My Top Ten Favorite Movies of 1938
10. Everybody Sing
I couldn't find a very good picture but this is a cute movie. Allan Jones and Judy Garland star in this wacky backstage musical. All the actors are very talented and give fine performances in this very entertaining little film.
9. Having Wonderful Time
"Having Wonderful Time" is light entertainment that has a very talented young cast. Ginger Rogers, Douglas Fairbanks Jr, Lucille Ball, Eve Arden, Jack Carson, and Red Skelton all star in this fun little comedy.
8. Room Service
Although definitely one of the Marx Brothers weaker movies, Room Service is well worth seeing nonetheless. Originally a stage play, it has the distinction of being the only Marx Brothers' film that wasn't originally written by or for the Brothers. So the action is mostly confined to the hotel and the pace slows down a little bit. Nevertheless, there's still some witty lines and visual humor that makes this one of the more enjoyable latter day-Marx Brothers films.
7. Carefree
Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers star in this delightful romantic musical comedy with a twist on the usual Fred and Ginger plot. Though odd and short in the musical number department, this teasing romantic romp features some great dancing and more humor than some of their other films. My favorite dance is "Change Partners" where Fred "hypnotises" Ginger.
6. Alexander's Ragtime Band
The plot is really nothing more than boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl, but it's enough of a framework to present an almost non-stop catalogue of great Irving Berlin songs. The music itself is all that is needed to make this a grand entertainment; the litany of classic Berlin standards includes the title song, "Now It Can Be Told", "Everybody's Doing It Now", "Easter Parade" and many others, performed by Twentieth-Century Fox's stock musical players Tyrone Power, Alice Faye and Don Ameche, and a young, vibrant Ethel Merman, singing, amongst others, "Blue Skies" and "My Walking Stick". All in all, a wonderful "escape" film.
5. Marie Antoinette
As a young actress still in her 20s, Norma Shearer was hailed as the First Lady of MGM, and she reigned as queen of the studio throughout the 1930s. If you've never seen a Shearer movie, Marie Antoinette is a good beginning. It is one of Hollywood's great epics of the 1930s, with lavish costumes and scenery, and its historic setting holds up well. Shearer plays the doomed French queen from teenager to the Guillotine, and the final scenes as she awaits death in prison are among the finest of her career.
4. Test Pilot
All three stars, Gable, Tracy and Loy have a wonderful chemistry together. They play both the comedy and drama of the film with great ease and truthfulness. This trio, along with the wonderful Lionel Barrymore really make the film work. Wonderful acting, a cute plot, and great dialogue combine to make a very enjoyable film.
3. Vivacious Lady
This movie will always hold a special place in my heart, because it is the movie that made me love classic films. This film is a joy from beginning to end! It's filled with many great comedic moments and lots of sexual tension. I wish Ginger Rogers and Jimmy Stewart had done more movies together; I thought that they had a lot of chemistry.
2. You Can't Take It With You
This is a wonderful feel good film with some beautiful comedic and romantic scenes as well as some decent dramatic moments. Definitely one of Frank Capra's best. Also, one of Lionel Barrymore's best. Just a very great movie all around!
1. Angels With Dirty Faces
"Whaddya hear? Whaddya say?" This movie is simply a masterpiece, a classic story of two kids who grow up on different sides of the law. James Cagney gives a wonderful performance. The execution scene at the end is classic, one of the best movie endings of all time.