Actors
Lauren Bacall, 1924 – 2014: The Sultriest Voice in Cinema
Lauren Bacall, one of the most alluring leading ladies ever to come out of Hollywood, passed away Tuesday at the age of 89. Though she was best known for playing opposite husband Humphrey Bogart in such classics as “The Big Sleep” (1946) and “Key Largo” (1948), her film career sustained itself long after Bogart was gone. “Written on The Wind” (1956), “Harper” (1966), “Murder on the Orient Express” (1974), and dozens of other films benefited from her uniquely feline presence and husky voice. She was class, sass, humor, and chutzpah all rolled up into one glamorous package.
Bacall, a New Yorker born Betty Joan Perske on September 16, 1924, was only nineteen when she made her screen debut opposite Bogie in “To Have and Have Not.” Despite her youth, she held her own opposite an established star more than twice her age. Still, during her first few days on-set, she was so nervous she prayed the camera wouldn't pick up her hands shaking. It didn't.
And of course, she created that film’s most indelible moment when she purred to Bogart, “You know how to whistle, don't you, Steve? You just put your lips together and... blow.” Audiences indeed were blown away. So was Bogie; he and Bacall were married within a year. Their relationship was one of the more storied romances in Hollywood, lasting until Bogart’s death from cancer in 1957.
Crime
Tough Talk: 14 Unforgettable Film Noir Lines
One of the many lures of the film noir genre is its taut, no nonsense dialogue. There’s no room here for flowery speech, not when the bullets and fists are flying.
Classics
Birth of the Cool — The 20 Films We Call the Coolest
What makes a movie cool? Perhaps the better question might be: what is cool? To introduce our list of coolest movies, it seemed like a good idea to start by defining, well, coolness.
Themes
How to Tell Them Apart: Our Cheat Sheet for Easily Confused Flicks
Movies with similar titles often show up next to each other on the shelf, or line up in a search, but are usually very different animals—animals you don’t want to get mixed up.