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Hollywood’s brightest stars and movies from the Golden Age of Hollywood.
The Harder They Fall
Broke and without work, newspaper reporter Eddie Willis (Humphrey Bogart) agrees to work for the corrupt boxing promoter Nick Benko (Rod Steiger) to help hype his new boxer, Toro Moreno (Mike Lane). While Toro is beastly in appearance, he has no actual boxing talent, and all his fights are fixed. When Toro gets a shot at the title against the brutal Buddy Brannen (Max Baer), Willis is faced with the tough decision of whether to tell Toro that his entire career is a sham.
Don't Raise the Bridge, Lower the River
Dreamer George Lester (Jerry Lewis) continually focuses on outrageous ways to make cash, and his fed-up wife, Pamela (Jacqueline Pearce), finally decides to leave him. To impress her, he converts their home into a swinging dance club -- but she is mortified when she returns. Undeterred, George enlists his grifter buddy H. William Homer (Terry-Thomas) and concocts a bizarre moneymaking plan that involves secret blueprints, international espionage and crooked dentist Dr. Pinto (John Bluthal).
The Bridge on the River Kwai
Adaptation of the Pierre Boulle novel about POWs in Burma forced to build a bridge to aid the war effort of their Japanese captors. British and American officers plot to blow up the structure, but the commander of the bridge's construction has different plans.
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
When the idealistic young Jefferson Smith (James Stewart) winds up appointed to the United States Senate, he gains the mentorship of Senator Joseph Paine (Claude Rains). However, Paine isn't as noble as his reputation would indicate, and he becomes involved in a scheme to discredit Smith, who wants to build a boys' campsite where a more lucrative project could go. Determined to stand up against Paine and his corrupt peers, Smith takes his case to the Senate floor.
Cat Ballou
When hired gun Tim Strawn (Lee Marvin) kills her rancher father, Cat Ballou (Jane Fonda) becomes an outlaw set on vengeance. Enlisting the help of washed-up gunslinger Kid Shelleen (also Marvin) as well as the handsome bandit Clay Boone (Michael Callan), Cat strikes back at the land-development company that employed Strawn, and eventually targets the assassin himself. Adding to the lively comedic mood of the film are narrative song performances by Nat King Cole and Stubby Kaye.
The Bitter Tea of General Yen
Megan Davis (Barbara Stanwyck) arrives in China to marry Dr. Robert Strike (Gavin Gordon), her missionary fiancé. The Chinese Civil War interrupts their wedding plans, and the couple is separated while trying to save endangered orphans. Chinese warlord General Yen (Nils Asther) rescues Davis after she faints but subsequently holds her captive, persistently attempting to seduce her. Surprisingly, though, Davis becomes attracted to Yen and develops a sympathy for his embattled position.
Shopworn
Lovely waitress Kitty Lane (Barbara Stanwyck) is all set to marry the rich and debonair David Livingston (Regis Toomey). But David's snobbish mother, Helen (Clara Blandick), doesn't want her son consorting with Kitty's kind, so she pulls some strings with her powerful friends and has the young woman sent to jail. When Kitty gets out, she takes a singing gig in a nightclub and skyrockets to fame. David tracks Kitty down and tries to rekindle things, while Helen works on a new scheme to deter him.
The Taming of the Shrew
In this film adaptation of the classic Shakespeare play, Grumio and Hortensio both long to wed the same beautiful young woman. Unfortunately, her wealthy father will not let his daughter marry unless her hot-tempered sister, Katherina, also has a suitor. Luckily, the slovenly Petruchio is looking for an affluent woman to marry, so Grumio and Hortensio pay him to try to woo the extremely volatile Katherina.