 Ladies in Retirement (1941) - Ida Lupino as the housekeeper to an excentric retired actress, trying to give a home to her two emotionally disturbed sisters, played by Elsa Lanchester and Edith Barrett, who have been evicted from their former home. Lupino's then-husband Louis Hayward plays her scheming nephew.
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 Ladies They Talk About (1933) - A little pre-code gem starring Barbara Stanwyck as a "gun moll" who falls for the wrong guy, goes prison with other "ladies they talk about," and somehow ends up on her feet. Lillian Roth is a standout as a fellow prisoner. Preston Foster and Lyle Talbot are the male leads.
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 Lady By Choice (1934) - An unofficial sequel to Capra's original Lady For a Day (the one that was remade as Pocketful of Miracles with Bette Davis), this film stars Carole Lombard as a fan dancer who hooks up with May Robson, playing basically the same Apple Annie type of character she played in the Capra film and pretending to be Lombard's mother. The two actresses play well against one another as each tries to reform the other.
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 Larceny, Inc. (1942) - A delightful caper flick starring Edward G. Robinson, Broderick Crawford and Jack Carson as crooks who decide to buy a store so they can tunnel into the bank next door, but get sidetracked by their success as merchants! (Woody Allen remade it in 2000 as Small Time Crooks, but this may be funnier.) Jane Wyman and Anthony Quinn also show up, at a point just before their careers took off.
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 The Last Gangster (1937) - Edward G. Robinson once again plays a Capone-like gangster (not for the last time, but perhaps the last time he did it seriously), this time for MGM instead of Warner, and instead of Bogart, Robinson is paired with a young Jimmy Stewart. Stewart plays a reporter who writes about Robinson's wife (Rose Stradner, in one of the last roles in her short career) and child (child actor Douglas Scott) while he's in prison, then ends up marrying her, making for an interesting ending when the gangster gets out of jail.
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 Little Nellie Kelly (1940) - An 18-year-old Judy Garland successfully made the transition from child to adult star in this movie version of the George M. Cohan musical about a young Irish girl growing up without her mother (who Judy also plays in flashbacks) in New York City. George Murphy is likable as her father the Irish cop, and Charles Winninger, though sometimes uncomfortably stereotypical, is energetic and funny as her Irish grandfather.
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 Lloyd's of London (1936) - The elaborate story of a young man's (Freddie Bartholomew/Tyrone Power) rise to power in the famed insurance company. Power's first big starring vehicle. With Madeleine Carroll as the woman he loves, plus a great supporting cast, including Guy Standing, Una O'Connor, Montagu Love, George Sanders and C. Aubrey Smith.
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 Lonely Are The Brave (1962) - The story of a modern day cowboy named John W. "Jack" Burns (Kirk Douglas), who lives as a transient worker and roaming ranch hand much as the cowboys of old did, and refuses to join modern society. When a friend is jailed, Burns deliberately gets himself arrested in an attempt to break his friend out of jail, but winds up on the run from the law himself. (Prison Break fans will recognize the plot.) Reportedly Kirk Douglas' favorite among his films. The excellent cast also includes Gena Rowlands, Walter Matthau, George Kennedy and Carroll O'Connor.
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 Lost Angel (1943) - Adorable Margaret O'Brien's first starring role is that of a girl raised by three nutty professors to be a genius. A reporter (James Craig) tries to help her become a normal kid. Heart-warming hilarity ensues. A mustacheless Keenan Wynn costars.
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 Love Letters (1945) - Why this beloved film has not been remastered for DVD is hard to understand, if only because of the enchanting performance by Jennifer Jones and the music of Victor Young (both nominated for Oscars). Joseph Cotten turns in a solid job in the lead, as an injured soldier who ghost-writes love letters for a fellow GI during the War (who is later murdered), and has to unravel a mystery involving amnesiac Jones.
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 Love Thy Neighbor (1940) - Jack Benny plays himself, supported by Eddie "Rochester" Anderson, Fred Allen, and Mary Martin in a comedy of errors with good musical numbers. Copied from 16mm; never released on video or dvd. The credits are a little rough, but the rest of the movie looks fine.
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 Love With the Proper Stranger (1963) - Natalie Wood and Steve McQueen. What more can we say? Nominated for multiple Oscars (including Natalie, in one of her stronger performances, and her third Oscar nomination), the film was controversial in the 60s and still has some punch today.
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 The Lusty Men (1952) - Few men are lustier than Robert Mitchum and Arthur Kennedy, particularly when you throw Susan Hayward into the mix and drop them all in the middle of the rodeo circuit! Directed with great realism and grittiness by Nicholas Ray.
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