Too Late for Tears (1949) on IMDb

You’re never too far from a film noir classic in the Internet Archive Top 100, and Too Late for Tears is another fine example. It stars Lizabeth Scott as the femme fatale who doesn’t react well when $60,000 falls in her lap (actually in the back seat of her convertible), especially in dealing with her husband and the other men who want that cash.

This movie was significant enough that it was restored by the Film Noir Foundation. The restored print was shown in January 2014 at San Francisco’s Noir City film festival. You can read the full story of that effort at Turner Classic Movies.

 The Most Dangerous Game (1932) on IMDb

You know that old story theme of a deranged sportsman who hunts humans on a private reserve? The Most Dangerous Game was the first movie to tell that story. It stars Joel McCrea as a big-game hunter whose ship washes up near a small island. He swims ashore and meets its owner, an expatriate Russian Count who tells him that others have similarly become stranded there. Soon the hunter literally becomes the hunted.

This movie was made on the jungle sets for King Kong, shooting at night. (Fay Wray starred in both movies, which makes me wonder when she got any sleep.) It’s another important classic film in the Internet Archive Top 100.

 Deep Red (1975) on IMDb

Deep Red is one of only two 1970s movies in the Internet Archive Top 100. (The other is at #99.) It’s an Italian giallo thriller starring Macha Meril as a medium and David Hemmings as a pianist who investigates a series of murders performed by a mysterious figure wearing black leather gloves.

The Internet Archive version is the US release, which cut 22 minutes including the most graphic violence. Deep Red is still not my favorite kind of movie, but its strong critical reception, especially from tens of thousands of IMDb voters, boosted it to this list.

 Holiday (1930) on IMDb

Holiday is a romantic comedy about a young man who decides to get married after a whirlwind courtship, then has to reconcile his free-thinking lifestyle with the tradition of his wealthy fiancée’s family. Ann Harding was nominated for a best actress Oscar for her performance as the fiancée’s sister.

Holiday was based on a Broadway play by the same name which ran for over 200 performances in 1928-29. Katherine Hepburn understudied for the main female role in the play, then co-starred with Cary Grant in the 1938 movie remake. Edward Everett Horton played the same role in both film versions. I’m always happy to see another comedy in the Internet Archive Top 100.

 A Stranger in Town (1943) on IMDb

A Stranger in Town is an odd little dramatic comedy, or is it a message movie with laughs? It’s about a Supreme Court justice who goes fishing incognito in a small town, only to land in the middle of its corrupt legal structure. He backs an honest lawyer who’s running for mayor to clean up the place.

Frank Morgan, who played The Wizard of Oz just a few years earlier, stars as the wise old judge who guides the town to a better conclusion. The film is a bit of fluff, but a pretty good one, earning its place on the Internet Archive Top 100.