Hotchka Movies by the Decade feature #62 :: September 29 to October 5

Warner Bros. Pictures

This was a lackluster week for new movie releases. Nothing released in the first half of the century can be considered a classic, and there’s no real film of note until 2001. 1981 has a cult punk music film with two young actresses who have gone on to much bigger and better things, 1991 did give us the first film with top billing for Joe Pesci, and 2011 gave us the film that brought Daniel Craig & Rachel Weisz, and teamed Chris Evans & Anna Faris in a revealing comedy. Let’s take a look to see if any of your favorites made the list this week.

1921

• No new films were released this week in 1921.

1931

October 3 – My Sin

• Cast: Tallulah Bankhead, Fredric March, Harry Davenport, Scott Kolk, Anne Sutherland, Margaret Adams, Lily Cahill, Joseph Calleia
• Director: George Abbott
• Studio: Paramount Pictures
• Trivia: The film premiered on September 26, 1931.

October 3 – Palmy Days

• Cast: Charlotte Greenwood, Barbara Weeks, Spencer Charters, Paul Page, Charles Middleton, George Raft, Harry Woods, Eddie Cantor
• Director: A. Edward Sutherland
• Studio: Samuel Goldwyn Productions, distributed by United Artists
• Trivia: The film premiered in New York City on September 23, 1931.

1941

October 1 – Honky Tonk

• Cast: Clark Gable, Lana Turner, Frank Morgan, Claire Trevor, Marjorie Main, Albert Dekker, Henry O’Neill, Chill Wills, Veda Ann Borg, Douglas Wood, Betty Blythe, Harry J. Worth, Lew Harvey
• Director: Jack Conway
• Studio: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
• Trivia: Actor John Calvert acted as hand-double to Clark Gable in the card-manipulation scenes.

1951

October – The Golden Horde

• Cast: Ann Blyth, David Farrar, George Macready, Richard Egan, Peggie Castle, Henry Brandon, Howard Petrie, Marvin Miller, Donald Randolph, Poodles Hanneford
• Director: George Sherman
• Studio: Universal Pictures
• Trivia: The film’s exact October 1951 US release date is unknown.

1961

September 29 – Last Year at Marienbad

• Cast: Giorgio Albertazzi, Delphine Seyrig, Sacha Pitoëff
• Director: Alain Resnais
• Studio: Cocinor
• Trivia: The film was screened at the Venice Film Festival on August 29, 1961, then opened in France on September 29. The film opened in the UK on February 22, 1962, followed by the US on March 7.

October – Johnny Nobody

• Cast: Nigel Patrick, Yvonne Mitchell, William Bendix, Aldo Ray, Cyril Cusack, Bernie Winters, Niall MacGinnis, Noel Purcell, Eddie Byrne, John Welsh, Joe Lynch, Jimmy O’Dea, Frank O’Donovan, May Craig
• Director: Nigel Patrick
• Studio: Viceroy Films Ltd., Warwick Film Productions, distributed by Eros Films (UK)
• Trivia: The film’s exact UK release date in October 1961 is unknown. The film opened in the US on November 23, 1965.

October 1 – A Taste of Honey

• Cast: Rita Tushingham, Dora Bryan, Robert Stephens, Murray Melvin, Paul Danquah, Margo Cunningham, Michael Bilton, Hazel Blears, Stephen Blears
• Director: Tony Richardson
• Studio: Woodfall Film Productions, distributed by British Lion Films
• Trivia: The film’s London premiere was held on September 14, 1961, and opened in the UK on October 1. The film did not reach the US until April 30, 1962.

1971

September 30 – Skin Game

• Cast: James Garner, Lou Gossett, Susan Clark, Brenda Sykes, Edward Asner, Andrew Duggan, Henry Jones, Neva Patterson, Parley Baer, George Tyne, Royal Dano, Pat O’Malley, Joel Fluellen, Napoleon Whiting, Juanita Moore, Robert Foulk
• Director: Paul Bogart, Gordon Douglas (uncredited)
• Studio: Warner Bros. Pictures
• Trivia: Warner Bros. Pictures’ 1,500th release. The NAACP protested the film after learning that Louis Gossett Jr.’s stunt double was a white man in blackface.

