Tag Archives: great depression

Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day

IMDB Rating: 7.50
1473 votes

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Storyline
Guinevere Pettigrew, a middle-aged London governess, finds herself unfairly dismissed from her job. An attempt to gain new employment catapults her into the glamorous world and dizzying social whirl of an American actress and singer, Delysia Lafosse.
Actors
Chestnut SellerDavid Alexander
Joe BlumfieldCiarán Hinds
Michael PardueLee Pace

Cabaret

IMDB Rating: 7.70
11958 votes

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Storyline
Sally Bowles, an American singer in 1930s Berlin, fall in love with bi-sexual Brian. They are both then seduced by Max, a rich playboy. Sally becomes pregnant, and Brian offers to marry her... All the characters are linked by the Kit-Kat club, a nightspot where Sally sings.
Actors
Sally BowlesLiza Minnelli
Brian RobertsMichael York
Maximilian von HeuneHelmut Griem

Bonnie and Clyde

IMDB Rating: 8.00
23594 votes

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Storyline
A bored small-town girl and a small-time bank robber leave in their wake a string of violent robberies and newspaper headlines that catch the imagination of the Depression-struck Mid-West in this take on the legendary crime spree of these archetypal lovers on the run.
Actors
Clyde BarrowWarren Beatty
Bonnie ParkerFaye Dunaway
C.W. MossMichael J. Pollard

Cinderella Man

IMDB Rating: 8.00
39030 votes

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Storyline
During the Great Depression, a common-man hero, James J. Braddock—a.k.a. the Cinderella Man—was to become one of the most surprising sports legends in history. By the early 1930s, the impoverished ex-prizefighter was seemingly as broken-down, beaten-up and out-of-luck as much of the rest of the American populace who had hit rock bottom. His career appeared to be finished, he was unable to pay the bills, the only thing that mattered to him—his family—was in danger, and he was even forced to go on Public Relief. But deep inside, Jim Braddock never relinquished his determination. Driven by love, honor and an incredible dose of grit, he willed an impossible dream to come true. In a last-chance bid to help his family, Braddock returned to the ring. No one thought he had a shot. However Braddock, fueled by something beyond mere competition, kept winning. Suddenly, the ordinary working man became the mythic athlete. Carrying the hopes and dreams of the disenfranchised on his shoulders, Braddock rocketed through the ranks, until this underdog chose to do the unthinkable: take on the heavyweight champ of the world, the unstoppable Max Baer, renowned for having killed two men in the ring.
Actors
Jim BraddockRussell Crowe
Mae BraddockRenée Zellweger
Joe GouldPaul Giamatti

Seabiscuit

IMDB Rating: 7.50
21002 votes

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Storyline
In an era when Americans were in great need of heroic figures to help them forget their troubles, SEABISCUIT comes to the rescue. The picture relates a moving story of friendship and devotion in rehabilitating the main characters'fractured lives, as it interweaves the interactions between horse, jockey, trainer and owner and their adoring fans. The film accurately portrays the real people and events of those troubled times and how Seabiscuit "fixed us, every one of us."
Actors
NarratorDavid McCullough
Charles HowardJeff Bridges
Bicycle SupervisorPaul Vincent O'Connor

Of Mice and Men

IMDB Rating: 7.50
9092 votes

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Storyline
Based on John Steinbeck's 1937 classic tale of two travelling companions, George and Lennie, who wander the country during the Depression, dreaming of a better life for themselves. Then, just as heaven is within their grasp, it is inevitably yanked away. The film follows Steinbeck's novel closely, exploring questions of strength, weakness, usefulness, reality and utopia, bringing Steinbeck's California vividly to life.
Actors
Lennie SmallJohn Malkovich
George MiltonGary Sinise
CandyRay Walston

Ask the Dust

IMDB Rating: 5.80
1734 votes

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Storyline
L.A. in the early 1930's: racism, poverty, and disease color the Bunker Hill neighborhood where Arturo Bandini, a lover of men and beasts alike, has arrived from Colorado to write the great Los Angeles novel. After six months and down to his last nickel, he orders a cup of coffee, served by Camilla Lopez, beautiful, self-possessed, and Mexican. Arturo gets advice, encouragement, and an occasional check from H.L. Mencken, so he keeps writing and he keeps seeing Camilla. But, he's mean to her for no apparent reason, so the relationship sputters. A housekeeper from back East suggests a way out of his jealously and fears. "Camilla Bandini": is it in the cards?
Actors
Arturo BandiniColin Farrell
CamillaSalma Hayek
HellfrickDonald Sutherland

King Kong

IMDB Rating: 7.80
77047 votes

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Storyline
Set in the 1930s, this is the story of a young and beautiful actress Ann Darrow from the world of vaudeville who finds herself lost in depression-era New York and her luck changes when she meets an over-ambitious filmmaker Carl Denham who brings her on an exploratory expedition to a remote island where she finds compassion and the true meaning of humanity with an ape Kong. The beauty and the beast finally meet their fate back in the city of New York where the filmmaker takes and displays the ape in quest of his fame by commercial exploitation which ultimately leads to catastrophe for everyone including a playwright Jack Driscoll who falls in love with Ann and plays an unlikely hero by trying to save her from Kong and her destiny.
Actors
Ann DarrowNaomi Watts
Carl DenhamJack Black
Jack DriscollAdrien Brody

Mrs Henderson Presents

IMDB Rating: 7.20
5190 votes

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Storyline
Recently widowed well-to-do Laura Henderson is at a bit of a loose end in inter-war London. On a whim she buys the derelict Windmill theatre in the West End and persuades impresario Vivian Van Damm to run it, despite the fact the two don't seem to get on at all. Although their idea of a non-stop revue is at first a success, other theatres copy it and disaster looms. Laura suggests they put nudes in the show, but Van Damm points out that the Lord Chamberlain, who licenses live shows in Britain, is likely to have something to say about this. Luckily Mrs Henderson is friends with him.
Actors
Laura HendersonJudi Dench
Vivian Van DammBob Hoskins
BertieWill Young

Dogville

IMDB Rating: 7.90
28127 votes

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Storyline
The beautiful fugitive, Grace (Nicole Kidman), arrives in the isolated township of Dogville on the run from a team of gangsters. With some encouragement from Tom (Paul Bettany), the self-appointed town spokesman, the little community agrees to hide her and in return, Grace agrees to work for them. However, when a search sets in, the people of Dogville demand a better deal in exchange for the risk of harbouring poor Grace and she learns the hard way that in this town, goodness is relative. But Grace has a secret and it is a dangerous one. Dogville may regret it ever began to bare its teeth...
Actors
Grace Margaret MulliganNicole Kidman
GloriaHarriet Andersson
Ma GingerLauren Bacall
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