250 Classic Movies brings to the attention of movie fans, and hopefully new fans of older films, motion pictures that are well worth seeing, time and again. Actually, the really good movies never get old. The fist time you see a classic film you might watch it for pure entertainment value. The second time might engross you more in the story. The acting might enthrall you more in the third viewing. And the fourth time? The cinematography, the costumes, the make-up, the sets, or the character players, some in the background (and in musicals, the individual dances), all may suddenly capture your imagination. That’s the good thing about the classics—they don’t get old because there is so much to behold it’s almost impossible to truly see it all the first time around.
For this book, the author has selected 250 films that have been acclaimed by critics and/or have been box-office winners or chosen as award-winners by various organizations. Are they the greatest movies ever made? Not necessarily, but they certainly are among the best. To add to the full enjoyment of each film, there are data, awards, trivia, a review, back-stories, posters and photographs—including stills and candids. The book covers twenty categories of filmmaking including foreign films. Represented are famous films from England, Italy, France, Germany, Japan, Sweden, Australia, and Russia.
While this book is intended as an overview of the great movies of the first century of filmmaking, we hope it serves as an inspiration to readers to look at other movies of the first hundred years because, after all, in the Golden Age of Hollywood studios were making 700 films a year! So we have a lot to look forward to in our research into the great Classic Movies.
George McManus spent 40 years as a broadcast journalist, most of it in California, where he covered the Academy Awards backstage. His time in radio/TV also provided him the opportunity to interview, at length, dozens of filmmakers, often while they were on a book or movie promotion tour. These experiences not only inspired this book, but also enhanced the author’s knowledge/appreciation of the films that grace these pages.
About the Author: Mr. McManus lives with his wife and their children in Northern California. He hosts The Midnight Movie on the local community access channel.
