Watching Silent Films

A tantalizing futuristic wonder, Metropolis is a Silent lingering with choreography that makes your eyes wander throughout the tale as a spectacle like no other. Director Fritz Lang pulls out all the stops on what critics claim today as a creative masterpiece, Metropolis becoming an immediate classic in respect where you will never forget this film. Lily's film watch: The Man Who Laughs (1928) with Conrad Veidt, Dir. Paul Leni; The Artist (2011), Dir. Michel Hazanavicius. Bob's film watch: State of the Union (1948), Dir. Frank Capra; The Third Man (1949) Dir. Carol Reed.  YiFeng's film watch: Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samurai (1954); It's a Wonderful Life (1946), Dir. Frank Capra.  Harold Lloyd's estate has a YouTube channel, publishing some rare and unseen gems almost daily! Go and Subscribe! We have! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4A3IJ4FssK3b7SeXc2kMMw Roger Ebert's review from June 2010 -  https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-metropolis-2010-restoration-1927 We want to thank our listeners for joining us on this podcast, and here's hoping we spoke about some films you hadn't seen yet!  To keep up to date with your "Silent itch," we suggest the forum NitrateVille, a site where you can talk, and share your stories about preserving and collecting vintage films. https://www.nitrateville.com/ Fritzi Kramer's blog Movies, Silently is a tour de force website dedicated to the lost art of, and for, sharing the beauty of silent films. Her articles are fantastic! https://moviessilently.com/about/ We want to thank our recurring hosts Diane and Adam for their insight and willingness to be "on the air" and talk about classics of the day with us. We'll see you in Season 2! Recorded on February 25, 2021 Hosted by YiFeng, Bob, and Lily

One of the most well-known (dare we say famous!) silent films of all time due to a man dangling from the arm of a clock, Safety Last! anchored Harold Lloyd among the comedic greats of the moving pictures era.  Lloyd plays a small-town "Boy" trying to make it in the big city, who finds employment as a department-store clerk. He comes up with a wild publicity stunt to draw attention to the store after his roommate's successful climb of escape from a cop, resulting in the incredible feat of a death-defying stunt! Laugh-out-loud funny and jaw-dropping in equal measure, Safety Last! is a movie experience you won't soon forget.  Lily's film watch: Greta (2019), Dir. Sparkman Clark. Found on Amazon Prime. Adam's film watch: Greed (1924), Dir. Erich von Stroheim, and Die Nibelungen (1924), Dir. Fritz Lang. A silent fantasy film! Subscribe to Harold Lloyd on YouTube! The estate has been releasing his filmography, so why not see something of his that you haven't yet?! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4A3IJ4FssK3b7SeXc2kMMw/featured HOW they filmed Safety Last! https://silentlocations.com/2012/02/29/how-harold-lloyd-filmed-safety-last/?fbclid=IwAR1xDxAzkmtQk2wNRZPckRqEw3q3EesSQ_l3OZ5gCqodxeddMeoz7udFYhQ We want to thank Adam so much for joining us on this podcasting journey! Being able to bond over silents has been a joy, and we can't thank you enough for sharing your knowledge and being an overall fan!  Hosted by YiFeng, Adam, and Lily. Originally recorded on December 6, 2020.

The fable-like, poignant story, subtitled A Song of Two Humans, Sunrise is an American silent melodramatic masterpiece by German director F.W. Murnau (In his American film debut) - a beautiful, atmospheric, lyrical and poetic work of art with roots in the German Expressionist movement (from 1914 to 1924). Starring George O'Brien, Janet Gaynor, and Margaret Livingston, the story of corruption and redemption involves a rustic farmer in a romanticized rural town who falls prey to the seductive wiles of a city vamp in an illicit affair. He plots to murder his loving wife during a boat trip to the temptation-ridden city. His conscience is awakened during the attempted killing and he relents, and in the city the couple fall in love again. On their return trip, a tempestuous storm appears to drown the wife, but she is eventually found and the family is reunited and reconciled. The script was adapted from the short story "The Excursion to Tilsit," from the 1917 collection with the same title by Hermann Sudermann.  Sunrise is one of the first feature films with a synchronized musical score and sound effects soundtrack. The film won the Academy Award for Unique and Artistic Picture at the very first Oscars in 1929 (this particular award was created for the film itself. The category has since been disbanded since the 30s onward). Gaynor won the first Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role for her performance in the film.  Sunrise is widely considered a masterpiece and one of the greatest films ever made. Many claim it to be the best picture made during the silent era.  ** We do apologize for a bit of strange overlap during the episode, especially around 38.2 minutes in. We promise we're not talking over one another!  Also featured on this episode is the Laurel and Hardy silent Battle of the Century!   UPDATE 3/5/21: Link to Battle of the Century is no longer available for viewing, account terminated. However we still recommend watching this interview with collector Jon Mirsalis on discovering the lost reel to "Battle." https://youtu.be/2MxC4glhB5Y Lily's film watch: Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953), feat. Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell. Adam's film watch: Judex (1916), a French silent film serialization.  YiFeng also mentioned these silent melodrama serializations during the podcast, and we hope you'll watch!  The Perils of Pauline and Exploits of Elaine, both made in 1914. Hosted by YiFeng, Adam and Lily. Originally recorded on November 17, 2020. 

