5 favorite films from the 1950s

For Classic Movie Day on May 16, Classic Film TV Cafe hosted a blogathon asking movie fans to share their 5 favorite films of the 1950s. I missed the original announcement so it was too late to participate in the blogathon, but I did join others on Twitter by listing my five choices:

“Best of Everything”
“House of Wax”
“Picnic”
“Tarantula”
“Vertigo”

It’s an odd mix, I know. The only common denominator  is that I saw each for the first time as an impressionable kid, so my emotions are elevated with all of these 5 films. I do adore this misfit list that has creature feature/horror, romance, melodrama and masterpiece. Here’s a brief look at why.

Hope Lange, left, and Diane Baker start their new jobs at a publishing company yon the same day in “The Best of Everything.”

“Best of Everything” (1959)

Hollywood in the 1950s knew how to do drama and this Cinemascope soaper is one of the best. (It’s based on the first novel by Rona Jaffe.) I think I could love it simply because Johnny Mathis sings the romantic theme song that is repeated throughout the film.

June classic, repertory movies in the Buffalo area

Summer brings the end to many of the local ongoing film series, but it also marks the return of the drive-in so we still have some strong classics to enjoy with friends in June.

Here’s the list:

June 4: “The Breakfast Club” and “Pretty In Pink,” dusk at the Transit Drive-In. This John Hughes double feature is the first of the drive-in’s annual “Retro Tuesday” movie series. Each week benefits a different local charity. This week, it’s the Breast Cancer Network of WNY.

June 7: “Niagara,” 7:30 p.m. at the Screening Room Cinema Café (Boulevard Mall). It’s so much fun to watch this locally filmed noir mystery starring Joseph Cotten and Marilyn Monroe. Also shown June 8, 9, 11, 14.

June 8: “Niagara,” 7:30 p.m. at the Screening Room Cinema Cafe.