What Movie to Rent? Ask Leonard
BY DENNIS KING
Movie critics, who see scores if not hundreds of movies each year, are often asked by acquaintances headed for the video store or their Netflix queue, “What movie should I rent this weekend?”
Since that’s always a matter of mood and personal taste, it can be a thorny question. People are usually fishing not just for the latest star-driven blockbuster but for some hidden gem or eye-opening sleeper that’s somehow escaped popular notice. Still, it’s a loaded question.
So for we movie wonks who don’t want to get crossways with our friends by some weird, obscure or dicey film recommendation, Leonard Maltin comes to the rescue. That man of encyclopedic knowledge and 17,000 movies has a new book called “Leonard Maltin’s 151 Best Movies You’ve Never Seen” (HarperStudio, $16.99).
It’s filled with offbeat recommendations of both forgotten classic movies and underappreciated contemporary films.
For instance:
“Lady for a Day,” Frank Capra’s 1933 charmer about a poor bag lady (Mary Robson) who sells apples in Times Square yet leads her far-away daughter to believe that she’s a wealthy dowager. Capra remade the story with a bigger budget and more publicity in the 1960s under the title “Pocketful of Miracles,” with Bette Davis and Glenn Ford.
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