1981

Paramount Pictures

October – Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains

• Cast: Diane Lane, Laura Dern, Marin Kanter, Christine Lahti, Janet Wright, Peter Donat, David Clennon, Barry Ford, Ray Winstone, Paul Simonon, Steve Jones, Paul Cook, Fee Waybill, Vince Welnick
• Director: Lou Adler
• Studio: Red Stripe Films, Ink, distributed by Paramount Pictures
• Trivia: The film’s exact October 1981 US release date is unknown.

October 1 – The Killing of Angel Street

• Cast: Liz Alexander, John Hargreaves, Reg Lye, David Downer, Caz Lederman, Alexander Archdale, Allen Bickford, Gordon McDougall, Ric Herbert, Pnina Bloch, John Stone, Arkie Whiteley, Norman Kaye, Peter De Salis
• Director: Donald Crombie
• Studio: Forest Home Films
• Trivia: The film opened in Australia on October 1, 1981, and was screened at the Chicago International Film Festival in October 1982 but does not appear to have received a theatrical release in the US.

October 1 – Tragedy of a Ridiculous Man

• Cast: Ugo Tognazzi, Anouk Aimée, Laura Morante, Victor Cavallo, Olimpia Carlisi, Vittorio Caprioli, Renato Salvatori, Ricky Tognazzi, Gianni Migliavacca, Margherita Chiari, Ennio Ferrari, Gaetano Ferrari, Franco Trevisi, Pietro Longari Ponzoni, Don Backy
• Director: Bernardo Bertolucci
• Studio: Fiction Cinematografica, distributed by Produzione Intercontinentale Cinematografica (PIC) (Italy), Ladd Company (United States)
• Trivia: The film was screened at Cannes on May 24, 1981, and opened in Italy on October 1. The film did not open in the US, in New York City, until February 12, 1982.

October 2 – Enter the Ninja

• Cast: Franco Nero, Susan George, Sho Kosugi, Christopher George, Alex Courtney, Will Hare, Zachi Noy, Constantine Gregory, Dale Ishimoto, Joonee Gamboa, Leo Martinez, Ken Metcalfe, Subas Herrero, Alan Amiel, Doug Ivan
• Director: Menahem Golan
• Studio: Golan-Globus Production, distributed by The Cannon Group
• Trivia: The film was screened at Cannes on May 16, 1981, and played in West Germany from July 17 and France from August 5 before opening in the US on October 2.

October 2 – Paternity

• Cast: Burt Reynolds, Beverly D’Angelo, Lauren Hutton, Norman Fell, Paul Dooley, Elizabeth Ashley, Juanita Moore, Peter Billingsley, Susanna Dalton
• Director: David Steinberg
• Studio: Paramount Pictures
• Trivia: The film was nominated for and won the Razzie for Worst Original Song, ‘Baby Talk’ by David Shire and Davis Frishberg.

October 2 – Zoot Suit

• Cast: Daniel Valdez, Edward James Olmos, Rose Portillo, Charles Aidman, Tyne Daly, John Anderson, Abel Franco, Bernadette Colognne, Mike Gomez, Alma Martínez, Francis X. McCarthy, Lupe Ontiveros, Marco Rodríguez, Kelly Ward, Kurtwood Smith, Dennis Stewart, Robert Beltran
• Director: Luis Valdez
• Studio: Universal Pictures
• Trivia: The film received a limited US release on October 2, 1981 and expanded on January 1, 1982.

