Listmania!
It came from the public domain - the precode era
By an Amazon.com customer
Tarzan The Tiger (Silent)Tarzan The Tiger (Silent)
Buy new: $7.98 / Used from: $3.91
One of the early serials from 1929.
The Lost ZeppelinThe Lost Zeppelin
Buy new: $7.98 / Used from: $3.98
An early talkie adventure film from 1929 with interesting special effects.
Great GabboGreat Gabbo
Buy new: $7.98 / Used from: $2.37
1929 film has Erich Von Stroheim as a ventriloquist who is only decent when he talks through his dummy Otto. Includes some of the oddest musical numbers ever.
Glorifying the American Girl (1929)Glorifying the American Girl (1929)
Buy new: $14.95
1929 musical shows what a Ziegfeld show must have looked like. Includes performances by Helen Morgan, Eddie Cantor, and Rudy Valee.
BlackmailBlackmail
Buy used from: $0.85
How is it Alfred Hitchcock's 1929 film that was his first talkie is in the public domain?
The Oklahoma CycloneThe Oklahoma Cyclone
Buy new: $7.98 / Used from: $2.46
1930 Western.
Half Shot at SunriseHalf Shot at Sunrise
Buy new: $7.98
The often forgotten Wheeler & Woolsey in a 1930 comedy.
Sin Takes a HolidaySin Takes a Holiday
Buy new: $7.98 / Used from: $3.75
Basil Rathbone before he was Sherlock Holmes in a 1930 romantic comedy.
The Pay OffThe Pay Off
Buy new: $7.98 / Used from: $1.44
1930 Crime Drama.
The Golf Specialist (1930)The Golf Specialist (1930)
Buy new: $14.95
Public domain treasures from W.C. Fields.
Hook, Line and SinkerHook, Line and Sinker
Buy new: $7.98 / Used from: $2.29
The second most profitable RKO film of 1930.
The Sins of the ChildrenThe Sins of the Children
Buy used from: $9.98
1930 film with a great performance by Louis Mann a year before his death.
Party GirlParty Girl
Buy new: $7.98 / Used from: $3.14
This 1930 film is the definitive precode. The problem is, nobody bothered to direct the picture. Doug Fairbanks Jr. is a much better actor than this film lets on.
Dixiana/La CucarachaDixiana/La Cucaracha
Buy used from: $39.99
The only version of Dixiana worth owning with the Technicolor finale restored. Not really too precode, but it does show Wheeler & Woolsey and how they coupled rowdy humor with music and helped keep RKO afloat in the 30's.
Gow the KillerGow the Killer
Buy new: $7.98 / Used from: $3.00
A 1931 documentary about expeditions to the South Pacific.
MillieMillie
Buy new: $7.98
A precode melodrama from 1931 starring Helen Twelvetrees.
Parlour, Bedroom & BathParlour, Bedroom & Bath
Buy new: $7.98 / Used from: $2.48
A 1931 precode farce starring Buster Keaton. The comedy is pretty good, it's just not Buster's style.
Behind Office DoorsBehind Office Doors
Buy new: $7.98 / Used from: $3.50
Mary Astor stars in this 1931 story of a workplace romance.
Kept HusbandsKept Husbands
Buy new: $7.98 / Used from: $4.24
1931 story of a blue collar guy unhappily married to money.
SvengaliSvengali
Buy used from: $95.03
A very good 1931 early talkie performance by John Barrymore in the title role. How did Warner Bros. let this one get away from them? Get this ROAN copy. It is superior to other copies I've seen.
RainRain
Buy new: $7.98 / Used from: $3.05
This Joan Crawford vehicle misfired in 1932, but today it is considered a pretty good early talkie.
IndiscreetIndiscreet
Buy new: $7.98 / Used from: $1.23
1932 film is a pretty good talkie starring Gloria Swanson. Swanson doesn't want her younger sister involved with the same man with which she had a long term affair.
White Zombie (1932) [Remastered Edition]White Zombie (1932) [Remastered Edition]
Buy new: $14.95 / Used from: $9.70
A great 1932 performance by Bela Lugosi as a keeper of zombies.
Speak EasilySpeak Easily
Buy new: $7.98 / Used from: $3.01
Buster's best talkie was his second from the last. He filmed this just as his marriage was collapsing in 1932.
The Kennel Murder CaseThe Kennel Murder Case
Buy new: $7.98 / Used from: $2.55
1933 film is a bit of a trial run for The Thin Man with William Powell playing a socialite sleuth.
NarcoticNarcotic
Buy new: $7.98
Doctor gets addicted to opium, gets run over by a doped up cabbie, and winds up in the hospital only to get hooked on heroin in this 1933 exploitation film.
Of Human BondageOf Human Bondage
Buy new: $7.98 / Used from: $2.93
Great 1934 performance by Bette Davis that many thought should have won her a first Best Actress Oscar. Again I ask, how did Warner's let the rights to this one get away?