20th Century Fox: The First 50 Years Movie Review 1996

James Coburn narrates this feature-length documentary about the formation, growth, and legacy of 20th Century Fox. As clipfests go, this one tenders a more-than-generous helping of snippets from the studio catalog, primarily focused on its films from 1915 through 1965. Writer/director Kevin Burns gives equal and ample time in examining the boxoffice failures of the studio (and near shutdown in the early 1960s) as well as showcasing its triumphs. Coburn's signature voice is a welcome tonic to the sometimes-glossy narration (e.g. Hitchcock's "Lifeboat" extolled as "continuing the studio's commitment to socially conscious cinema"). While not the caliber of the Kevin Brownlow documentaries, the DVD makes for a entertaining stroll through the studio that gave us such classic but disparate American films as "How Green Was My Valley" and "Star Wars."

Distribution

Image Entertainment, 20525 Nordhoff St., Ste 200, Chatsworth, CA 91311, Phone: (818)407-9100, Email: inquiries@image-entertainment.com, URL: http://www.image-entertainment.com

Available on DVD
Running time 129 minutes.

Cast and Crew

Genres

Film History, Documentary Films

Screenplay

Kevin Burns

Cast

Julie Andrews, Red Buttons, Alice Faye, Roddy McDowall, Don Murray, Robert Wagner, Robert Wise

Director

Kevin Burns

Other

James Coburn