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3 things about Josef von Sternberg’s UNDERWORLD
Underworld [1927] 1. He extinguishes his cigarette in the champagne bucket. 2. Cow light fixture surrounded by empty bottles of booze. 3. An exodus from the tenement–bathrobes, dressing gowns, pajamas,...
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3 things about F.W. Murnau’s THE LAST LAUGH
The Last Laugh [1924] 1. He comes in to get out of the rain for a moment, sits down. His leg is acting up again. The bellboy gives him a quick drink. Meanwhile, the manager shakes his head...
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3 things about Josef von Sternberg’s THE DOCKS OF NEW YORK
The Docks of New York [1928] 1. Her reflection in the water. She jumps. Then, ripples appear. 2. “You may be big game aboard ship, but you’re only an animal-cracker here.” 3. It’s the morning after his...
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3 things about Cecil B. DeMille’s THE TEN COMMANDMENTS
The Ten Commandments [1923] 1. “They are not laws–they are the LAW.” 2. Not in the remake: Ramses’ son is a bratty boy pharoah with a little whip. 3. He shoots Sally Lung. As she falls to the floor she...
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3 things about F.W. Murnau’s NOSFERATU
Nosferatu [1922] 1. He looks at the photograph. “Is this your wife? What a lovely throat!” 2. They overturn the coffin. It’s filled with earth and rats. One of them bites the sailor. 3. In his final...
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3 things about Buster Keaton’s SEVEN CHANCES
Seven Chances [1925] 1. Dressed for the wedding, he takes two train tickets out of his pocket: one for Niagra Falls, one for Reno. 2. He emerges from the water with a turtle hanging from his necktie....
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3 things about Jacques Feyder’s FACES OF CHILDREN
Faces of Children [1925] 1. The child watches the gravedigger refill his mother’s grave, then passes out. His father carries him home. The gravedigger continues in his work without a pause. 2....
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3 things about Michel Hazanavicius’ THE ARTIST
The Artist [2011] 1. Over time, his mustache morphs from pencil-thin to brushlike. 2. “BANG!” 3. Malcolm McDowell’s ruddy nose (even in black & white). Tagged: 3 things, movies, silent film
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3 things about King Vidor’s THE CROWD
The Crowd [1928] 1. Upon entering the room he is immediately accosted by a flapper. 2. Several decades before Psycho, an onscreen toilet. 3. Everyone and everything is making too much noise. Tagged: 3...
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3 things about Sam Taylor’s FOR HEAVEN’S SAKE
For Heaven’s Sake [1926] 1. He uses the cigarette lighter from the wrecked car and then strolls away. 2. “When I get through with that Uptown dude, you can put a lily in his hand and close the lid!” 3....
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3 things about Robert Wiene’s THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari [1920] 1. Cesar is 23. 2. Branches and leaves like scythes. 3. “Now I know exactly how to cure him.” Tagged: 3 things, Halloween, movies, silent film
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3 things about Arthur Berthelet’s SHERLOCK HOLMES
Sherlock Holmes [1916] 1. “An ill-suited watchdog.” Moriarty’s henchman has a bulldog. 2. A dissolve to a slightly tighter shot and then a dissolve back to the wider angle. Would a straight cut have...
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