Yesterday was the final day of the Luso World World Cinema Blogathon. Lê at Crítica Retrô and I can not have been more pleased with its initial run. I know not a lot of people are familiar with Lusophones, but more writers than we expected signed onto the blogathon and contributed some great pieces. We are going to make the blogathon an annual event! Before we start planning next year, here’s a round up of the final posts of this year.
Helene D’Algy
Donna Hill at Strictly Vintage Hollywood fleshes out the biography of Helene (or Helena) D’Algy. Best known by Rudolph Valentino fans for playing his leading lady in the mostly lost silent A SAINTED DEVIL (1924), she’s not well remembered today. Learn more about this mysterious woman!
THE THREE STOOGES IN ORBIT (1962)
MovieRob contributes his fourth and final piece to the blogathon! Did you know that Curly Joe DeRita of The Three Stooges had Portuguese heritage? Because of him, Rob reviews THE THREE STOOGES IN ORBIT (1962). Find out why he has mixed feelings about the film.
Lena Horne
Dominique Revue breaks out a new CINEMA COFFEE piece to pay tribute to The Horne, Lena Horne. Dominique writes about Horne’s Afro-Portuguese heritage, her talent, and how she navigated showbiz to maintain her integrity.
CASA DE AREIA / THE HOUSE OF SAND (2005)
Erica D. at Poppity Talks Classic Film covers a modern Brazilian feature that sounds timeless in its themes, CASA DE AREIA / THE HOUSE OF SAND (2005). Its characters live in an isolating and unforgiving environment, and how much control they have over their fates might not be affected by how determined they are. The cinematography looks gorgeous!
DOWN ARGENTINE WAY (1940)
Samantha Ellis at Musings of a Classic Film Addict reviews DOWN ARGENTINE WAY (1940). Betty Grable‘s beauty and the Nicholas Brothers‘ dancing dazzle Samantha, and she discusses the film’s place in political history as a product of FDR’s Good Neighbor policy put into practice.
Fernando Pessoa and Film
My co-host Lê at Crítica Retrô explores Portugal’s premiere poet Fernando Pessoa’s connection with film. Like many writers, he was intrigued by the medium. Find out how he expressed his interest and what Hollywood star he favored. Bonus: Lê’s piece is bilingual, the only one in the blogathon to feature extensive Portuguese.
SAÍDA DO PESSOAL OPERÁRIO DA FÁBRICA CONFIANÇA / WORKERS EXIT FROM THE CONFIANÇA SHIRT FACTORY (1896)
Initially I was going to write about Pedro Costa‘s CASA DE LAVA / DOWN TO EARTH (1995), but I realized I needed and wanted to explain why I chose November 12 as the blogathon’s start date. I delve into the importance of an actuality subject called SAÍDA DO PESSOAL OPERÁRIO DA FÁBRICA CONFIANÇA (1896) and its director to Portuguese film history.
Thanks again to all the participants and readers of this year’s blogathon!
This post is part of the Luso World Cinema Blogathon!
