Ten Movies From The Year: 1944

America was still at war, so you'd expect 1944 to be a banner year for war and action films. But the great Hollywood studios kept releasing a variety of films; many of 1944's films have withstood the test of time and become true classics:

1. Double Indemnity--Billy Wilder's class film noir. Insurance salesman Fred MacMurray falls for femme fatale Barbara Stanwyck. They kill her husband for the money; his boss Edward G. Robinson smells a rat.

2. Laura--Another memorable film noir; Otto Preminger's first film. A hard boiled detective (Dana Andrews) falls for Laura, a classy dame who took a faceful of buckshot. Imagine his surprise when Laura turns up very much alive halfway through the movie. Cliftron Webb sealed his stardom in a flashy supporting role as acerbic critic Waldo Lydecker.

3. Meet Me In St. Louis--Not hyper and kinetic like the 1950s MGM musicals. This one showed the sentimentality and emotion of a family whose roots are about to get pulled up. Judy Garland sang "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas."

4. To Have and Have Not--Bogie meets Bacall. "You know how to whistle, don't you Steve? You just put your lips together and blow."

5. Gaslight--Evil Charles Boyer marries Ingrid Bergman, then attempts to drive her mad searching for a fortune. Atmospheric and creepy; Bergman won her first Oscar.

6. The Miracle of Morgan's Creek--Like many geniuses, director Preston Sturges ran hot for ten years and burnt out. But in those ten years, he changed film comedy for the better. An amazing comedy for what it got away with. Betty Hutton is wonderful as Trudy Kockenlocker (yes, it does sound dirty)--who has a soft spot for the GI's. So after a big party, she winds up married and pregnant...and can't remember who, when, how, or even why.

7. Between Two Worlds--The best movie on this list that you've never heard of. A group of people are killed in a London air raid. They wake up on a strange ship that will deliver them to either Heaven or Hell. One trip where you could leave your passport at home. A terrific cast, including John Garfield and Sydney Greenstreet.

8. Arsenic and Old Lace--How popular was this play? Frank Capra filmed this tale of dotty aunts killing their gentleman callers in 1941. The movie wasn't to be released until the Broadway play closed. It took three years. Cary Grant's most manic, physically demanding comedy performance--a tour de farce.

9. Lifeboat--You didn't think we'd leave Hitchcock out of this, did you? The Master of Mayhem loved a challenge, and this film certainly posed it: it takes place entirely on a lifeboat, as the survivors of a ship bombing try to figure out which one of them was on the U-boat that did it. Tallulah Bankhead's best film role; she won the New York Film Critics Award for Best Actress.

10. None But The Lonely Heart--Cary Grant shows up twice on our list, this time in a completely different performance. Grant showed amazing depth as a Cockney man trying to right his life by returning home to care for his mother. Unforgettably emotional; Ethel Barrymore (yes, those Barrymores) won a Supporting Oscar as his mum.

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Our Salute to Character Actors: Josephine Hull

One of the rare character actresses that had a brilliant career on both stage and screen, Josephine Hull (1883-1957) was one of those sweet "little old lady" types--but her characters always had a bite and panache. Hull is best known as one of the murderous aunties in the film version of  Arsenic and Old Lace (1944). She later won a Supporting Actress Oscar as Veta, the slightly balmy aunt who tries to have James Stewart committed in Harvey (1950).

Hull only had six film roles in her career, but she made them count. An accomplished Broadway actress, she first earned critical acclaim in George Kelly's Pulitzer Prize-winner Craig's Wife. A 25+ year career on stage followed, including three massive hits: You Can't Take It With You, Arsenic and Old Lace, and Harvey. For the latter two she recreated her stage role in the film versions.

As one of the daffy aunts who murders their visitors with poisoned elderberry wine, Hull was a master of comic expression in Arsenic and Old Lace. It's worth revisiting this film just to see the look on Cary Grant's face as she describes how peacefully the gentleman callers die after just a sip of wine.


She was a virtuoso standout in Harvey. James Stewart felt that Hull had the most demanding role, because while Elwood P. Dowd always believed in the six foot tall rabbit, Hull's character vascillated into not believing and later believing in Harvey. Variety described her performance as "immense, socking the comedy for every bit it's worth."


Josephine Hull was one-of-a-kind. Rent Arsenic and Old Lace or Harvey (scheduled for a Blu-Ray release later this year) and discover why.


To order Harvey [Blu-ray + DVD + Digital Copy] (Universal's 100th Anniversary), click here: