JULY 2026 ROUND-UP

JULY 2026 ROUND-UP

• 1.8.26

TOTAL FILMS SEEN IN JULY: 5  

(see the film posters at the bottom of the post, arranged in watching order) 

NEW-TO-ME: 5 

REWATCHES: 0 

MOST WATCHED ACTRESS: Shirley Temple (2 in total)

Shirley Temple

July started promising. Already on the 4th of the month I watched a classic. But somehow I knew it wasn't going to be an impressive amount in the end (hello, Asian dramas! — see my blog). Finishing the month with 5 films watched in total is an expected but disappointing figure, but it's half the amount of titles I accomplished in the first half of the year, so it's still a small feat.

Shirley Temple in Curly Top

Unfortunately, I couldn't make Some Like It Hot at the Filmoteca in Valencia due to personal circumstances. This year is the centennial of Marilyn Monroe whose 100th birthday was celebrated recently, on the 1st of June. I'll try and watch some of her films next month.

Now let's move on to my list of watched films this month!

NOTE: Read notes with caution as they might contain spoilers; with ratings going from ½ to ★★★★★ and watched date.

I ended June with a Shirley Temple film, and I started this second half of the year (already!!!) with an easy watch, also featuring Shirley. I might work my way through her filmography (having watched 24 titles now, including this one), so expect some more Shirley entries this month. The musical LITTLE MISS BROADWAY (20th Century-Fox, 1938) ranks somewhat higher among her 1930s films, and it's an enjoyable one at that. Nothing new under the sun and very predictable, but Shirley (again as an orphan) is lovable as ever and is supported by a solid cast. Edna May Oliver, Jane Darwell and Donald Meek are welcome in any film as far as I'm concerned, and though Jimmy Durante normally mostly annoys me, here he's not too bad. George Murphy (left) and Phyllis Brooks provide the romance, and Murphy also shows his dancing skills in two great musical numbers with Shirley (right). Especially the final number at the court house is excellent. It always amazes me how talented Shirley was and could hold her own next to the adult performers. By the way, I was a bit startled with the weird flirtation between Shirley and Murphy, albeit innocent. Though Shirley is still cute, she is older than in her earlier films (obviously) and a bit more cheeky. Directed by Irving Cummings. ★★★ / 04.07.2026

Not the best movie to choose when you already watch as little classic movies as I do nowadays, but I chose DR. BROADWAY (Paramount, 1942) because of its short runtime of only 68 minutes and I like Macdonald Carey. And it happens to be Anthony Mann's feature-film directing debut. It's a low-budget B-mystery, nothing special, and I was sleepy throughout so it didn't have my full attention and I missed some parts. Carey is very young here, saving an unemployed chorus girl (Jean Phillips) from a window ledge, and gets himself involved with racketeers. I didn't like Jean Phillips very much but she reminded me of Ginger Rogers. Probably the best thing of this film is the black-and-white photography by Theodor Sparkuhl. The opening scene with Phillips standing on the ledge has some great chiaroscuro, also the scene where Phillips follows the gangster's impostor daughter into a dark theater comes to mind. By the way, Phillips has a funny way of window cleaning (pictured with Carey). All in all, an unremarkable film but still entertaining enough if you're an Anthony Mann completist. ★★ / 19.07.2026

Carol Reed's famous noir THE THIRD MAN (London Films Productions, 1949) has been sitting on my watchlist since forever. Now I finally watched it with my sister, chromecasted on our biggish screen. Joseph Cotten plays an American writer who arrives penniless in post-war Vienna to visit his friend, Orson Welles, only to learn that he has died in a car accident. He also discovers there may have been a third man present during his friend's death. Or .... he may not even be dead. For some reason I thought this film was going to be full of suspense, some sort of a spy thriller. Turns out this film was not suspenseful at all. The fantastic black-and-white photography of DP Robert Krasker (with great close-ups of main characters and extras, and lots of crooked shots/Dutch angles) gives the film a moody and grim look, but I found the overall tone fairly light, with a lot of humour in the dialogue. It was, in fact, more dialogue-heavy than action-heavy. I had also already braced myself for a plot that wasn't easy to follow, but the story itself stays simple and never gets convoluted. The film owes much of its fame to its cinematography, the stark chiaroscuro, the depiction of the dark streets of Vienna (the film was shot on location), culminating in that magnificent, final sewer scene, and the close-up of Welles' fingers reaching up through the sewer grate. Welles doesn't have a lot of screen time but makes his presence memorable with the iconic shot in the dark corner where his face is being lit and revealed. Good support by Alida Valli and Trevor Howard. I'm glad they didn't force the romance between Valli and Cotten (pictured, 2 photos and a gif). As far as the music score is concerned, I didn't like the zither (i.e. string instrument) music of Anton Karas very much at first but it steadily grew on me. And what a great last shot, the long take of Valli and Cotten (bottom gif) .... Talk about giving someone the cold shoulder!!! ★★★★ / 23.07.2026

With a runtime of about an hour, THE OFFICE WIFE (Warner Bros, 1930) was perfect for bedtime watching. Lewis Stone plays an executive who commissions an author to write a book about the 'Office Wife' and how secretaries resemble wives. (By the way, the author is a queer woman who smokes cigars and dresses like a man.) I didn't understand why Dorothy Mackaill (top gif) as Stone's new secretary initially behaved the way she did, wanting Stone to notice her and showing off her legs during dictation. She knew he just got back from his honeymoon. Well, they really fall for each other and fight their feelings, as they both have romantic partners. It turns out Stone's wife has an affair, which leads to a divorce, and Mackaill breaks off her engagement with her fiancé. Happy ending! Yes, it was kind of a surprise that Mackaill and Stone were both free in the end to start a relationship with each other. Though it was a quick and fairly enjoyable watch, it was a bit creaky and stilted at times, being an early talkie, and I found Mackaill's performance uneven. But she grew in her role and also shows her vulnerable side. The best thing here is Joan Blondell (middle & bottom photo with Mackaill) in a small role as Mackaill's sassy sister. The scene where she takes a bath has pre-code written all over it. Her performance never feels stilted, she's just all energy. Directed by Lloyd Bacon. ★★½ / 26.07.2026

Last film of the month is the Shirley Temple vehicle CURLY TOP (Fox Film Corporation, 1935). I might have seen this before but I'm not sure, so I'm logging this as a first watch. In any case, the Animal Crackers in My Soup number I'd definitely seen before. Shirley is cute as a button here, playing an orphan again, this time with a sister, played by Rochelle Hudson. John Boles, a wealthy trustee of the orphanage where Shirley and Hudson are staying and who has just inherited his father's estate, takes a liking to both sisters, adopts them and has them move into his summer beach house. With songs and dance numbers thrown in, this film is so predictable but great fun, and Shirley (pictured with Hudson, top photo, and with Hudson and Boles, bottom photo) shows again how enormously talented she was. Tap dancing while jumping rope! And that great show number where she plays characters of different ages! I never knew Boles was a singer too. I thought he might be dubbed but it's really him, and what a nice singing voice he has. Too bad the romantic happy ending between Boles and Hudson is awfully rushed. Support by Arthur Treacher as the butler (love his interactions with Shirley) and Jane Darwell as the matron of the orphanage. One of the better Shirley Temple films. Directed by Irving Cummings. ★★★ / 31.07.2026

Following is the breakdown in decades of the 5 watched films:

1890s - 0

1900s - 0

1910s - 0

1920s - 0

1930s - 3

1940s - 2

1950s - 0

1960s - 0

Ending this post with two more shots of Robert Krasker's fantastic cinematography in The Third Man; first gif is the memorable shot of the reveal of Orson Welles' face in the dark corner.

See you with the next round-up! Hope to see more classic films!