1991

October 4 – Black Robe

• Cast: Lothaire Bluteau, Aden Young, Sandrine Holt, August Schellenberg, Tantoo Cardinal, Billy Two Rivers, Lawrence Bayne, Harrison Liu, Wesley Côté, Frank Wilson, François Tassé, Jean Brousseau, Yvan Labelle, Raoul Trujillo, James Bobbish, Gordon Tootoosis, Denis Lacroix, Marthe Turgeon, Claude Préfontaine, Deano Clavet, Linlyn Lue, Zoe Hopkins
• Director: Bruce Beresford
• Studio: Alliance Films, Samson Productions, Hoyts, distributed by The Samuel Goldwyn Company
• Trivia: The film was screened at TIFF on September 5, 1991.

October 4 – Dogfight

• Cast: River Phoenix, Lili Taylor, E.G. Daily, Richard Panebianco, Anthony Clark, Mitchell Whitfield, Holly Near, Brendan Fraser, Jessica Wallenfels
• Director: Nancy Savoca
• Studio: Warner Bros. Pictures
• Trivia: The film opened in New York City on September 13, 1991 ahead of its general US release on October 4.

October 4 – Let Him Have It

• Cast: Christopher Eccleston, Paul Reynolds, Tom Courtenay, Eileen Atkins, Clare Holman, Tom Bell, Edward Hardwicke, Serena Scott Thomas, Mark McGann, Murray Melvin, Michael Gough, Iain Cuthbertson, Peter Eyre, James Villiers, Clive Revill, Vernon Dobtcheff, Bill Dean, Norman Rossington, Michael Elphick
• Director: Peter Medak
• Studio: British Screen Productions, CanalPlus, Film Trustees Ltd., Jennie and Company, Pierson, Vermillion, Vivid Entertainment, distributed by First Independent Films
• Trivia: The film screened at the Toronto Film Festival on September 12, 1991, then opened in the UK on October 4. The film opened in New York City on December 6 before expanding in the US in January 1992.

October 4 – Paradise

• Cast: Melanie Griffith, Don Johnson, Elijah Wood, Thora Birch, Sheila McCarthy, Eve Gordon, Louise Latham, Greg Travis, Sarah Trigger
• Director: Mary Agnes Donoghue
• Studio: Touchstone Pictures, Touchwood Pacific Partners I, distributed by Buena Vista Pictures
• Trivia: The film was screened at TIFF on September 12, 1991, and received a release in Los Angeles and New York City on September 18 before its general US release on October 4.

October 4 – Ricochet

• Cast: Denzel Washington, John Lithgow, Ice-T, Lydell M. Cheshier, Kevin Pollak, Lindsay Wagner, Matt Landers, Sherman Howard, Josh Evans, Mary Ellen Trainor, Victoria Dillard, Kimberly Natasha Ali, Aileaha Jones, John Amos, Starletta DuPois, John Cothran, Jr., Miguel Sandoval, Thomas Rosales Jr., George Cheung, Kenny Endoso, Rick Cramer, Jesse Ventura, Linda Dona
• Director: Russell Mulcahy
• Studio: HBO Pictures, Silver Pictures, Cinema Plus L.P., Indigo Productions, distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures
• Trivia: Mary Ellen Trainor played reporter Gail Wallens, a character she also played in Die Hard.

October 4 – Shout

• Cast: John Travolta, James Walters, Heather Graham, Richard Jordan, Linda Fiorentino, Scott Coffey, Glenn Quinn, Sam Hennings, Michael Bacall, Frank von Zerneck, Gwyneth Paltrow, Charles Taylor
• Director: Jeffrey Hornaday
• Studio: Robert Simonds Productions, distributed by Universal Pictures
• Trivia: The film opened first in the UK on September 27, 1991.

October 4 – Suburban Commando

• Cast: Hulk Hogan, Christopher Lloyd, Shelley Duvall, Michael Faustino, Laura Mooney, Larry Miller, Dennis Burkley, Branscombe Richmond, William Ball, Jack Elam, Jo Ann Dearing, Roy Dotrice, Tony Longo, Mark Calaway (The Undertaker)
• Director: Burt Kennedy
• Studio: New Line Cinema
• Trivia: The film opened in limited release in the US on June 21, 1991 before expanding on October 4.

