This site is devoted to the love of classic movies. What qualifies as a classic film or movie is somewhat subjective. There are certain films which endure because they strike an emotional chord long after their initial release. For example, a movie like "Casablanca" (1942) would qualify as a classic under that definition.
Stephen Rebello’s Criss-Cross is a carefully
researched and engagingly written telling of Alfred Hitchcock’s 1951 thriller, Strangers
on a Train, chronicling its production against the backdrop of a
politically paranoid Hollywood. Coming off a string of critical and commercial
flops in the late 1940s, the film represented a gamble for Hitchcock, who
adapted Patricia Highsmith's dark, complex debut novel. Rebello frames Strangers
on a Train as the comeback vehicle that inaugurated the director's “Golden
Decade,” which would eventually include classics like Vertigo, Rear
Window, North by Northwest, and Psycho. The book details how
this project, initially deemed “unsavory” by critics, was rife with conflict, feuds, and creative compromises, yet ultimately yielded a masterful
and enduring suspense film.
A central strength of Criss-Cross lies in its deep
dive into the chaotic and often adversarial screenwriting process. Rebello
reveals the surprising tension between the notoriously meticulous Hitchcock and
the celebrated hardboiled novelist Raymond Chandler, who was brought in to
draft the script. Though Chandler is credited on the final film—largely due to
studio executive Jack Warner’s insistence on a promotable name—Rebello details
how Hitchcock ultimately utilized very little of his work. The author credits a
collaborative team, including multiple female writers like Czenzi Ormonde and
Whitfield Cook, with rescuing the film and helping the director navigate the
necessary narrative shifts from Highsmith’s novel. This insight highlights the
messy, collaborative reality of feature filmmaking and reframes the traditional
understanding of the script's genesis.
Farley Granger and Robert Walker
Beyond the technical and creative battles, Rebello
skillfully explores the social and cultural subversiveness embedded within the
film. He illuminates the repressive atmosphere of the McCarthy era,
characterized by anti-communist suspicion and intense censorship from the Breen
office, which forced Hitchcock to cleverly disguise or downplay racy themes and
sexual innuendo..
Finally, the book provides ringside accounts of casting and
on-set drama, notably focusing on the brilliant yet troubled performance of
Robert Walker as the psychotic Bruno Anthony. Rebello’s research, drawn from
interviews and extensive archival material including Hitchcock’s storyboards,
offers fascinating tidbits, such as how the heavy “bottle glasses” worn by Guy
Haines’s wife rendered the actress practically blind. More than just a
collection of anecdotes, Criss-Cross provides a definitive,
authoritative look at the filmmaking process, from adapting a difficult novel
to designing a character’s psychology through costume (like Bruno's garish
lobster necktie). For any cinema aficionado and Hitchcock fan, Criss-Cross
is a compelling read that confirms Strangers on a Train’s status as a timeless
classic thriller.
Good Sam (1948) is an American comedy-drama directed
by Leo McCarey and starring Gary Cooper and Ann Sheridan. The supporting cast
includes Ray Collins, Edmund Lowe, Louise Beavers, and Ruth Roman.
Gary Cooper is Sam Clayton, a Good Samaritan who is so
helpful to others that he neglects his own family. Sam’s wife Lucille “Lu”
Clayton is frustrated with her husband’s efforts to help everyone he meets, including
her free-loading brother who has lived with them rent-free for six months.
Will Sam’s “helpful” efforts destroy his career and family
life or will he realize that he can’t save the entire world on his own?
Ann Sheridan and Gary Cooper
Leo McCarey (1898 – 1969) was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. McCarey is perhaps most famous for his critically acclaimed and commercially popular comedies like Duck Soup (1933), The Ruggles of Red Gap (1935), and The Awful Truth (1937). Other popular films directed by McCarey include Going My Way (1944), The Bells of St. Mary’s (1945), and Good Sam (1948). McCarey won two Best Director Oscars for The Awful Truth and Going My Way.
Gary Cooper (1901 - 1961) was an American film actor who was known for his down-to-earth, understated acting style. He was a major star for almost four decades until his untimely death at age 60. Cooper got his start in silent film but easily made the transition to sound. During the early 1930s, he became a major star in films like A Farewell to Arms (1932), The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (1935), and Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936). Other popular Cooper films include Meet John Doe (1941), Sergeant York (1941), The Pride of the Yankees (1942), and For Whom the Bell Tolls (1952). Cooper won two Best Actor Academy Awards: Sergeant York and High Noon (1952).
