1939 Movies

Introduction to the Valaam Monastery.

Aimed at promoting active Korean participation in the war for the Imperial Japanese Army, the film sees the people of Joseon mobilized into a string of organized units such as a youth group helping to recruit young volunteers, a group promoting the sale of war...

A major Maratha historical focusing on Shivaji. The villainous Subedar of Kalyan, in his effort to defeat 17th C. Maratha emperor Shivaji, abducts a Maratha damsel. However, Shivaji and his trusted lieutenant, the equally legendary Netaji Palkar, overcome this...

Castle Films released two cartoons called Christmas Cartoon, this being the first, in a print from the late 1930s. Follows an orphan dog's Christmas adventure to get a Christmas dinner for himself and the other dogs.

A short film from the late 1930s commissioned by the Finnish Broadcasting Company Yleisradio's propaganda department showcases Kouluradio (School Radio),a radio broadcast for school children, and also includes "myths and truths about the signs of spring". The...

A short narration on a vacation day spent in Hamburg.

Film about Ghost-Cat.

Reconstruction of the life of Eugenio Pacelli from the very first stages to the pontifical election of March 2, 1939. "From the famous smoke on the Vatican Palace, to the assumption of Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli to the supreme ecclesiastical dignity. Historical...

Colour amateur documentary from 1939 on life in South Africa and Southern Rhodesia, produced by Frances Hotham. Part 1 (South Africa) includes arrival at Durban, Natal and Howick Falls, war dances at Inanda (Natal) and the Rose Deep Gold Mine (Johannesburg). A...

‘Malay States’ provides a British pre-war perspective on life in the Malaysian archipelago. Sections include ‘Life in a Malay Village’, ‘On the Way to School’, ‘En route for Malacca’ (by train),‘The Sea Front, Malacca’, ‘A Tamil Child’, ‘Burmese Women’, ‘The...

A documentary looking at the elementary principles, illustrated by means of diagrams and models, of an internal combustion engine.

This is a propaganda film made after the establishment of the wartime total mobilization system. The film includes various war efforts, including Gyeongseong Prefectural Association's offering of airplanes; prisoners' contribution of heavy machine guns; the in...

Black-and-white photography of landscapes, a phantom ride through a tunnel, a panorama shot and some view of people playing in the water.

Lady Luck smiles on a reckless secretary who takes a punt on the Irish Sweepstake … but not everyone’s a winner.

An amateur documentary focused on the community of Cologne, Minnesota, circa 1939.