October 4 – The Man in the Moon

• Cast: Sam Waterston, Tess Harper, Gail Strickland, Reese Witherspoon, Jason London, Emily Warfield, Bentley Mitchum, Ernie Lively, Dennis Letts, Earleen Bergeron, Anna Chappell, Brandi and Sandi Smith, Derek and Spencer Ball
• Director: Robert Mulligan
• Studio: Pathé Entertainment, distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
• Trivia: The film screened at the Deauville Film Festival on August 30, 1991 and at the Boston Film Festival on September 9.

October 4 – The Rapture

• Cast: Mimi Rogers, David Duchovny, Kimberly Cullum, Darwyn Carson, Patrick Bauchau, James LeGros, Will Patton, Sam Vlahos, Stéphanie Menuez, Marvin Elkins
• Director: Michael Tolkin
• Studio: New Line Cinema, Electric Pictures, distributed by Fine Line Features
• Trivia: The film was screened at TIFF on September 6, 1991, and at the New York Film Festival on September 30.

October 4 – The Super

• Cast: Joe Pesci, Vincent Gardenia, Ruben Blades, Madolyn Smith, Stacey Travis, Carole Shelley, Kenny Blank, Steven Rodriguez, Beatrice Winde, Eileen Galindo
• Director: Rod Daniel
• Studio: Largo Entertainment, distributed by 20th Century Fox
• Trivia: Joe Pesci’s first film with top billing, and Vincent Gardenia’s final film.

October 5 – Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky

• Cast: Fan Siu-Wong, Fan Mei-sheng, Ho Ka-Kui, Yukari Oshima, Tamba Tetsuro, Gloria Yip, Chan Kwok-Bong, Yuen Wah
• Director: Lam Nai-choi
• Studio: Diagonal Pictures, distributed by Golden Harvest
• Trivia: The film opened in Japan on October 5, 1991, but does not appear to have been given a theatrical release in the US.

2001

October 4 – Lantana

• Cast: Anthony LaPaglia, Geoffrey Rush, Barbara Hershey, Kerry Armstrong, Rachael Blake, Vince Colosimo, Russell Dykstra, Daniella Farinacci, Peter Phelps, Leah Purcell, Glenn Robbins
• Director: Ray Lawrence
• Studio: Australian Film Finance Corporation, MBP, New South Wales Film and Television Office, Jan Chapman Films, distributed by Palace Films
• Trivia: The film premiered at the Sydney Film Festival on June 8, 2001, and screened at Telluride on September 1, TIFF on September 15 and San Sebastian on September 20 before opening in Australia on October 4. The film opened in Los Angeles on December 14, but did not get a general US release until March 8, 2002.

October 5 – Joy Ride

• Cast: Paul Walker, Steve Zahn, Leelee Sobieski, Jessica Bowman, Matthew Kimbrough, Ted Levine, Stuart Stone, Brian Leckner, Jim Beaver, Hugh Dane, Jay Hernandez, Basil Wallace, Rachel Singer, Satch Huizenga, Luis Cortés, Kenneth White
• Director: John Dahl
• Studio: Regency Enterprises, Bad Robot, distributed by 20th Century Fox
• Trivia: The film premiered at TIFF on September 9, 2001.

October 5 – Max Keeble’s Big Move

• Cast: Alex D. Linz, Larry Miller, Jamie Kennedy, Nora Dunn, Robert Carradine, Josh Peck, Zena Grey, Noel Fisher, Orlando Brown, Brooke Anne Smith, Myra Ambriz, Justin Berfield, Clifton Davis, Amy Hill, Amber Valletta, Dennis Haskins, Chely Wright
• Director: Tim Hill
• Studio: Walt Disney Pictures, Karz Entertainment, distributed by Buena Vista Pictures
• Trivia: Cameos by Tony Hawk, Lil’ Romeo, Marcus Hopson.