When Letty Mason (Lillian Gish), an impoverished young woman from Virginia, relocates to West Texas, she finds herself unsettled by the ever-present wind and sand. Arriving at her new home at the ranch of her cousin (Edward Earle) she receives a surprisingly cold welcome from his wife (Dorothy Cumming). With tension in the family building and unwanted attention from a trio of suitors, including neighbor Lige Hightower (Lars Hanson), Letty grows increasingly disturbed as time shifts on.  An unwanted marriage, an unwanted lover, and a liable cause for hysteria, Swedish director Victor Sjöström (Seastrom) takes Dorothy Scarborough's 1925 novel of the same title to rattling heights. You know the subtleties of what is coming, even if it’s not explicitly recognized. Though the film differs from the novel halfway through, this stunning silent is a visual treat which will stay with you even when the wind has finally calmed down.  Some films on our "watch" list included,   Lily: Daddy (2019), featuring Ron Rifkin and Dylan Sprouse, Dir. by Christian Coppola. Adam: Theater of Blood (1973), featuring Vincent Price and Diana Rigg, Dir. by Douglas Hickox; and The Floating Weeds (1959), Dir. by Yasujiro Ozu.  YiFeng: The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923), featuring Lon Chaney, Dir. by Wallace Worsley. Our show notes include two unique articles depicting The Wind's legacy:  https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.3402/jac.v1i0.4641#aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cudGFuZGZvbmxpbmUuY29tL2RvaS9wZGYvMTAuMzQwMi9qYWMudjFpMC40NjQxP25lZWRBY2Nlc3M9dHJ1ZUBAQDA= https://moviessilently.com/2014/04/29/silent-movie-myth-5-the-wind-ended-wrong-and-is-too-windy/ Hosted by YiFeng, Adam, and Lily.  Originally recorded on November 17, 2020. 

As a party of aristocrats gathers at the Vogelöd family manor house for a hunting weekend, the uninvited arrival of Count Oechst (Lothar Mehnert) interrupts their plans. While rumors persist that the urbane and disdainful Oechst may have murdered his own brother (Paul Hartmann), social discomfort increases further when the Baron (Paul Bildt) and Baroness (Olga Tschechowa) arrive, as she is the recently remarried widow of Oechst's brother. When the Baroness' confessor, Father Faramond (Victor Blütner), unaccountably disappears, the villa becomes the arena for separating truth from lies, via two dreams and two flashbacks, plus multiple deceptions, accusations and confrontations.  "The Haunted Castle" is one of the lesser known earliest accomplishments by the great visual artist/director F.W. Murnau. Schloß Vogelöd is a treat not only visually for the eye, but instills intrigue for the viewer in this new age of filmmaking.  Mentioned in this podcast:   Cinderella (1899) https://youtu.be/Wv3Z_STlzpc Adam's watchlist included: The Student of Prague (1913), and The Man Who Laughs (1928), starring Conrad Veidt and co-written by Victor Hugo.  Hosted by YiFeng, Lily and Adam. Recorded on November 13, 2020. 

Post WW1, F.W. Murnau directs this German-Danish co-production, showcasing some of his best intentions toward future films.   Der Gang in die Nacht (Journey into the Night) is derived from a screenplay by the Danish scenarist Harriet Bloch. It’s an example of the “nobility film,” a genre cultivated by the Nordisk studio where Bloch worked. In these stories, an upper-class man becomes obsessed with a working-class woman, and she leads him to disaster. In Murnau’s film, the well-to-do protagonist is Dr. Eigil Börne. Uneasy with his courtship of his wispy fiancée Helene, he plunges into an affair with the dancer Lily. They move to a seaside cottage, where their idyll is interrupted by the spectral figure of a blind artist (Conrad Veidt). After Dr. Börne restores the Painter’s sight, Lily falls in love with him and leaves Börne. Unhappiness ensues for all, and yes, suicide is involved. Be sure to join KANOPY if you currently have not. Check your local and surrounding libraries for access and entertainment. KANOPY is available throughout the United States. For a "live" accompaniment experience in the current age of the Covid-19 pandemic, Ben Model's Silent Comedy Watch Party on YouTube is a great way to enjoy film and live entertainment. https://www.youtube.com/user/silentfilmmusic One of Adam's film picks this week included Lon Chaney and Joan Crawford in 1927's The Unknown. A great article on Murnau before Nosferatu: http://www.davidbordwell.net/blog/2016/11/06/murnau-before-nosferatu/?fbclid=IwAR00jtMv4kcCR-AMnDKFQ7_3cCvqqvDkkvGOHQXXjbPn53NEenltRqw-Rl0 Hosted by YiFeng and Adam. Recorded on October 22, 2020

