The Romance of Elaine

George Bailey has spent his entire life giving to the people of Bedford Falls. All that prevents rich skinflint Mr. Potter from taking over the entire town is George's modest building and loan company. But on Christmas Eve the business's $8,000 is lost and George's troubles begin.

In Casablanca, Morocco in December 1941, a cynical American expatriate meets a former lover, with unforeseen complications.

A hack screenwriter writes a screenplay for a former silent film star who has faded into Hollywood obscurity.

Guests at a posh Berlin hotel struggle through worry, scandal, and heartache.

Beautiful half-breed Pearl Chavez becomes the ward of her dead father's first love and finds herself torn between her sons, one good and the other bad.

Alvin York a hillbilly sharpshooter transforms himself from ruffian to religious pacifist. He is then called to serve his country and despite deep religious and moral objections to fighting becomes one of the most celebrated American heroes of WWI.

An ambitious New York socialite plans an extravagant dinner party as her businessman husband, Oliver, contends with financial woes, causing a lot of tension between the couple. Meanwhile, their high-society friends and associates, including the gruff Dan Packard and his sultry spouse, Kitty, contend with their own entanglements, leading to revelations at the much-anticipated dinner.

A beautiful but vain woman who rejects the love of her older husband must face the loss of her youth and beauty.

In 1927, Charles Lindbergh struggles to finance and design an airplane that will make his New York to Paris flight the first solo transatlantic crossing.

A semi-fictionalized account of the life of Mata Hari, an exotic dancer who was accused of spying for Germany during World War I.

A young Jewish man is torn between tradition and individuality when his old-fashioned family objects to his career as a jazz singer. This is the first full length feature film to use synchronized sound, and is the original film musical.

Life in 1847 Paris is as spirited as champagne and as unforgiving as the gray morning after. In gambling dens and lavish soirees, men of means exert their wills and women turned courtesans exult in pleasure. One such woman is Marguerite Gautier, who begins a sumptuous romance with Armand Duval.

An uncompromising, visionary architect struggles to maintain his integrity and individualism despite personal, professional and economic pressures to conform to popular standards.

Erstwhile childhood friends, Judah Ben-Hur and Messala meet again as adults, this time with Roman officer Messala as conqueror and Judah as a wealthy, though conquered, Israelite. A slip of a brick during a Roman parade causes Judah to be sent off as a galley slave, his property confiscated and his mother and sister imprisoned. Years later, as a result of his determination to stay alive and his willingness to aid his Roman master, Judah returns to his homeland an exalted and wealthy Roman athlete. Unable to find his mother and sister, and believing them dead, he can think of nothing else than revenge against Messala.

After World War I, Armistice Lloyd Hart goes back to practice law, former saloon keeper George Hally turns to bootlegging, and out-of-work Eddie Bartlett becomes a cab driver. Eddie builds a fleet of cabs through delivery of bootleg liquor and hires Lloyd as his lawyer. George becomes Eddie's partner and the rackets flourish until love and rivalry interfere.

A beautiful temptress re-kindles an old romance while trying to escape her past during a tension-packed train journey.

The Austrian Secret Service sends its most seductive agent to spy on the Russians.

After the death of a gangster, those familiar with his million dollar stash start mysteriously dying. Police detectives with the help of a clairvoyant try to determine who, living or dead, is responsible.

The wife of a doctor in China falls in love with a diplomat.

The Perils of Pauline is a motion picture serial shown in weekly installments featuring the actress Pearl White playing the title character. Pauline has often been cited as a famous example of a damsel-in-distress, although viewers will find her character more resourceful and less helpless than the classic 'damsel' stereotype. Nine episodes (from a condensed 1916 re-release) survive to this day.

Sally Marrio, neglected wife of a prominent shoe designer, has three wishes: to be a millionaire's wife, to be famous, and to have a child.

Various groups of people, both well-intentioned and otherwise, search for a buried treasure that is buried underneath a skyscraper.

When his son is reluctant to fight for democracy Philip Nolan II shares with him the secret he has long held, the treason of the first Philip Nolan "The Man Without a Country." He explains how the elder Nolan played into the hands of Aaron Burr; how Thomas Jefferson was elected president over Burr; how Alexander Hamilton prevented the conscienceless Burr becoming governor of New York; the duel between Hamilton and Burr; how Philip Nolan was later arrested on his wedding night for aiding Burr, who had conspired to start a rival government in the south to wage war against the United States, and how he was later banished from the United States for saying "Damn the United States! I wish I might never hear its name again," and how Philip Nolan died kissing the flag of the country he had execrated. Understanding how important freedom is the younger Nolan rushes to enlist.

