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Hard to believe, but it’s been five years since Netflix first aired “Five Came Back”, the Emmy-winning documentary that recounts how five top Hollywood directors used their cameras to help us achieve victory in World War 2. The names of these men should be familiar, as they made some of the best movies of their time: Frank Capra, John Ford, William Wyler, John Huston, and George Stevens.

This Independence Day, America confronts a host of serious challenges, and appears diminished on the world stage. There’s a vacuum of leadership for all the world to see.

Given today’s chaotic, divisive political environment, it’s hard to imagine that events on the presidential stage could be any more sensational, yet looking back, many memorable films have mined the drama inherent in this exalted office. 

A close inspection of Lee J. Cobb’s film career, spanning nearly four decades, demonstrates what a versatile actor he was. Still, today he is best remembered for playing bitter, caustic, angry men. 

Back in 1988, The Film Society of Lincoln Center held a gala tribute for Yves Montand, one of France’s biggest movie stars, whose own story would rival any of his films for interest and color.

If you don’t remember the face of this peerless British player, whose film career spanned from the forties through the eighties, his silky, mellifluous voice will surely be familiar.

Given all she accomplished, it’s astonishing that Thelma Ritter only broke through on the big screen when she was pushing fifty. In this case, definitely better late than never.