Imitation of Life

Nov 23, 1934

1h 51m

★ 7.0

THE DARING STORY OF MOTHER LOVE - On the Screen for the First Time!

Overview

A struggling widow and her daughter take in a black housekeeper and her fair-skinned daughter. The two women start a successful business but face familial, identity, and racial issues along the way.

Genres

Drama

Romance

Production Companies

Universal Pictures

Imitation of Life Trailers

Cast

Beatrice 'Bea' Pullman

Claudette Colbert

Delilah Johnson

Louise Beavers

Stephen 'Steve' Archer

Warren William

Jessie Pullman, Age 18

Rochelle Hudson

Elmer Smith

Ned Sparks

Peola Johnson, Age 19

Fredi Washington

Baby Jessie Pullman, Age 3

Juanita Quigley

Martin the Furniture Man

Alan Hale

The Painter

Henry Armetta

Beatrice's Butler Jarvis

Wyndham Standing

Young Woman at Party (uncredited)

Joyce Compton

Mrs. Eden (uncredited)

Noel Francis

A classic of the silent age, this film tells the story of the doomed but ultimately canonized 15th-century teenage warrior. On trial for claiming she'd spoken to God, Jeanne d'Arc is subjected to inhumane treatment and scare tactics at the hands of church court officials. Initially bullied into changing her story, Jeanne eventually opts for what she sees as the truth. Her punishment, a famously brutal execution, earns her perpetual martyrdom.

8.1

Persona

Oct 18, 1966

A young nurse, Alma, is put in charge of Elisabeth Vogler: an actress who is seemingly healthy in all respects, but will not talk. As they spend time together, Alma speaks to Elisabeth constantly, never receiving any answer.

7.9

Roman Holiday

Aug 26, 1953

Overwhelmed by her suffocating schedule, touring European princess Ann takes off for a night while in Rome. When a sedative she took from her doctor kicks in, however, she falls asleep on a park bench and is found by an American reporter, Joe Bradley, who takes her back to his apartment for safety. At work the next morning, Joe finds out Ann's regal identity and bets his editor he can get exclusive interview with her, but romance soon gets in the way.

8.0

Judgment at Nuremberg

Dec 18, 1961

In 1947, four German judges who served on the bench during the Nazi regime face a military tribunal to answer charges of crimes against humanity. Chief Justice Haywood hears evidence and testimony not only from lead defendant Ernst Janning and his defense attorney Hans Rolfe, but also from the widow of a Nazi general, an idealistic U.S. Army captain and reluctant witness Irene Wallner.

7.5

The Day the Earth Stood Still

Sep 18, 1951

An alien and a robot land on Earth after World War II and tell mankind to be peaceful or face destruction.

8.1

M

May 11, 1931

In this classic German thriller, Hans Beckert, a serial killer who preys on children, becomes the focus of a massive Berlin police manhunt. Beckert's heinous crimes are so repellant and disruptive to city life that he is even targeted by others in the seedy underworld network. With both cops and criminals in pursuit, the murderer soon realizes that people are on his trail, sending him into a tense, panicked attempt to escape justice.

7.9

Umberto D.

Jan 20, 1952

When elderly pensioner Umberto Domenico Ferrari returns to his boarding house from a protest calling for a hike in old-age pensions, his landlady demands her 15,000-lire rent by the end of the month or he and his small dog will be turned out onto the street. Unable to get the money in time, Umberto fakes illness to get sent to a hospital, giving his beloved dog to the landlady's pregnant and abandoned maid for temporary safekeeping.

7.7

Brief Encounter

Nov 24, 1945

Returning home from a shopping trip to a nearby town, bored suburban housewife Laura Jesson is thrown by happenstance into an acquaintance with virtuous doctor Alec Harvey. Their casual friendship soon develops during their weekly visits into something more emotionally fulfilling than either expected, and they must wrestle with the potential havoc their deepening relationship would have on their lives and the lives of those they love.

7.0

Shanghai Express

Feb 12, 1932

A beautiful temptress re-kindles an old romance while trying to escape her past during a tension-packed train journey.

7.2

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Dec 24, 1931

Dr. Henry Jekyll believes that there are two distinct sides to men - a good and an evil side. He believes that by separating the two, man can become liberated. He succeeds in his experiments with chemicals to accomplish this and transforms into Hyde to commit horrendous crimes. When he discontinues use of the drug, it is already too late.

6.5

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Aug 12, 1941

Dr. Jekyll believes good and evil exist in everyone and creates a potion that allows his evil side, Mr. Hyde, to come to the fore. He faces horrible consequences when he lets his dark side run amok.

7.5

Frankenstein

Nov 21, 1931

Henry Frankenstein pieces together body parts in the hope of bringing a human-like creature to life. The mad scientist’s dreams are shattered by his monstrous creation awakening with rage to a world that hates and fears him.

6.9

42nd Street

Mar 11, 1933

A producer puts on what may be his last Broadway show, and at the last moment a chorus girl has to replace the star.

6.8

Salama Is Fine

Nov 29, 1937

A courier is sent to deposit a cash amount to the bank but he arrives late. He goes to a hotel to spend the night and keeps the money in the hotel safe, but he gets confused with the Prince of Kandahar and who admires him and insists on keeping this confusion to reveal his enemies.

6.1

Secret Agent

May 11, 1936

During World War I, a novelist declared dead is recruited by British intelligence and sent to Switzerland under a new identity to assassinate a German spy. Teamed with a fellow agent posing as his wife and an eccentric assassin known as “the General,” the trio close in on their target — until two of them grow ambivalent when their duty to the mission clashes with their consciences.

6.6

Young and Innocent

Feb 17, 1937

When a young writer is falsely accused of murdering a famous actress, he escapes custody and joins forces with the daughter of a police constable to prove his innocence.

7.8

Anatomy of a Murder

Jul 1, 1959

Semi-retired Michigan lawyer Paul Biegler takes the case of Army Lt. Manion, who murdered a local innkeeper after his wife claimed that he raped her. Over the course of an extensive trial, Biegler parries with District Attorney Lodwick and out-of-town prosecutor Claude Dancer to set his client free, but his case rests on the victim's mysterious business partner, who's hiding a dark secret.

7.8

Freaks

Jan 1, 1932

A circus' beautiful trapeze artist agrees to marry the leader of side-show performers, but his deformed friends discover she is only marrying him for his inheritance.

7.2

Dracula

Feb 12, 1931

A British estate agent travels to Transylvania to meet the mysterious Count Dracula, who is interested in leasing a London castle. After Dracula enslaves the agent and drives him to insanity, the pair return to London together, where Dracula, a secret bloodsucker, begins preying on socialites.