A private detective takes on a case that involves him with three eccentric criminals, a beautiful liar, and their quest for a priceless statuette.

Former detective Nick Charles has retired from police work, preferring a life of cocktails, parties, and relaxation with his wealthy wife, Nora. Their holiday is interrupted when the daughter of Nick’s former client asks for help finding her missing father, eccentric inventor Clyde Wynant. When Wynant’s body is discovered, Nick is drawn back into the investigation, with Nora eagerly joining him. As the couple questions Wynant’s family, friends, and business associates, a tangled web of greed, deception, and murder begins to unravel.

Alice, the only relatively normal member of the eccentric Sycamore family, falls in love with Tony Kirby, but his wealthy banker father and snobbish mother strongly disapprove of the match. When the Kirbys are invited to dinner to become better acquainted with their future in-laws, things don't turn out the way Alice had hoped.

A strange animal attack turns a botanist into a bloodthirsty monster.

A hurricane swells outside, but it's nothing compared to the storm within the hotel at Key Largo. There, sadistic mobster Johnny Rocco holes up - and holds at gunpoint hotel owner James Temple, his widowed daughter-in-law Nora, and ex-GI Frank McCloud.

A straitlaced turn-of-the-century father presides over a family of boys and the mother who really rules the roost.

Sir Borotyn, a prominent Prague resident, is discovered murdered in his home, with all indications pointing to a vampiric assault. The victim's friend, Baron Otto, and the physician who analyzes the body, are certain that the vampire is either the mysterious Count Mora or his daughter. Receiving little help from the law, occult expert Professor Zelen is sought to assist with their investigation.

Allen Colby, heir to a huge fortune, is presumed drowned after an ocean liner sinks off the coast of Honolulu. Mysteriously, Colby reappears at his mansion only to be murdered soon after. When his body is discovered during a seance, everyone in attendance becomes a suspect, and it's up to Chan to find the murderer before he or she strikes again.

Get ready for a Gold Medal murder mystery! This "tense, thrilling mystery" ('California Congress of Parents and Teachers') pits Charlie Chan against international spies who are using the Berlin Olympic games as the perfect cover...for cold-blooded murder!

A Chinese doctor vows revenge against the allied troops who killed his wife and child during the Boxer Rebellion.

When a prominent official is murdered at a banquet honoring Charle Chan, the detective and son Lee team up to expose an opium-smuggling ring.

On the advice of his friend Pendleton, Ashton Kirk, a scholar and amateur detective, pays a visit to a house whose occupants, Charles Cramp and his sister Grace, complain of strange happenings involving Mexicans. Discussions with Ashton's agent in Mexico reveal that Cramp's father was once an engraver, who, in desperate need of cash, had agreed to supply Alva, a notorious thief, with forged currency plates. After a change of heart, Cramp refused to deliver the plates to Alva, and now Cramp's aunt, Miss Hohenlo, has come to her brother's home to find them herself. The clever Ashton realizes that the Mexicans are cohorts of Alva's and eventually uncovers an elaborate signalling and tunnel system used by Miss Hohenlo and Alva to locate the missing plates. Deciphering a message announcing the time and place of the arrival of the Mexicans, Ashton and his aides hide themselves in the house cellar, capture the thieves and destroy the plates.

An appreciative, uncritical look at silent film comedies and thrillers from early in the century through the 1920s.

Elaine Dodge is the beautiful young daughter of Taylor Dodge, president of the Consolidated Insurance Company. When Mr Dodge is murdered by a mysterious cloaked figure known only as the Clutching Hand, Elaine enlists the aid of Craig Kennedy to unmask the killer

Bob Monkhouse introduces the golden age of slapstick comedy.

Cinema a century ago was a new, exciting and highly democratic form of entertainment. Picture houses nationwide offered a sociable, lively environment in which to relax and escape from the daily grind. With feature films still rare, the programme was an entertaining, ever-changing roster of short items with live musical accompaniment. 100 years on, this special compilation from the BFI National Archive recreates the glorious miscellany of comedies, dramas, travelogues and newsreels which would have constituted a typical night out in 1914. Our selection includes a comic short about a face-pulling competition, a sensational episode of The Perils of Pauline, scenes of Allied troops celebrating Christmas at the Front, and an early sighting of one of cinema’s greatest icons.

One of many Pearl White silent action movie serials. CHAPTER TITLES: 1. The Serpent Sign; 2. The Cryptic Ring; 3. The Watching Eye; 4. The Vengeance Of Wu Fang; 5. The Saving Circles; 6. Spontaneous Combustion; 7. The Ear in the Wall; 8. The Opium Smugglers; 9. The Tell-Tale Heart; 10. Shadows Of War.