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Off to see Murnau's Sunrise tonight which is being presented by noted Silents historian Kevin Brownlow in the auspicious surroundings of Kelburn Castle in Ayrshire.
I have seen clips of the movie on youtube and it looks incredible for it's time.
My knowledge of the silents is fairly limited and I'm not a huge silent comedy fan. Are there any other 'must see' films from before the talkies in anyones opinion (excepting Metropolis)?
Follow Ups:
Abram Room, 1927.
A true masterpiece.
Given a limited amount of time for an intro to silents, I think Potmekin is a pretty safe rec. Is Bed and Sofa available on DVD? Our OP is in UK.
Yeah, B & S should is available on DVD; I got it through Netflix.
Sergei Mikhailovich Eizenshtein. Battleship Potemkin/Bronenosets Potyomkin.
He was born in Riga but I think he went to school in St. Petersburg, fought in the Red Army. Came to Hollyweird in the mid-twenties and was fired by the studio and then deported for being a Communist.
Ah...when I get some of the current workload outa the way I'll put it in my Netflix que.
... are your email settings up to date? I just sent you a note.
Thanks! Had a hiccup in responding.Ingram is a director rype for eassessment.
I had no idea there was such a passionate following for the silents. Thank you guys for your recommendations, it will keep me busy in the coming months.
The event was a huge success. Kevin gave a 1hr talk on the life and influences of David Lean. Unfortunately, as the projectionist I was more focussed on ensuring the selection of film clips were loaded and stopped in time and missed most of what he was saying, which was humourous and very well presented. He kindly gave me the paper copy of the speech and I have a list of the excerpts which I will follow up on (The Gold Rush, Mare Nostre, The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse).
Sunrise was a revelation, the techniques, the performances, the humour shattered all my preconceptions about the silent era. The facial expressions on the barber were priceless. The drunken pig hilarious and utterly tasteless.
Lord Glasgow was an excellent and enthusiastic host and I got the impression every one of the fifty or so guests had a good night. I have a feeling it may happen again sometime soon.
All in one evening? And the topic was David Lean? With fifty guests...ohmygawd...
I have never seen Mare Nostrum. It wasn't readily available for many years. I have seen the restoration of Four Horseman and it holds up very well indeed, and of course contains the famous debut of Rudolf Valentino. Ingram also directed a famous and entertaining silent version Scaramouche - it was on TCM a few years ago. He did Prisoner of Zenda too...I would be interested to hear what Brownlow had to say about Ingram.
Ummm...about those notes...
I'm sure Kevin will not mind a few quotes from his speech being put up here as he struck me as very generous. I will ask him of course and assuming he agrees will post some of his insight.
I found a ton of stuff relating to Kevin on youtube yesterday. I was particularly interested in viewing the 'Hollywood' series he made in the eighties which is narrated by James Mason. I'm sure you would find it fascinating.
I look forward to it. Mr. Brownlow has participated in several fine programs and commentaries, and he has written some of the most illuminating books on early cinema. There is no better guide through early film history I can think of. I recorded his wonderful Unknown Chaplin series on PBS back in the 80s - that's just one of the programs written/directed by Brownlow and David Gill and narrated by James Mason. Of course, the Chaplin series is on DVD now. Alas, not all of them were, last time I checked. They are all well worth seeking out - especially the ones on fellow comedians Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd. They included interviews with co-workers and collaborators who passed away soon after these progams were produced.Since Patrick is fairly fuming, when you venture into 1930s sound films, allow me to urge you to include L'Atalante, by Jean Vigo on your list.
My favorite French films of the thirties would have to be this film and Renoir's Rules Of the Game.
...your mention of L'Atlantic reminded me of another, perhaps greater film soon to be released (Region 2, PAL)!
And with Brownlow...whew!
Sunrise is of the great movies of all time - and hugely influential. It is on my top ten list of greatest films of any era. Brownlow will annotate its virtues far better than I!
In many way, silent films are the purest form of cinema.