October 5 – Serendipity

• Cast: John Cusack, Kate Beckinsale, Molly Shannon, Bridget Moynahan, Jeremy Piven, John Corbett, Eugene Levy, Marcia Bennett, Eve Crawford, Evan Neuman, Buck Henry, Lucy Gordon, Kevin Rice, Gary Gerbrandt
• Director: Peter Chelsom
• Studio: Tapestry Films, distributed by Miramax Films
• Trivia: The film premiered at TIFF on September 13, 2001.

October 5 – Training Day

• Cast: Denzel Washington, Ethan Hawke, Scott Glenn, Eva Mendes, Cliff Curtis, Raymond Cruz, Noel Gugliemi, Dr. Dre, Peter Greene, Nick Chinlund, Jaime P. Gomez, Snoop Dogg, Macy Gray, Charlotte Ayanna, Harris Yulin, Tom Berenger, Raymond J. Barry, Samantha Esteban, Seidy López, Rudy Perez, Cle Shaheed Sloan, Abel Soto, Denzel Whitaker, Fran Kranz, Terry Crews
• Director: Antoine Fuqua
• Studio: Village Roadshow Pictures, Outlaw Productions, distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures
• Trivia: The film screened at the Venice Film Festival on September 2, 2001, and at TIFF on September 7.

2011

September 30 – 50/50

• Cast: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Seth Rogen, Anna Kendrick, Bryce Dallas Howard, Anjelica Huston, Serge Houde, Andrew Airlie, Matt Frewer, Philip Baker Hall, Donna Yamamoto, Sugar Lyn Beard, Yee Jee Tso, Sarah Smyth, Peter Kelamis, Jessica Parker Kennedy, Daniel Bacon, P. Lynn Johnson, Laura Bertram, Matty Finochio, Luisa D’Oliveira, Veena Sood, Marie Avgeropoulos, Ryan W. Smith, Lauren A. Miller
• Director: Jonathan Levine
• Studio: Mandate Pictures, Point Grey, distributed by Summit Entertainment (United States), Lionsgate (International)[
• Trivia: The film was screened at TIFF on September 12, 2011, and at the San Diego Film Festival on September 28. The original screenplay was titled I’m with Cancer. James McAvoy was cast as Adam, but had to drop out due to personal conflicts. Joseph Gordon-Levitt replaced him after being called by Seth Rogen less than a week before shooting was scheduled to start. He accepted the role just two days before.

September 30 – A Dangerous Method

• Cast: Keira Knightley, Michael Fassbender, Viggo Mortensen, Vincent Cassel, Sarah Gadon, André Hennicke, Arndt Schwering-Sohnrey
• Director: David Cronenberg
• Studio: Lago Film, Prospero Pictures, Recorded Picture Company, Millbrook Pictures, Telefilm Canada, Ontario Media Development Corporation, Corus Entertainment, Deutscher Filmförderfonds, Filmförderungsanstalt, Filmstiftung NRW, Filmförderung Baden-Württemberg, Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg, Elbe Film, Talking Cure Productions, distributed by Entertainment One (Canada), Universal Pictures (Germany and Austria), Lionsgate (United Kingdom)
• Trivia: The film premiered at the Venice Film Festival on September 2, 2011, and was screened at the Telluride Film Festival on September 3, and at TIFF on September 10 before opening in Italy on September 30. The film premiered in Los Angeles on October 11, and officially began its limited run on November 23. Adapted by writer Christopher Hampton from his 2002 stage play The Talking Cure, which was based on the 1993 non-fiction book by John Kerr, A Most Dangerous Method: The Story of Jung, Freud, and Sabina Spielrein.

September 30 – Courageous

• Cast: Alex Kendrick, Ken Bevel, Kevin Downes, Ben Davies, Renee Jewell, Elanor Brown, Taylor Hutcherson, Robert Amaya, Rusty Martin, Angelita Nelson, Lauren Etchells, Donald Howze, Tony ‘T.C.’ Stallings, Ed Litton
• Director: Alex Kendrick
• Studio: Affirm Films, Provident Films, Sherwood Pictures, distributed by TriStar Pictures
• Trivia: The film’s premiere was held in Atlanta on August 26, 2011.

