Yes, that's Silents, not Silence. It rained off and on in the Castro neighborhood, but it was dry and joyful (mostly) in the Castro theater. Two days before the Day, cinema made history. A selection of critics released their once-a-decade Sight & Sound of the Best Films of All Time. I'll get to that soon. … Continue reading My experiences at the Day of Silents
Tag: King Vidor
A Day of Silents at the Castro
Yes, that's Silents, not Silence. On Saturday, December 3, the San Francisco Silent Film Festival will have a one-day marathon of silent movies and live music. A Day of Silents will play at the Castro. These days, every time you go to that beautiful theater, you may be watching a movie there for the last … Continue reading A Day of Silents at the Castro
What’s Screening: July 22 – 28
The Bay Area hosts several theatrical screenings of classic cinema this week. You can choose between laughs from Preston Sturges, Kubrick's great SciFi epic, Norman Jewison (who is, by the way, not Jewish) and changed the look of noir while breaking the color line. James Whales made the monster who just wanted to be loved. … Continue reading What’s Screening: July 22 – 28
National Silent Movie Day…at home
This coming Wednesday is National Silent Movie Day, which makes it a perfect day to start exploring silent cinema. Here are eight of my nine favorite silent feature films. (The other, Napoleon is too big for most theaters, let alone your living room.) I'm not listing them best to worst, as I usually do. They're … Continue reading National Silent Movie Day…at home
Good movies suddenly available on Criterion
The Criterion Channel added a lot of good movies at the beginning of September. Here are some of the best: Most of these are part of one of more collections – mostly New York Stories. A+ The Crowd (1928), part of the series New York Stories Of all the films in my All-Time Great Films … Continue reading Good movies suddenly available on Criterion
Great films, strange streams: The Crowd, Lone Star, & Sparticus
Not all great films get the home theater treatment they deserve. Here are three terrific films getting better home presentations…although they still need improvement. The Crowd (1928) Last year, I wrote an article about great films not available at home, and I put The Crowd first. This isn't a lost work, but a masterpiece kept … Continue reading Great films, strange streams: The Crowd, Lone Star, & Sparticus
Films you still can’t see
In these days of Internet streaming, it's easy to assume that every film ever made is available to watch for a few dollars. Of course, most of the silent era and much of the early talkies have been lost. But a surprising number of films that still exist aren't easily available. Here are three films … Continue reading Films you still can’t see
The so-called Great War and its movies
The First World War, called The Great War before a worse one followed it, created some exceptional cinema. Why is that? Perhaps, it's the timing. The ascendancy of feature-length films happened as the war was being fought. Another possibility: World War 1 was so horrible, and yet so pointless (we weren't fighting fascism yet), that … Continue reading The so-called Great War and its movies
1928: The peak and the fall
I don't believe in golden ages and "great film years." Every year since the beginning of cinema has had good and bad films. But there's something special about 1928. At least in America, it was the artistic pinnacle of silent film. And yet it was also the year where silence began to die. Movies kept … Continue reading 1928: The peak and the fall
Good movies, but strangely appropriate double bills
The double bill is almost a lost art. Here in the Bay Area, only the Castro and the Stanford regularly give you two movies for one admission. (I once had to explain the word intermission to my daughter.) Most double bills contain two films with matching moods or belong to the same genre. You don't … Continue reading Good movies, but strangely appropriate double bills
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