Other must sees of major silent cinema IMO would be:
The Passion Of Joan of Arc, by the great Dane, Carl Dreyer - monumental, incredible film, it gobsmacked me first time I saw it. Brilliant use of editing in close-up, oft emulated but never surpassed. Falconetti's performance as Joan is for the ages. Also check out Dreyer's early sound masterpiece Vampyr, as well as his later films.
Pandora's Box, Pabst - Phenomenal performance by Louise Brooks, one of the great screen portrayals of all time. Despite the German Expressionist sets and cinematogrpahy, PB ii surprpisingly modern in sensibility, more naturalistic than expected, materfully filmed and edited. It's also highly erotic - ain't no Hayes Code here. This one is also on my all time ten best list.
Metropolis, Fritz Lang - see the restored version, but do see it if you haven't already. An iconographic film, one of the most referenced movies in the history of cinema - you can hardly avoid its narrative and visual tropes in sci-fi and distopian genres. Yet Metropolis remains a powerful experience.
Battleship Potemkin, Sergei Eisenstein - Seminal film from the great Russian genius, Eisenstein would go on to make even greater films, but this remarkable movie demonstates his principles of storytelling through editing in astonishing fashion. His passion pours through every frame, mainly via the sophisticated editing, which lends this silent a modern feel. One of the most influential films of all time, the Odessa steps sequence has been oft emulated, most famously by Brian De Palma in The Untouchables.
The above, along with the silent films of Chaplin and Keaton, rank as truly great cinema IMO and should be seen by anyone who even remotely cares about film. Sunrise, Passion of JoA and Pandora's Box are great films - period.
Other essential viewing:
Napoleon, Abel Gance - really designed for and needs to be seen on the big screen, but see it some way.
Nosferatu, Murnau again, very creepy. Very unsettling.
The Last Laugh - Murnau yet again, mainly for the hearbreaking performance of Emil Jannings.
The Wind, Lillian Gish in her greatest role, and a fine film, depsite the studio forced "happy ending". Forgot director's name.
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, Robert Wiene - The icon of German Expressionism, justly famous for its use of sets and lighting, plus off kilter framing, to reflect a disturbed mind. Cabinet is to the horror and noir film genres what Metropolis is to sci-fi.
Underworld, Josef von Sternberg - Early crime thriller and proto-gangster movie, hard to find, alas. A touchstone for future noirs and crime dramas.
Wings, Wellman - First Academy Award winner, not the greatest of the sileents, but of interest for its remarkable aerial footage, a template for future war and action movies.
Don't for a moment think that because they're comedies, the work of Chaplin and Keaton are somehow "lesser" movies. There are arguments galore in film studies over who is the greater, a futile discussion IMO, as these artists are so different from one another. Each also highly regarded the other's work.
Chaplin - a genius. There's a lot of material by the prolific Chaplin, too. He made "silents" well into the sound era, having wisely concluded that his onscree persona, The Little Tramp, should be seen and not heard (we do finally hear him sing in Modern Times.) These "silents did, however, inlcude sound effects and musical soundtracks well into the thirties. The wonderful Modern Times is essentially a silent, as is the celebrated City Lights.
The Gold Rush
Easy Street
The Immigrant
The Circus
The Pilgrim
The Kid
The Rink
A Woman
Sunnyside
Shoulder Arms
One AM
Keaton - also a genius. Advanced film art perhaps more than Chaplin, as Keaton is all about movement, and less about personal performance.
Sherlock Jr.
The General
Seven Chances
The Navigator
Steamboat Bill
The Cameraman
And everyone should see Harold Lloyd's Safety First - no CGI here!
There's a big name missing from my recs. I find the films of D.W. Griffith, an important and and pioneering filmmaker, rather hard to digest. I saw many of the famous (and some not so famous) back in art school days and don't have much of a desire to see them again. The racism in Birth of A Nation is repellent to me. The epic Intolerance is the better film anyway, innovative for its scope and weaving of 4 interrelated stories together from different historical periods. Despite its impressive sets, memorable set pieces and massive ambition, Intolerance doesn't rank with the greatest films of the silent era IMO. The melodramas like Orhpans of the Storm wear a bit better for me, although I never watch them. Another inmate may have stronger feelings for Griffith than I and offer better insight and historical perspective of the highly influential Griffith.
