Half Shot Shooters

A Lady and Her Maid

May 1913 •English

The photographer sends miss Ophelia a dozen photographs of her in different poses. Selecting the best one, she presents it to her favorite boarder, Billy, who does not think much of it and who gets very indignant when it is compared with the photo of his sweetheart. Miss Ophelia goes up to her room in tears and tells her faithful maid, Belinda, that her heart is broken. Belinda goes down and forcibly tells Billy what she thinks of him. Miss Ophelia resolves on suicide, because no one seems to love her. Belinda gets back in time to prevent this and, to divert her mistress, she suggests that they go together to a beauty specialist. Arriving there, both receive attention. Miss Ophelia gets a new complexion, while Belinda gets new teeth. Both invest in new gowns and dresses and the transformation is complete. At supper time, the boarders are all astounded.

The Miracle Water

February 1914 •Italian

In this sophisticated romantic comedy, healing waters are the cover for an extramarital affair that “cures” the infertility problems of a childless couple.

The Burning Towel or A Household Quarrel

August 1911 •French

A couple’s fight over dinner leads to spiralling domestic abuse that spreads all over town. (MoMA)

Mr. Walkie Talkie

November 1952 •English

Military comedy about two sergeant buddies constantly getting into trouble.

Stop Look and Listen

January 1967 •English

Stop Look and Listen is a 1967 sort comedy film written, directed by and starring Len Janson and Chuck Menville. It was mostly filmed in Griffith Park in pixilation [stop-motion photography].The film generates comedy by contrasting the safe and dangerous styles of two drivers who drive in the way made famous by Harold Lloyd: by sitting in the street and seeming to move their bodies as though they were automobiles. The film was nominated for an Oscar for Best Short Subject, Live Action.

Fall Out

May 1996 •French

This film is an adaptation of Jean Amila's novel Le Boucher des Hurlus. The story, set in the aftermath of the war, is about Michel, a young man orphaned in this manner. He lives with his mother until she collapses under the wave of vituperation from the women in her community, who consider her murdered husband to have been a traitor. When he is sent to an orphanage, he discovers that many of the children in it are there for the same reason he is. Michel decides to escape his captivity and kill the general who ordered his father's death. He and the other children like him are able to get away from the orphanage, in the course of their journeys, they tour the grim battlefields of the recent war. Together, they return to Paris, determined to exact their revenge.

Handkerchief Drill

November 1949 •English

A husband sneezes inconsiderately all over the place, until his wife has had enough and leaves him.

The General

December 1926 •English

During America’s Civil War, Union spies steal engineer Johnny Gray's beloved locomotive, 'The General'—with Johnnie's lady love aboard an attached boxcar—and he single-handedly must do all in his power to both get The General back and to rescue Annabelle.

The Pawnshop

October 1916 •English

A pawnbroker's assistant deals with his grumpy boss, his annoying co-worker and some eccentric customers as he flirts with the pawnbroker's daughter, until a perfidious crook with bad intentions arrives at the pawnshop.

The Count

September 1916 •English

A tailor's apprentice burns Count Broko's clothes while ironing them and the tailor fires him. Later, the tailor discovers a note explaining that the count cannot attend a dance party, so he dresses as such to take his place; but the apprentice has also gone to the mansion where the party is celebrated and bumps into the tailor in disguise…

Private Benjamin

October 1980 •English

A sheltered young high society woman joins the US Army on a whim and finds herself in a more difficult situation than she ever expected.

La marchetta

March 2013 •Italian

Doing Their Bit

October 1942 •English

Nancy and Sluggo do their bit for the USO.

Caminandes: Llama Drama

February 2013 •English

Koro wants to get to the other side of the road.

The Vagabond

July 1916 •English

A tramp tries to earn money by playing the violin, but he’s soon facing off against the jealous competition.

Stripes

June 1981 •English

John Winger, an indolent sad sack in his 30s, impulsively joins the US Army after losing his job, his girlfriend and his apartment.

The Crimson Pirate

September 1952 •English

Burt Lancaster plays a pirate with a taste for intrigue and acrobatics who involves himself in the goings on of a revolution in the Caribbean in the late 1700s. A light hearted adventure involving prison breaks, an oddball scientist, sailing ships, naval fights and tons of swordplay.

Kelly's Heroes

June 1970 •English

A misfit group of World War II American soldiers goes AWOL to rob a bank behind German lines.

In the Army Now

August 1994 •English

Bones Conway and Jack Kaufman didn't really know what they were in for when they enlisted in the U.S. Army; they just wanted to get a job and make some money. But these new recruits are so hapless, they run the risk of getting kicked out before their military careers even begin. Soon, though, they're sent to the Middle East to fight for their country -- which they manage to do in their own wacky ways.

Ashes of Doom

January 1970 •English

A chain-smoking woman has an encounter with a vampire.