order.

August 17 – ParaNorman (USA)

Laika

• Voice Cast: Kodi Smit-McPhee, Jodelle Ferland, Bernard Hill, Tucker Albrizzi, Anna Kendrick, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Casey Affleck, John Goodman, Elaine Stritch, Jeff Garlin, Leslie Mann, Tempestt Bledsoe, Alex Borstein, Austin Dickey, Hannah Noyes, Ariel Winter, Jared Dines, Bridget Hoffman, Scott Menville, David Cowgill, Wendy Hoffman, Jeremy Shada, Emily Hahn, Jack Blessing
• Director: Sam Fell, Chris Butler
• Production Company: Laika, distributed by Focus Features
• Trivia: The film began its run in Mexico on August 3, 2012, and played a Los Angeles engagement starting August 5. It was released in Canada on August 17, and in the UK on September 14. The first stop-motion film to use a 3D color printer to create character faces, and only the second to be shot in 3D. Oscar and BAFTA nominated for Best Animated Feature. The film was in production for three years, with the animation taking about two years. The character of Mitch, voiced by Casey Affleck, is the first openly gay character in a children’s animated film. Final film of Elaine Stritch. Save for Judge Hopkins, the seven cursed zombies are not referred to by name, but they did have names: the aforementioned Judge Hopkins, Eben Hardwick, Thaddeus Blackton, Lemuel Spalding, Amelia Wilcot, Goodie Temper, and Wile London.

August 17 – Robot & Frank (USA, limited)

• Cast: Frank Langella, Susan Sarandon, Rachael Ma, Peter Sarsgaard, James Marsden, Liv Tyler, Caine Sheppard, Jeremy Strong, Jeremy Sisto, Katherine Waterston, Ana Gasteyer, Joshua Ormond
• Director: Jake Schreier
• Production Company: Stage 6 Films, Park Pictures, White Hat Entertainment, Dog Run Pictures, distributed by Samuel Goldwyn Films
• Trivia: Screened at Sundance on January 20, 2012. Received a limited release in Canada beginning August 24, but did not open in the UK until March 8, 2013. Shot in 20 days.

August 17 – Sparkle (USA)

• Cast: Jordin Sparks, Whitney Houston, Derek Luke, Carmen Ejogo, Tika Sumpter, Mike Epps, Omari Hardwick, Cee Lo Green, Curtis Armstrong, Terrence J, Tamela Mann, Brely Evans, Michael Beach
• Director: Salim Akil
• Production Company: Stage 6 Films, TriStar Pictures, Martin Chase Productions, Akil Productions, distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing
• Trivia: Also released in Canada on August 17, 2012. Opened in the UK on October 5. Remake of the 1976 film of the same title., and features songs from that film plus new compositions for the remake. Film debut of Jordin Sparks. Whitney Houston’s last film. Houston’s production company secured the rights to the remake in the 1990s with the intention to cast Aaliyha in the lead, but the film was put on hold after her untimely death. The film was revived in 2005 with Raven-Symoné in the lead role, but that did not move forward.

August 17 – The Expendables 2 (USA)

• Cast: Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Chuck Norris, Terry Crews, Randy Couture, Liam Hemsworth, Scott Adkins, Yu Nan, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Bruce Willis, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Charisma Carpenter, Amanda Ooms
• Director: Simon West
• Production Company: Millennium Films, Nu Image, distributed by Lionsgate
• Trivia: Several premieres were held including Madrid (August 8, 2012), Paris (August 9), London (August 13), Buenos Aires (August 15), and Los Angeles (August 15). Released in the UK on August 16, and in Canada on August 17. Schwarzenegger filmed his part, his first film since leaving the office of California governor, in four days. Tennis pro Novak Djokovic filmed a cameo as himself but the scene was cut. All of Jet Li’s scenes were filmed in Hong Kong because he was working on another movie at the same time. Liam Hemsworth was originally cast in The Expendables (2010) but when the script was re-written, his role was cut out. The only Expendables film to not be nominated for Razzie Awards. Chuck Norris came out of retirement at age 71 to appear in the film. To date, it is his last film.

August 17 – The Wedding Video (UK)

• Cast: Rufus Hound, Lucy Punch, Robert Webb, Matt Berry, Michelle Gomez, Miriam Margolyes, Harriet Walter, Olegar Fedoro, Geoffrey Newland, Julianne White, Chris Wilson
• Director: Nigel Cole
• Production Company: Squirrel Films, Timeless Films, distributed by Entertainment Film Distributors
• Trivia: The film was not released in the US until May 9, 2014. During the scene that Rufus Hound’s character appears nude to a riverboat of tourists, the supporting artists in that scene were not told that Rufus Hound would be nude and their reactions are completely genuine.

August 22 – Broken (France)

• Cast: Tim Roth, Cillian Murphy, Rory Kinnear, Robert Emms, Zana Marjanović, Clare Burt, Bill Milner, Denis Lawson, Eloise Laurence, Michael Shaeffer
• Director: Rufus Norris
• Production Company: BBC Films, Bill Kenwright Films, Cuba Pictures, Lipsync Productions, distributed by StudioCanal
• Trivia: Screened at Cannes on May 17, 2012. Opened in the UK on March 8, 2013, and received a limited US release on July 19, 2013. Based on the 2008 novel of the same name by Daniel Clay. Acting debut of lead Eloise Laurence, who also sang at the beginning and end of the film.

August 22 – Hit and Run (USA)

• Cast: Kristen Bell, Dax Shepard, Tom Arnold, Kristin Chenoweth, Michael Rosenbaum, Jess Rowland, Steve Agee, Bradley Cooper, Joy Bryant, David Koechner, Ryan Hansen, Beau Bridges, Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes
• Director: David Palmer, Dax Shepard
• Production Company: Primate Pictures, Kim and Jim Productions, distributed by Open Road Films
• Trivia: Opened in Canada on August 24, 2012, and in the UK on October 12. The film’s title was changed from Outrun to Hit and Run after it was acquired by Open Road Films. Most of the cars seen in this film are from Dax Shepard’s personal collection. Half of the film’s $2 million budget was used to secure music rights.

August 22 – Isolate (Australia)

• Cast: Jacinta John, Terry Serio, Stephen Anderton, Ray Park
• Director: Martyn Park
• Production Company: A Lonedog Production, cinama, distributed by Titan View Australia/NZ
• Trivia: Screened at the Los Angeles Fear and Fantasy Film Festival on May 18, 2012.