Sunrise

Title: Sunrise 
Year: 1927
Country: USA
Director: F.W. Murnau
Producer: William Fox
Genre: Drama & Romance 
Oscars: William Fox (unique and artistic picture); Janet Gaynor (actress); Charles Rosher & Karl Strauss (photography)
Oscar Nominations: Rochus Gliese (art direction)
Runtime: 110 minutes 
Viewed: June 24, 2013

Review: If you've been following my journey for awhile then you probably noticed two new categories listed above! Well, that's because this is the first year they had the Academy Awards. The book noted that most believe that the first Best Picture was Wings, well that is accurate except for the fact that the academy actually honored two films, Sunrise of course being the second. 

I really wanted to like this movie, especially since it was recognized by the Academy, but I didn't. I actually remember the most about this movie out of all of the silent ones thus far because it made me so angry! I always read what 1001 says before I watch the movie and based on the description I did not think it would be bad. However, I was very wrong. The plot itself is so simple but the execution enraged me. 

The concept is that this mysterious woman comes to town and the married man falls for her and she convinces him to kill his wife so they can be together. So let me tell you how I saw this movie. A man falls for a new woman after his wife fairly recently had a baby, she tells him to kill the wife, he tries to follow through, fails to do so, tries to make up to his wife for trying to kill her, almost loses her in the storm, tries to kill the mistress, and then everything ends well because the wife is alive. 

GAG! Seriously, I'm sorry but this sounds like the pattern of a domestic violence perpetrator and that is not a film I want to watch. Oh I'm sorry I tried to kill my wife, let's experience the honeymoon period again and make everything better. I was kind of hoping the wife died so that he would have to suffer for what he had tried to do her, but of course not. This is not a movie I like. I wouldn't want to watch it again and I definitely wouldn't make someone else sit through it. Strong feelings about cheating and abuse are never going to be pushed aside. I guess you could say getting my degree in Sociology ruined this film for me, but I'm okay with that. 

Rating: 
2 Shamrocks (The only reason it's getting 2 is because visually it is appealing but if it was based solely on the story and my level of enjoyment of the film, it'd be a 1) 

Movie 31 down... 970 to go! 

Metropolis

Title: Metropolis 
Year: 1927
Country: Germany
Director: Fritz Lang
Producer: Erich Pommer 
Genre: Drama & Sci-Fi
Runtime: 148 minutes 
Viewed: March 6, 2013

Review: As my readers know by now, I do not like silent films. That being said, this one, although much longer than necessary, was good. It takes place in the year 2026, which is a mere 13 years away from where we are now. It is interesting to compare how the Lang and Pommer imagined 2026 would be to today. One thing that is unfortunately accurate is the work of those being done underground. The rich don't want to have to see who is making the world go around and they try to make sure of that in this movie. 

There are many commonalities between the way the workers depicted in this movie and those of today, as well as the rich. I think the end of the film though is what is most interesting. Spoiler alert: Although the poor want to succeed and find a way out from the bottom in their rush to collapse the system they all forget about their children.

The line that is driven home in this film is, "The mediator between the head and the hands must be the heart." i think it is good to remember this while watching the movie, not that you could forget because they won't allow you to. But also, in life. 

The way this film was made is incredible for the time in which it was created. The transformation of the robot to woman, the way all the machines are working throughout the film, and so much more is just phenomenal. I do not even like sci-fi films and this one really set the bar high for all future films, but specifically sci-fi movies. 

It was also very awesome to watch the character development of Freder throughout the film, he is after all the films hero!

Rating: 
3 Shamrocks 

Movie 30 down... 971 to go! 

The Big Parade

Title: The Big Parade
Year: 1925
Country: USA
Director: King Vidor
Producer: Irving Thalberg
Genre: Romance & War
Runtime: 140 minutes 
Viewed: February 14, 2013

Review: Oh silent films how I have not missed you. I really cannot wait to be out of silent films in the book. I do try to see the positives in films such as this. Initially, I was surprised by the fact that there were actual sounds in the movie, such as the horn being blown at the beginning of the film. I did enjoy the Army music throughout the movie as well. It was fun that the director thought to put the words with music notes surrounding them into the film. The story begins with a rich boy, who is often described as "idle" which I believe to just mean lazy, spending time with his girlfriend. It isn't long before it is announced that WWI is happening. The young man decides to join based on his patriotic friends and his girlfriend who thinks he will be so cute in his uniform. All that to say as he is sent to France he falls in love with a girl, loses his two closest friends, and gets his leg blown off. One might ask what is better than that experience to which I reply, he returns home to find out his girlfriend has started dating his brother! To say the least I was not a fan of the girlfriend character. Of course the girlfriend is not supposed to matter at this point though because he is in love with the French woman and returns to find his love. Now, ever since I was a kid I remember people doing the long run into an intense embrace, whether it was joking between friends or on other TV shows/movies, and I believe this is where that came from. The ending of the movie of course is touching because what are the odds that he would be able to find his love again. Overall the movie was good, but long. I could definitely do without silent films lasting 2+ hours. Would I watch it again? Probably not. But I can understand why the movie was put in the 1001 book. 

Rating: 
2.5 Shamrocks

Movie 29 down... 972 to go!