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American Portrait

Jul 31, 1940

0h 25m

★ 0.0

Overview

This movie's preamble explains the importance of salesmanship after the great depression The industrial revolution has created a life of modern convenience for America, and there are more products available than most people can fathom. David, one of the main characters in this drama, is a life insurance salesman. His livelihood and profession rely on people willing to take out new policies. Throughout the beginning of the film, a narrator points out modern inventions like telephones, electric toasters, and other conveniences, and explains the significance of these items.

Genres

Documentary

Production Companies

Wilding Picture Productions

American Portrait Trailers

No Trailers found.

Cast

Young man / Old man

Alan Ladd

Barbara

Mary Brodel

David

Ben Alexander

Mr. Wilkes

Charles Miller

George

Milburn Stone

Calvin

Hal Taliaferro

An exploration —manipulated and staged— of life in Las Hurdes, in the province of Cáceres, in Extremadura, Spain, as it was in 1932. Insalubrity, misery and lack of opportunities provoke the emigration of young people and the solitude of those who remain in the desolation of one of the poorest and least developed Spanish regions at that time.

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0.0

Das Abendmahl

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The celebration of communion in Christian ceremonies is one of the oldest elements of church tradition. The film shows how young people prepare and celebrate communion together during a leisure activity.

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0.0

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Lost short film.

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5.0

Del mero corazón

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A lyrical journey through the heart of Chicano culture as reflected in the love songs of the Tex-Mex Norteña music tradition. Performers include, Little Joe & La Familia, Leo Garza, Chavela Ortiz, Andres Berlanga, Ricardo Mejia, Conjunto Tamaulipas, Chavela y Brown Express and more.

5.8

Kurosawa's Way

May 13, 2011

Eleven major film makers from Europe, America and Asia talk about Akira Kurosawa and discover surprising influences on their own work.

10.0

Conversations of a Marriage

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A portriat of the daily lives of Beatriz and Gilberto, a couple that has been together for over 40 years. A reflection about love and marriage. An intimate glimpse into the lives of two people who struggle to live in harmony.

6.4

White Earth

Jan 30, 2015

An oil boom has drawn thousands to America’s Northern Plains in search of work. Against the backdrop of a cruel North Dakota winter, the stories of three children and an immigrant mother intertwine among themes of innocence, home, and the American Dream.

5.2

Arabian Coffee

Jan 1, 1968

'Coffea arábiga' was sponsored as a propaganda documentary to show how to sow coffee around Havana. In fact, Guillén Landrián made a film critical of Castro, exhibited but banned as soon as the coffee plan collapsed.

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0.0

Jayuk

Jan 1, 1998

A 20-minute documentary film about the Kyrgyz people living by the Narym River.

5.0

Swinging Light

Mar 21, 2025

An experience of a camera swinging in different gestures facing the optical distortion of the Sun. The last appearance of the smudge.

0.0

Lerchenlieder

Jun 26, 1981

Documentary about the special friendship between the 72-year-old music machine collector Johann Bartisch and the 12-year-old farm boy Gerd from the village of Arnsgereuth. As a child, the Romanian Johann played "O sole mio" on the piano while his brother accompanied him on the violin. Even then, he was fascinated by the music machines that could be found at fairgrounds, in cinemas and on trains. As an adult, Johann began his passion for collecting in Bucharest, rescuing self-playing instruments from barns, cellars or even garbage dumps. With great attention to detail, Johann restores his found treasures in his 250-year-old schoolhouse in the village of Arnsgereuth.

6.5

The Presence

Jan 1, 1965

Two old men enter an abandoned synagogue, look at the decay around them, and pray.

9.0

The Presence III

Jan 1, 1986

Two rabbis show the ruins of an abandoned synagogue to a group of primary school-age Jewish children, and stand by as the children dip bread in honey, drink wine, pray, and sing.

0.0

Der Auftrag

Sep 29, 1988

This documentary reports on the master potter Otto Engelmann from Klingmühl, who was commissioned to make black painted clay heads of Karl Marx in the spring of 1973. Engelmann briefly explains the individual work steps from mixing the casting slip to firing the clay heads and then painting them. An old craft is vividly captured on camera and accompanied by original sou