Leonard Maltin

Leonard Maltin

Acting

December 18, 1950
New York City, New York, USA
132 movies

Biography

Leonard Michael Maltin (born December 18, 1950) is an American film critic and film historian, as well as an author of several mainstream books on cinema, focusing on nostalgic, celebratory narratives. He is best known for his eponymous annual book of movie capsule reviews, Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide, which was published annually from 1969 to 2014. Description above from the Wikipedia article Leonard Maltin, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

🎬 Leonard Maltin's Filmography

132 movies sorted by popularity

Now, Irving Rapper

Irving Rapper is, in many ways, Hollywood's forgotten man. After getting his start as a "dialogue director" at Warner Bros. in the mid 30's, he became synonymous with the studio's "women's pictures" and rose in prominence as one of Bette Davis's most consistent collaborators, including on her biggest commercial success, Now Voyager (1942). He was a rebel who led the studio in suspensions for chronically refusing to direct the scripts handed to him by the brass, waiting instead for material that better suited his interests and thematic preoccupations. He was also one in a secretive fraternity of gay directors who had to conceal their identities and shield their private lives from potential public ruination. Daniel Kremer takes you through an unexamined and misunderstood life of a man of great artistic inclination who expressed his innermost yearnings covertly through his work in motion pictures.

Now, Irving Rapper

2026
Alias Nick and Nora
7.0

Alias Nick and Nora: Two Documentary Profiles (2005) celebrates the enduring screen partnership of William Powell and Myrna Loy, stars of MGM’s beloved Thin Man series. The DVD includes William Powell: A True Gentleman, a documentary narrated by Michael York with commentary from film historians Rudy Behlmer and Leonard Maltin, and Myrna Loy: So Nice to Come Home To, hosted by Kathleen Turner and directed by Richard Schickel. Together, the documentaries explore the careers, personalities, and lasting appeal of two classic Hollywood icons. Also included is “Darling, I Loathe You,” a 1958 episode of The Thin Man television series starring Peter Lawford and Phyllis Kirk as Nick and Nora Charles, plus the 1936 Lux Radio Theatre adaptation of The Thin Man, featuring William Powell and Myrna Loy reprising their signature roles. A welcome addition for classic-film fans, the disc presents Nick and Nora across documentary, television, and radio.

Alias Nick and Nora

2005
A Conversation with Fess Parker
8.0

“A Conversation with Fess Parker” (17:05) is another interview, edited almost exactly like the previous, where Maltin visits the man who played Davy Crockett at his winery in California. Memories of how he got the part, what it was like to make the series and the reaction from fans are all recalled by Parker. This is a low-key documentary, but a very nice inclusion for the set. Next we find A Conversation With Fess Parker. For this 17-minute and five-second piece, Maltin visits the actor at his vineyard and restaurant, and the two reminisce about the series. We learn factoids that relate to the production, Parker’s casting, his memories of the actors and Walt, and a mix of other elements in this decent little interview. In addition to the shots of Maltin and Parker, we see some behind the scenes footage as well as stills and clips from the series. Note that though the DVD’s case lists interview pieces with Buddy Ebsen, these don’t appear.

A Conversation with Fess Parker

2001
The True Adventures of Raoul Walsh
7.3

This is the first feature-length documentary on legendary director Raoul Walsh. In this 'memoir,' Walsh 'recounts' his career from the silent film era to the tumultuous 1960s. The documentary makes stunning use of rare, personal and production photos and footage, revealing Walsh's extraordinary, adventurous life on and off the set. From his apprenticeship with D.W. Griffith to his discovery of John Wayne and Rock Hudson, from the innovative 'The Thief of Bagdad' (1924) to the widescreen 'The Big Trail' (1930), from his classic work with Cagney, Bogart and Flynn to his mastery of every genre (musicals, comedies, Westerns, gangster, war), Walsh made Hollywood history. His life is nothing less than the story of Hollywood itself. Here's a full-bodied account of one of Hollywood's greatest legends.

The True Adventures of Raoul Walsh

2014
Soundies: A Musical History Hosted by Michael Feinstein
5.0

Before MTV and the age of television, there were Soundies. First appearing in 1941, these three minute black-and-white films featured artists of the Big Band, Jazz and Swing era, like Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Louis Jordan, Louis Armstrong, Gene Krupa, The Mills Brothers, Les Paul, Cab Calloway, and Fats Waller. The Soundies helped launch the careers of Doris Day, Nat King Cole, Liberace, and Dorothy Dandridge, among others. Viewed for a dime through a special machine called a Panoram, a movie jukebox, these forerunners to the music video could be seen in nightclubs, roadhouses, restaurants and other public venues across the U.S. These classic films remain as glorious time capsules of music, social history, popular culture, and tell the story of a crossroads in our country, when the uncertainties of war, race relations, and emerging technologies combined to write one of the most influential chapters in our nationÂąs history.

Soundies: A Musical History Hosted by Michael Feinstein

2007
A Love Story: The Story of 'To Have and Have Not'
8.0

In the '40s Howard Hawks boasts that he can make a movie out of the worst thing Hemingway ever has written. When Hemingway asks, which novel he means, Hawks says To Have and Have Not. Jules Furthman writes a script, which follows the book closely. The location of the story is Cuba, but the US Government is against depicting corruption and violence on Cuba, and threatens to withdraw the film's export license. William Faulkner rewrites the script, and relocates the story to Martinique. Hawks's wife, Nancy Slim Gross, happens to see a young model at the cover of the magazine Harper's Bazaar, and shows it to her husband. Hawks is a star-maker, who likes to discover and nurture new talents. After a screen test, he chooses the 19-year-old model as the lead actress opposite Humphrey Bogart. She changes her name from Betty Perske to Lauren Bacall. At the first takes she is so nervous that she shakes.

A Love Story: The Story of 'To Have and Have Not'

2003
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