Ann Sheridan (1915 - 1967) was an American actress and singer. Her movie career began in 1934 when she appeared in 19 films! Her roles were all small and mostly unbilled, but she appeared in another 20+ films before she was signed to Warner Bros. in 1938. She was given better roles and was groomed for major stardom. The studio dubbed her “The Oomph Girl,” a title she hated but helped contribute to her popularity. During World War II she was a popular pin-up girl. As a star, Sheridan starred in Angels Wash Their Faces (1939), Castle on the Hudson (1940), It All Came True (1940), They Drive by Night (1940), City for Conquest (1941), and The Man Who Came to Dinner (1942). During this time she starred opposite Warner’s top leading men including John Garfield, James Cagney, and George Raft. Her biggest success during this period came with Kings Row (1942), a film in which she received top billing over Robert Cummings, Ronald Reagan, and Betty Field. Sheridan made the transition to television and was starring in the weekly western series, Pistols 'n' Petticoats (1966-67) when she became sick with cancer. She died on January 21, 1967, at the age of 51.
Gary Cooper and Ann Sheridan in church
Good Sam trivia
The film was a big commercial success which enabled Gary
Cooper to negotiate a favorable contract with Warner Bros.
Ann Sheridan was borrowed from Warner Bros. to co-star as
Cooper’s wife, Lu.
Director McCarey shot two different endings and let preview
audiences decide which ending to use. The alternate ending is lost to film
history.
Click HERE to join us for an online discussion on January 6,
2025, at 6:30 p.m. Central Time. Once you RSVP, you will receive an invitation
along with a link to the discussion on Zoom.
Discussion questions
How would you, categorize this film? Do you consider it a
comedy-drama, romantic comedy, or something else?
What did you think of Gary Cooper and Ann Sheridan as a
married couple?
Do you think there was a serious message amidst the comic
situations?
Did this film remind you of any others you’ve seen?
Three Secrets (1950) is an American drama directed by Robert Wise and starring Eleanor Parker, Patricia Neal, and Ruth Roman. The supporting cast includes Frank Lovejoy, Leif Erickson, and Ted de Corsia.
Three women (Parker, Neal, and Roman) gave up a son for adoption when their lives were in turmoil. After a private plane crashes in the California mountains the sole survivor is a five-year-old boy. All three women believe that the boy on the mountain may be the son they gave up for adoption.
As the drama on the mountain becomes a national story, all three women recall what their lives were like five years ago. How will the news of their past affect their present and future?
Publicity photo of Ruth Roman, Patricia Neal, and Eleanor Parker
Robert Wise (1914 - 2000) was an American director, producer, and editor. Wise began his movie career at RKO as a sound and music editor. For several years, he worked with senior editor William Hamilton. Wise’s first solo film editing credits were on Bachelor Mother (1939) and My Favorite Wife (1940). He was the film editor of Citizen Kane and was nominated for an Academy Award for Film Editing. Wise got his chance to direct at RKO from Val Lewton, the producer of horror classics like Cat People (1942). The Curse of the Cat People (1944) was the first film that Wise received director credit for. He eventually directed films noir, westerns, melodramas, and science fiction. Some popular films directed by Wise include The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951), Executive Suite (1954), and I Want to Live! (1958), which earned Wise his first Oscar nomination for Best Director. He went on to win Best Director Oscars for West Side Story (1961) and The Sound of Music (1965).
