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Memorable movies

29 September 2003, 18:00 PM
LIFESTYLE
By Mirza Azizul Haque
29 September 2003, 18:00 PM
In response to the article 'Movies of the good old days' of September 22 ,by Sadya Afreen Mallick, I would like to share my experiences as an ardent movie fan with the readers. I am an octogenarian. Naturally I started the habit much earlier. To be precise when I was only 9 or 10 years old. All my brothers and sisters were born and brought up in Calcutta where my father used to serve the British government in the famous Writers' Building. In those days Calcutta had number of beautiful cinema halls which included the Metro and the Light House which sprung up much later. I still remember that the Metro was opened with the famous film "A Tale of Two Cities" and later on the Light House with "Algiers" (with the then glamorous star Hedy Lemarr and romantic Charles Boyer).

Once I met the popular writer Humayun Ahmed who asked me, 'Gora Bhai, what could be your age?' I promptly replied, 'I was born the year Dhaka University was born, when Satyajit Ray, Marlon Brando and also Mickey Rooney were born, I was born in the year when Albert Einstein received the Nobel prize.' He uttered 'It was in 1921.'

I never got tired of watching films even now. Some of the movies moved me so much that I will never forget any one of them and probably carry their memories till my death. I cannot resist the temptation to mention the names of some memorable movies which may also rouse your admiration and thoughts!

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Probable period when I saw the movies is 1930-1960:

Modem Times (Charlie Chaplin), All Quiet on the Western Front (Famous Book by Erich Maria Remarque), Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde (Spencer Tracy), Bring Them Back Alive (Frank Buck), Ben Hur (Charlton Heston), The Great Ziegfield (William Powell, Myrna Loy), A Tale of Two Cities (Ronald Coleman), The Good Earth (Paul Muni), From Here to Eternity (Frank Sinatra, Ernst Borgnine), Gone With the Wind (Clark Gable, Viveien Leigh), Roman Holiday (Gregory Peck, Audrey Hepburn). The list is endless.

I hope I have been able to share my memories with those who loved and enjoyed movies like me.

The author is an ex-Burma Eastern official.