I'm sure I've left some good silents out - there's no Asian silents listed - but this would surely get you started.
As a lifelong fan and collector of silent films on DVD, that list works for me. Please forgive me, but I can't help adding to it! For instance, I'd include more Harold Lloyd films (the best silent comedies I've ever purchased were part of the Harold Lloyd box set; see below), such as Girl Shy, The Kid Brother, The Freshman and Speedy.Also a few of the Douglas Fairbanks adventure titles would be worth catching on DVD or silent repertoire cinema, such as The Thief of Baghdad, Robin Hood and/or The Iron Mask. And his wife Mary Pickford's films such as Sparrows and Daddy Longlegs right up through My Best Girl
As for German Expressionism and various post WWI silent classics, I'd add Murnau's Faust, Fritz Lang's Dr. Mabuse films (silent and sound sequels), Lang's Spione (Spies) and Die Nibelungen and 'M' (sound) and Joe May's Asphalt.
I'd also recommend the John Ford silents set (excellent transfers of well made films by one of America's preeminent Directors)
Ah yes, and for another Pabst, I'd add the Criterion release of the early German sound film The Threepenny Opera (based upon the Brecht/Weill musical).
Agree with you 100% on Napoleon; now THERE is the film I'd like to see presented by Kevin Brownlow, complete, with a full symphony and unabridged as he restored Gance's masterpiece (not-Coppola-ized)
This is just for starters! :o)
Cheers,
AuPh
She forgot Meliés!
" Mieux vaut une tête bien faite qu'une tête bien pleine."
See Audiophilander's post below. As great as the work is, it's probably not the gateway to a love for silent film for most viewers. Melies must be seen by all serious film students, but the works require context to be fully appreciated.Vigo - he made only one or two silent shorts to the best of my knowledge. In trying to recommend silent masterpieces, Vigo's splendid doc on Nice doesn't exactly spring to mind, andmay be hard to find. If we're talking early sound classics then his L'Atalante is a must see masterpiece of the thirties.
Luis Bunuel - a great filmmaker, but again, for a neophyte, perhaps a second course rather than the introduction. He made only one silent anyway, the famous surrealist manifesto Un chien andalou, and that with Dali. All 15 minutes of it. His second film and first feature was a sound film, L'Age d'or, also with Dali.
Vigo- de Nice is even better you can think of.
It is a poem.
So true-My hometown.
" Mieux vaut une tête bien faite qu'une tête bien pleine."
Ah...that is a poem to Nice.
What a lovely place it is.
It is still a little, until today.
A critical, burlesque sometime but so true to Nice.
He put the essence of that town into moving pictures.
" Mieux vaut une tête bien faite qu'une tête bien pleine."
I fully agree with you. Yes I do.
With the exception of le chien Andalou a masterpiece.
" Mieux vaut une tête bien faite qu'une tête bien pleine."
...a full artistic masterpiece, in the sense of a Sunrise or Passion of Joan Of Arc. But it's a landmark in non-narrative film and important in manyw ways,. Certainly a manifesto.
As a thumb in the eye of the establishment, it is a masterpiece of provocation.
A masterpiece is a masterpiece.
Some time a short one is easier to go on as an long.
But, of course you are right.
" Mieux vaut une tête bien faite qu'une tête bien pleine."
nt
" Mieux vaut une tête bien faite qu'une tête bien pleine."
I will agree in respect to Meliés because I own the massive Meliés collection from Flicker Alley/Lobster and can attest to this sets merit for film enthusiasts, but I'd hesitate recommending it to the uninitiated who are just curious about silent films. I can't stress enough that early historical silent films as well as experimental cinema are very much an acquired taste (regardless of importance from a historical perspective). Most of the films Harmonia mentioned and those that I provided as an addenda are accessible to anyone with a modest interest in classic silent films.
Of course, YMMV, but that doesn't mean that we missed the mark recommendation-wise.
AuPh
How boring it would be...
" Mieux vaut une tête bien faite qu'une tête bien pleine."