Eleanor Parker (1922 - 2013) was an American actress in film and a three-time Best Actress Academy Award nominee. She signed a long-term contract with Warner Bros. in 1941. For the next few years she played minor roles in some important films, but her first big role came in Between Two Worlds (1944) opposite John Garfield and Paul Henreid. She was again cast alongside Garfield in Pride of the Marines (1945) and that film made her a star. Some of the films she made after that were not as successful and Parker was more careful choosing film roles, often refusing parts and being put on suspension. Warners cast her (after much lobbying from Parker) in Caged (1950), a film about a woman’s prison. The film was a hit and her performance earned Parker her first Best Actress Academy Award nomination. For her performance, she won the Volpi Cup for Best Actress at the Venice Film Festival. After leaving Warners, Parker freelanced for a while with limited success. In 1953, she signed a long-term contract with M-G-M. At her new studio, she co-starred with Clark Gable, Robert Taylor (they made three films together), and Glenn Ford. One of her most celebrated roles was as opera singer Marjorie Lawrence in Interrupted Melody (1955) which earned her third Oscar nomination. In the mid-50s, Parker was one of the most popular female stars in the movies. With all her accomplishments during her prime, she will most likely be remembered for her role as Baroness Elsa Schraeder in The Sound of Music (1965), one of the most popular and successful films of all time.
Patricia Neal (1926 - 2010) was an American film and stage actress. Neal gained fame on Broadway, winning the 1947 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play for her role in Another Part of the Forrest. Coincidentally, 1947 was the first year the Tony Awards were presented. Hollywood came calling and Neal signed a contract with Warner Bros. In 1949, she made three films including The Fountainhead co-starring Gary Cooper. In 1951 she starred in the science fiction classic The Day the Earth Stood Still. In the early 1950s, she left Hollywood to go back on the stage. She returned to the screen in 1957's A Face in the Crowd co-starring Andy Griffith. She co-starred with Audrey Hepburn and George Peppard in Breakfast at Tiffany's and she won the Academy Award for Best Actress in 1963 for Hud. Neal continued to act in film, stage, and television until 2009.
Ruth Roman (1922 – 1989) was an American film, stage, and television actress. Roman got her start in the movies starring in the Jungle Queen (1945) film serial. She had a notable role in The Window (1949) which lead to her being cast in Champion (1949) co-starring Kirk Douglas. These successes earned her a contract with Warner Bros. During her years under contract, she co-starred with some of Hollywood’s top leading men including Gary Cooper, Errol Flynn, Glenn Ford, and James Stewart. Roman also worked steadily on television during the 1950s and beyond, appearing on such popular shows as Mannix, Marcus Welby, M.D., The Mod Squad, The FBI, and The Outer Limits.
To watch the film on YouTube, click the link below.
To join the discussion on October 10, 202, at 6:30 p.m. Central Time, click here. Once you RSVP, you will receive an invitation and link to join the discussion on Zoom.
Discussion questions
Did you find the situation realistic or believable?
Of the three women, did you have a favorite?
If this film were made today, how might it be different or the same?
What did you think of performances? Did one of the actresses outshine the others?
Did the film remind you of other films you've seen?
Strangers on a Train (1951) is a psychological thriller directed by Alfred Hitchcock starring Farley Granger, Ruth Roman, and Robert Walker. The film was based on the novel of the same name by Patricia Highsmith (The Talented Mr. Ripley), with cinematography by long-time Hitchcock collaborator Robert Burks and music by Dimitri Tiomkin.
The fateful moment that starts the action
The plot concerns two strangers who meet on a train: a young tennis player Guy Haines (Granger) and a somewhat charming psychopath named Bruno Antony (Walker). Bruno suggests that they should exchange murders, but Guy really doesn’t take Bruno seriously. When Bruno commits the first murder and tries to convince Guy to complete their “bargain,” the plot takes a series of strange and exciting twists and turns.
Strangers on a Train ushered in a golden period for director Hitchcock. He would go on to make some of the most memorable and successful films of the 1950s including, Dial M for Murder (1954), Rear Window (1954), To Catch a Thief (1955), and North by Northwest (1959).
Alfred Hitchcock (1899 – 1980) was an English film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is one of the most influential filmmakers of the 20th century. Hitchcock directed over 50 feature films, many are classics that have been honored and studied for years. Some of Hitchcock’s classic films include The 39 Steps (1935), Sabotage (1936), Rebecca (1940), Suspicion (1941), Shadow of a Doubt (1943), Rear Window (1954), Vertigo (1958), North by Northwest (1959), and Psycho (1960).