In Robert Wiene's final film entry, Wiene proved that he not only had impeccable taste when it came to creating the rococo ambience of the original opera, but was also perceptively tuned into the ironic element which distinguishes Rosenkavalier as one of the major 20th century operas. The film is based on the music of Der Rosenkavalier opera by Richard Strauss. It was arranged in an instrumental form to suit the film medium and was played by a repetiteur on set. Taking the opera’s story line as its central theme, the result was a film comedy enlivened with attractive locations, including Schönbrunn Castle and its extensive grounds in Vienna. The ‘people’s film opera,’ as Strauss liked to call it, was staged in an opulent scenography produced by Alfred Roller who had furnished the setting for the opera’s premier. Film versions of operas were already popular in the silent film era; however, few other opera films of the time were as spectacular and of such a high musical quality as Der Rosenkavalier. For more on Richard Strauss, this unique playbill talks about the making of the film, his music, and his life.  https://issuu.com/orchestraenlightenment/docs/der_rosenkavalier_programme_pdf Host Diane spearheaded one of the Internet's first silent film related websites, and now runs The Silents Majority - Goes Wayback! on Facebook. Be sure to join this public group for daily, silent era content! https://www.facebook.com/groups/484423584978921  Hosted by YiFeng, Lily and Diane Recorded on September 30th, 2020

By the director of The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, this is the Passion embedded in a contemporary story.  An anarchist jailed for an attempted assassination is told the Passion story by the prison chaplain, who seeks to convince him that it is better to sacrifice one's own life than take the life of one's enemy. The framing story, taken from a novel, is believed to have been intended to give the Biblical story an anti-Bolshevist propaganda function. In any case, it was added without the knowledge of the actors in the Passion story, who included some of the major stars of the period: Asta Nielsen as Mary Magdalene, Henny Porten as Mary, Grigori Chmara as Jesus, and Werner Krauss (Caligari himself) as Pontius Pilate.  Have some free time? Diane's picks in the classic realm are both Academy Award winning films: CITIZEN KANE and Casablanca, and From the Manger to the Cross (1912).  For the modern realm, Academy Award winning film The King's Speech is an excellent pick on our behalf.  Diane runs The Silents Majority - Goes Wayback! Be sure to join this public group! https://www.facebook.com/groups/484423584978921 Brad's review:  https://letterboxd.com/film/inri-a-film-of-humanity/ Did you know? Famous for his watercolor paintings, James Tissot is one of THE largest inspirations for many of the Passion-based films.  Originally recorded on Sept. 16, 2020. Hosted by YiFeng, Lily, and Diane. 

For the viewer who has grown accustomed to Douglas Fairbank's and his similar "themes," films dealing with swashbuckling or youth or joy, The Gaucho is a silent film classic that will strip away any misconceptions about what role Fairbanks will play or which type of character is best identified toward his bustling career.  The Gaucho is unique in both tone and look--a combination of action/adventure with a morality tale featuring heavy atmosphere and a darker sensibility than any other Fairbanks film. Tragic yet somehow more rugged and realistic, the film and its cast, featuring Lupe Velez as the spunky Mountain Girl and Joan Barclay as the Girl of the Shrine, show the truths we hide and seek thrill from in a tale told so profoundly it can be enjoyed no matter which year it's been watched.  Ready to watch more in the classic realm?  Bob's films included Father Goose featuring Cary Grant, Yankee Doodle Dandy with James Cagney, and How to Steal a Million with Audrey Hepburn and Peter O'Toole.  Interested in something of the modern time? Lily's recent work on Luna, The Witch can be seen on Amazon Prime or Angelwood Pictures at https://www.angelwoodpictures.com/lunathewitch/index.php?LunaPage=3 Hosted by YiFeng, Bob and Lily.  Originally recorded on August 28, 2020

"Crime and Punishment," the original story written in twelve monthly installments during 1866 by Dostoevsky, focuses on the mental anguish and moral dilemmas of Rodion Raskolnikov, an impoverished ex-student in Saint Petersburg who formulates a plan to kill an unscrupulous pawnbroker for her money. Before the killing, Raskolnikov believes that with the money he could liberate himself from poverty and go on to perform great deeds. However, he finds himself racked with confusion, paranoia, and disgust for what he has done. His justifications disintegrate completely as he struggles with guilt and horror and confronts the real-world consequences of his deed. This version by Caligari filmmaker Robert Weine similarly follows along the same lines of the novel, Gregori Chmara starring as the disparaged Raskolnikov.  Although the 1923 version we observed for this podcast wasn't of the greatest quality, we recommend checking out many of the other remakes of Crime and Punishment -- there are at least 30 others! Hosted by YiFeng, Bob, and Lily Recorded on September 9, 2020