Discovering Silent Films
I’m starting to feel like the stereotypical aging curmudgeon, constantly declaring that “They don’t make ’em like they used to”. I’ve said this about computers, cars, video games, music and, of course, movies. I’m currently looking forward to The Mandalorian and Grogu, but I don’t remember the last time I was truly hyped about an upcoming film. I remember the age of the “Summer Blockbuster” that everyone looked forward to, and hits that made a huge cultural impact, and seemed like everyone was talking about.
Nowadays people seem to be more personal about their film choices, staying at home and streaming what they find interesting. Unless you’re on social media, you just don’t get the hype that you used to. Maybe that has more to do with the effects of social media than the quality of films.
But something just seems missing, even from many of the films that do get some cultural traction. –WRITE MORE–
For a while I spent a lot more time looking for hidden gems of the 70s, 80s and 90s. My family wasn’t big on theater-going, and we only had one TV for the majority of my childhood, so unless my parents watched a movie on TV there was a chance I could miss even pretty big movies. This had the obvious downside that a lot of people were excited about and talked about movies that I hadn’t seen, but the upside that they got to be new to me decades later.
But how about almost a century later?
I have since discovered that there is a large untapped source of films created in the silent film era, and that they can be just as engaging as modern films, even if not the same ways.
Discovering Silent Films
The first silent film I ever watched was F.W. Murnau’s Nosferatu (1922). I watched on night in late October about 15 years ago. I enjoyed it more than I thought I would, but unfortunately it didn’t inspire me to explore silent films any further. I just considered it a horror film classic that was worth checking out.
More recently I got to know a friend for whom film was something of a hobby. He was interested in films of all eras, as well as the development of film as an entertainment medium. He appreciated its history and the many cultural influences that generated classic films. I was particularly interested in his fondness for silent films. He was literally the only person I knew who enjoyed silent films.
I asked him if he had a recommendation, and he invited me to watch one of his favorites: Car Dreyer’s The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928).
What I saw was beyond anything I expected.
Stopping now to test this sample. If you happen upon this, I’m not done and just testing this system.