There have been many great years in Hollywood’s Golden Age. Every year had its share of landmark motion pictures. Nineteen forty-six, for example, is a year that saw the release of movies like It’s a Wonderful Life and The Best Years of Our Lives. Eddie Muller of the Film Noir Foundation recently told an audience he thought 1950 was the greatest year with the release of movies like Sunset Boulevard and In a Lonely Place. However, from top to bottom, no other year compares to 1939.
Some movie fans might challenge whether that was actually Hollywood’s greatest era. Some prefer the postwar film noir period. Others cite the adult themes of pre-Code cinema. However, those who feel Hollywood only made “escapist fare” in the Code-driven era have never seen such insightful films as Goodbye Mr. Chips or Wuthering Heights.
What was it then that made 1939 so great? Mark Vieira’s new release Majestic Hollywood: The Greatest Films of 1939 (2013) answers that question. Labor disputes had been settled by 1936, which created conditions for a renaissance in Hollywood screenwriting. Production was also up, and with studios facing the possibilty of a war in Europe– and the loss of revenue in the foreign market– there was a need to create bigger productions to generate bigger profits. Additionally, since 1939 marked particular milestones in the industry, such as the 50th anniversary (1889) of Thomas Edison projecting photographs, there was a sense that this was an important year. How much of an impact these anniversaries may have had on studio bosses is debatable, but in Majestic Hollywood, the reader is presented with several factors that explain the relevancy of that year.
Majestic Hollywood is a great source since it includes all the films we will be screening in 2014 at the Pickwick Theatre in the “Films of 1939” program (as well as many we will not be able to show). The book includes wonderful photos as well as astute background information. This is film history at its best.