Robert Burks (1909 – 1968) was an American cinematographer. He was adept at both color and black and white photography. In 1928, Burks got his start in film at Warner Bros. He eventually worked his way up to Director of Photography in 1944. The first feature that he worked on as a cinematographer was The Fountainhead (1949) starring Gary Cooper and Patricia Neal. Burks is closely associated with Hitchock. He was the cinematographer on some of the directors most famous works from the 1950s and 1960s including Strangers on a Train (1951), I Confess (1952), Dial M for Murder (1954), Rear Window (1954), To Catch a Thief (1955), The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956), The Wrong Man (1956), Vertigo (1958) and North by Northwest (1959).
Dimitri Tiomkin (1894 – 1979) was a Russian-born American film composer. He received 22 Academy Award nominations and won four Oscars. Tiomkin got his big break working with director Frank Capra on the classic Lost Horizon (1937). He also collaborated with Capra on You Can’t Take it With You (1938), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), Meet John Doe (1941) and It’s a Wonderful Life (1946). Tiomkin was famous for scoring western films including Duel in the Sun (1946), High Noon (1952), Giant (1956), Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957), and Rio Bravo (1959). Tiomkin also wrote the scores for three other Hitchcock films: Shadow of Doubt (1943), I Confess (1953), and Dial M for Murder (1954).
Farley Granger and Ruth Roman
Farley Granger (1925 – 2011) was an American actor best known for his two films with Alfred Hitchcock: Rope (1948) and Strangers on a Train (19510). Signed to a long-term contract by Samuel Goldwyn. He made two films: The North Star (1943) and The Purple Heart (1944) before joining the United States Navy. When he returned to Hollywood he starred in They Live by Night (1948) which brought him to the attention of Hitchcock. Granger went on to star in other Goldwyn films including Enchantment (1948), Roseanna McCoy (1949), Edge of Doom (1950), and Our Very Own (1950). Granger worked in films, stage, and television, including work in several soap operas into the early 2000s.
Ruth Roman (1922 – 1989) was an American film, stage, and television actress. Roman got her start in the movies starring in the Jungle Queen (1945) film serial. She had a notable role in The Window (1949) which lead to her being cast in Champion (1949) co-starring Kirk Douglas. These successes earned her a contract with Warner Bros. During her years under contract, she costarred with some of Hollywood’s top leading men including Gary Cooper, Errol Flynn, Glenn Ford, and James Stewart. Roman also worked steadily on television during the 1950s and beyond, appearing on such popular shows as Mannix, Marcus Welby, M.D., The Mod Squad, The FBI, and The Outer Limits.
Robert Walker and Donna Reed in See Here, Private Hargrove
Robert Walker (1918 – 1951) was an American actor who was to the first husband of film actress Jennifer Jones. In 1943, he was signed to a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, where he had supporting roles in Bataan (1943) and Madame Curie (1943). The studio started grooming him for stardom with the starring role in See Here, Private Hargrove (1944). Other starring roles followed in films like Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo (1944), The Clock (1945) co-starring Judy Garland, Her Highness and the Bellboy (1945) with Hedy Lamarr and June Allyson, and Till the Clouds Roll By (1946) where he portrayed composer Jerome Kern. Walker’s last film, My Son John (1952) used footage from Strangers on a Train when Walker died before production ended.
Strangers on a Train also features Leo G. Carroll, Patricia Hitchcock (the director’s daughter), and Laura Elliot (later known as Kasey Rogers).
Strangers on a Train trivia:
Hitchcock bought the rights to the novel for a mere $7,500.
Robert Walker was Hitchcock’s only choice to play Bruno Antony.
Hitchcock had wanted William Holden to play Guy Haines, but he was unavailable.
Patricia Hitchcock is the last surviving member of the cast.
Farley Granger said that Hitchcock didn’t like Ruth Roman and treated her badly in front of everyone.
Tennis pro Jack Cunningham coached Farley Granger for the tennis scenes and played his opponent in the movie.
To watch the film, click on the link below.
To join the discussion on Zoom on October 20, 2020, at 6 p.m. Central Time, click the link to the Chicago Film Club Meetup Group.
Questions for discussion:
What did you think of the opening scenes of the movie?
What clues do we have that Bruno may be “trouble?”
How do the tennis match and Bruno’s struggle to retrieve Guy’s lighter add to the film’s suspense?
The film develops the idea of the double: Bruno Guy, Miriam, Ann. Can you find any other pairs?