You acted as though Harmonia should've included films on her list that YOU think are masterpieces (saying "Not so great list Harmonia!" is rude and offensive); not everyone will agree with your assessment about Vigo and Bunuel, and yet you stated it as if it were an incontrovertible fact. See my point?
You need to work on your communication skills.
AuPh
Erm...love ya both...please relax. No one is offended, at least I hope not.
I know Patrick for the Gallic tease he is.
And I apprecieate Audiophilanderer's gallantry.
So now, back to movies. :-)
I can guaranty you one thing in " real " life I am far more " gallant " than Aud...
" Mieux vaut une tête bien faite qu'une tête bien pleine."
;O)
...and 'issues' in respect to patrick's insulting folks tastes in film that are long standing. He knows which buttons to push to get a less than cordial response from yours truly, and trust me, he relishes those opportunities.
I'm sorry that you were involved in this exchange, and I'm glad that we both share a profound appreciation of silent films, but the problems I've had with patrick are not specific to this thread or your posts.
Maybe in some future thread discussing silent films patrick will be a bit more supportive of shared information instead of inserting contradictory opinions out of the blue. After all we were just trying to provide delboy, et al, with more informed options from our own experiences.
AuPh
Bamby B and Harmonia are the one among the very few here I cherish the most, here and Now-
" Mieux vaut une tête bien faite qu'une tête bien pleine."
As H. obviously is not, and rightly so, she understand my urge of teasing, and my kind of.
All things that will for ever... eludes you.
PS: Yes WE ALL thinks that OUR list are the right one... You, again, lost a good reason to be quiet...
" Mieux vaut une tête bien faite qu'une tête bien pleine."
I often find your posts offensive (for other reasons), but we won't discuss that today unless you choose to make an issue out of it.
> > > "Yes WE ALL thinks that OUR list are the right one... You, again, lost a good reason to be quiet..." < < <
And you, as usual, took this one step too far.
> > > "I am glad YOU are offended..." < < <
Of course you're glad that I found your comments offensive; that was your real reason for posting this thread and I think most folks are keenly aware of it.
AuPh
How do you like that?
" Mieux vaut une tête bien faite qu'une tête bien pleine."
Trou du cul, like yours..
" Mieux vaut une tête bien faite qu'une tête bien pleine."
And you Monsieur are no Gentleman to put a lady in such a situation.
" Mieux vaut une tête bien faite qu'une tête bien pleine."
Good for you; with Brownlow, you'll be in the hands of one of the great ones (his book 'The Parade's Gone By' is still one of the all-time standards on silent film history.)
For other films, first two of the 'unavoidables':
"Nosferatu" (1922/F. W. Murnau)
"Battleship Potemkin" (1925/Sergei Eisenstein)
You have to see them at least once if you are into silents. They may strike you as overwrought in places, but they both have a permanent place in film history for their techniques and for their use of mood and imagery.
"The Last Laugh" (1924/F. W. Murnau); groundbreaking, tragic tale of an old man's fall from respect. Emil Jannings is superb in the lead.
"Wings" (1927/William Wellman) WW1 spectacle with amazing aerial dog-fight scenes. A silent 'action movie.'
For something really special (if you can come across a good print that shows the film correctly), "Napoleon" (1927/Abel Gance) is a massive epic that broke rules that weren't even invented in 1927. 3-camera widescreen, incredible editing/crosscutting...the list goes on. See it if shown in a theatre.
And finally, one of my all-time favorites:
"The Passion of Joan of Arc" (1928/Carl Theodor Dreyer). This one is stylized, severe, and demands every bit of the viewer's attention.
It is also one of the most damning films about man's intolerance towards man ever made, with a truly heartbreaking ending, courtesy of Maria Falconetti's superb acting.
This is just a tiny tip of the iceberg. There's Griffith's 'big ones' "Birth of a Nation" and "Intolerance", the Italian blockbuster "Cabiria", the silent version of "Ben Hur".....
Have fun at the screening, and I hope you enjoy some of my suggestions.
Best,
CC.
Yeah!
" Mieux vaut une tête bien faite qu'une tête bien pleine."
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