George Fitzmaurice

A 1930 American pre-Code comedy-mystery film produced by Samuel Goldwyn and directed by George Fitzmaurice. Ronald Colman stars as A.J. Raffles, a distinguished English gentleman who leads a secret life as the notorious jewel thief the press has dubbed "The Amateur Cracksman." When Raffles falls in love with Gwen (Kay Francis), he decides to retire from crime, but an old friend, Bunny (Bramwell Fletcher), comes to him with a predicament that entails committing one last job. The film is based on the 1906 play by E. W. Hornung and Eugene Wiley Presbrey, adapted from Hornung's 1899 short story collection. Oscar Lagerstrom was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Sound Recording. The film is in the public domain.

Crime · Comedy · Mystery · Romance

A 1930 American pre-Code romantic comedy directed by George Fitzmaurice and starring Ronald Colman, Loretta Young, Myrna Loy, and Frederick Kerr. Written by Frederick Lonsdale and Benjamin Glazer, the film follows spendthrift Willie Hale (Colman), who returns penniless to his family home in London and smooth-talks his father into letting him stay. At the same time, he turns the charm on Dorothy Hope (Young), whose father is big in linoleum and who was about to become engaged to a Russian aristocrat. Produced by Samuel Goldwyn, the film features cinematography by George Barnes and Gregg Toland. The film entered the public domain due to non-renewal of its copyright.

Comedy · Romance

Valentino's final film, released two weeks after his death from peritonitis at thirty-one. He plays a double role: the aging Sheik Ahmed and his hot-blooded son, who falls for Yasmin, a dancing girl, and is tricked by a band of outlaws into believing she betrayed him. The younger Ahmed abducts her in revenge, and the story plays out as a compressed echo of the first film, sharper and a little harder. Vilma Banky is a strong match for Valentino, and the desert photography has a clean, harsh beauty. The film was selected for the National Film Registry in 2003. Long held under copyright by the Copyright Term Extension Act, it entered the public domain in the United States on January 1, 2022, and is now freely watchable.

Romance · Adventure · Silent