From this Saturday at 12am Eastern, that’s 6pm Saturday in NZ, 4pm in Sydney and 5am in the UK, and repeated every four hours throughout the day, it’s the described movies Mrs. Miniver from 1942 and A patch of Blue from 1965.
Mrs. Miniver is a 1942 American romantic war drama film directed by William Wyler, and starring Greer Garson and Walter Pidgeon.
Inspired by the 1940 novel Mrs. Miniver by Jan Struther, the film shows how the life of an unassuming British housewife in rural England is touched by World War II.
Produced and distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the film features a supporting cast that includes Teresa Wright, Dame May Whitty, Reginald Owen, Henry Travers, Richard Ney, and Henry Wilcoxon.
Upon its release, Mrs. Miniver was both a critical and a commercial success, becoming the highest-grossing film of 1942 and winning six Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress (Garson), and Best Supporting Actress (Teresa Wright).
It was the first film with a plot line centered on World War II to win an Oscar for Best Picture, and also the first film to receive five acting nominations at the Academy Awards.
In 1950, a film sequel, The Miniver Story, was made with Greer Garson and Walter Pidgeon reprising their roles.
In 2006, the film was ranked number 40 on the American Film Institute's list celebrating the most inspirational films of all time.
In 2009, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically" significant.
Directed by: William Wyler.
Screenplay by: Arthur Wimperis, George Froeschel, James Hilton and Claudine West.
Based on: Mrs. Miniver 1939 book (from newspaper column Mrs. Miniver): by Jan Struther.
Produced by: Sidney Franklin.
Starring: Greer Garson, Walter Pidgeon, Teresa Wright, Dame May Whitty, Reginald Owen, Henry Travers, Richard Ney and Henry Wilcoxon.
Cinematography: Joseph Ruttenberg.
Edited by: Harold F. Kress.
Music by: Herbert Stothart and Daniele Amfitheatrof
(uncredited).
Production company: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
Distributed by: Loew's Inc.
Release date: 4 June 1942 ( Radio City Music Hall), 22 July 1942 (U.S.).
File Length: 133 minutes.
Country: United States.
Language: English.
Budget: $1.34 million.
Box office: $8.9 million.
A Patch of Blue is a 1965 American drama film directed by Guy Green about the friendship between an educated black man (played by Sidney Poitier) and an illiterate, blind, white 18-year-old girl (played by Elizabeth Hartman), and the problems that plague their friendship in a racially divided America.
Made in 1965 against the backdrop of the growing civil rights movement, the film explores racism while playing on the idea that "love is blind."
Shelley Winters won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, her second win for the award, following her victory in 1959 for The Diary of Anne Frank.
It was the final screen appearance for veteran actor Wallace Ford.
Scenes of Poitier and Hartman kissing were excised from the film when it was shown in film theatres in the Southern United States.
These scenes are intact in the DVD version.
According to the DVD audio commentary, it was the decision of director Guy Green that A Patch of Blue be filmed in black and white although colour was available.
The film was adapted by Guy Green from the 1961 book Be Ready with Bells and Drums by the Australian author Elizabeth Kata.
The book later won a Writers Guild of America award. The plot differs slightly from the film in that it has a less optimistic ending.
In addition to the Best Supporting Actress win for Winters, the film was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Actress in a Leading Role (Elizabeth Hartman), Best Art Direction-Set Decoration (Black-and-White) (George Davis, Urie McCleary,
Henry Grace, Charles S. Thompson), Best Cinematography (Black-and-White) and Best Music (Original Music Score).
Hartman, 22 at the time, was the youngest Best Actress nominee, a record she held for 10 years before 20-year-old Isabelle Adjani broke her record in 1975.
Directed by: Guy Green.
Screenplay by: Guy Green.
Based on: Be Ready with Bells and Drums 1961 novel: by Elizabeth Kata.
Produced by: Guy Green and Pandro S. Berman.
Starring: Sidney Poitier, Shelley Winters and Elizabeth Hartman.
Cinematography: Robert Burks.
Edited by: Rita Roland.
Music by: Jerry Goldsmith.
Distributed by: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
Release date: 10 December 1965.
File Length: 105 minutes.
Country: United States.
Language: English.
Budget: $800,000.
Box office: $6,750,000 (rentals).
Any questions, comments, or ideas for future described movies: e-mail me: anthony at mushroomfm dot com (e-mail address written that way to cut down on
spam)
Enjoy the movies,
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