September 30 – Dream House

• Cast: Daniel Craig, Rachel Weisz, Claire Geare, Taylor Geare, Naomi Watts, Marton Csokas, Rachel G. Fox, Elias Koteas, Jane Alexander, Brian Murray
• Director: Jim Sheridan
• Studio: Morgan Creek Productions, distributed by Universal Pictures (North America), Warner Bros. Pictures (International)
• Trivia: Rachel McAdams was originally cast as Libby. Director Jim Sheridan fought with Morgan Creek’s head, James G. Robinson, continuously on the set over the shape of the script and the production of the movie. After Sheridan re-shot some scenes because they did not go down well with test audiences, Morgan Creek took away the film from Sheridan’s hands to re-cut it themselves. As a result, they created the trailer, which many felt gave away too many of the movie’s secrets. As a result, Sheridan, Daniel Craig, and Rachel Weisz refused to promote the film to the press.

September 30 – Margaret

• Cast: Anna Paquin, J. Smith-Cameron, Mark Ruffalo, Jeannie Berlin, Jean Reno, John Gallagher Jr., Allison Janney, Kieran Culkin, Matt Damon, Matt Bush, Rosemarie DeWitt, Matthew Broderick, Olivia Thirlby, Kenneth Lonergan, Josh Hamilton, Michael Ealy, Krysten Ritter, Sarah Steele, Betsy Aidem
• Director: Kenneth Lonergan
• Studio: Camelot Pictures, Gilbert Films, Mirage Enterprises, Scott Rudin Productions, distributed by Fox Searchlight Pictures
• Trivia: There is no character called Margaret in the film. The title refers to a poem by Gerard Manley Hopkins that is read aloud in Lisa’s (Anna Paquin’s) class. Originally scheduled for release in 2007, but writer/director Kenneth Lonergan spent four more years struggling with Fox Searchlight Pictures over the final cut, resulting in several lawsuits.

September 30 – Take Shelter

• Cast: Michael Shannon, Jessica Chastain, Shea Whigham, Katy Mixon, Kathy Baker, Ray McKinnon, Lisa Gay Hamilton, Tova Stewart, Stuart Greer
• Director: Jeff Nichols
• Studio: Hydraulx Entertainment, Rei Capital, Grove Hill Productions, Strange Matter Films, distributed by Sony Pictures Classics
• Trivia: The film premiered at Sundance on January 24, 2011, and was screened at Cannes on May 15 before its limited US release on September 30. Tova Stewart, the little girl who plays Hannah, is deaf in real life.

20th Century Fox

September 30 – What’s Your Number?

• Cast: Anna Faris, Nadine Jacobson, Chris Evans, Ari Graynor, Blythe Danner, Ed Begley, Jr., Oliver Jackson-Cohen, Dave Annable, Colby Parsons, Heather Burns, Eliza Coupe, Tika Sumpter, Joel McHale, Chris Pratt, Denise Vasi, Zachary Quinto, Mike Vogel, Martin Freeman, Andy Samberg, Thomas Lennon, Anthony Mackie, Ivana Miličević, Aziz Ansari
• Director: Mark Mylod
• Studio: Contrafilm, Regency Enterprises, distributed by 20th Century Fox
• Trivia: The film’s premiere was held on September 19, 2011. Based on Karyn Bosnak’s book 20 Times a Lady. Chris Evans does his own singing in the movie.

October 5 – The Ambassador

• Cast: Mads Brügger
• Director: Mads Brügger
• Studio: Zentropa, distributed by Drafthouse Films
• Trivia: The film was released in Denmark on October 5. It was screened at Sundance on January 20, 2012, and after playing several US festivals opened in New York City on August 29, 2012. As a result of the film’s controversial themes, the Liberian government threatened legal action against Mads Brügger.