|
Issue Date: November 25, 2007
Hollywood's silent years
They're gone, but certainly not forgotten. We ask some aficionados why they still love the old silent films.
By Jeffrey Ressner
During an era in which Hollywood movies rely on earsplitting explosions and sonic-boom soundtracks to throttle audiences, it may surprise some to learn that films were once (gasp!) silent.
Charlie Chaplin wrote, directed and starred in "Modern Times," the last of his great silent films. December marks the 30th anniversary of Chaplin's death.
|
The last Charlie Chaplin film made sans sound, "Modern Times," was in 1936, but audiences still watch silents on DVDs, at film festivals and online via websites like movieflix.com. Next month marks the 30th anniversary of Chaplin's death, and movie buffs around the world plan to honor his career with events including screenings of his films, accompanied by live orchestras.
What exactly do these films provide that modern blockbusters can't deliver? To find out, USA WEEKEND asked several silent aficionados to explain their passion. The responses were, um, loud and clear.
DUSTIN HOFFMAN, 70
Oscar-winning actor
I've always been interested in silent movies. When I speak to film students, I urge them to watch silent films because it enables them to focus on the structure of shots without being distracted by the dialogue. I ask them how they would face the challenge of "speaking" dialogue without being able to talk. There were some marvelously subtle performances given by those silent actors, given the fact that they had to tell a story without the advantage of dialogue.
KARIE BIBLE, 34
Part-time tour guide
There's something beautiful and dreamlike about silent movies -- a poetry, a grace. They're like a cinematic ballet. The first one that I ever saw was the "Phantom of the Opera." I immediately became obsessed with Lon Chaney's performance. Modern-day actors just can't compare to the silent stars. Back in the 1920s and 1930s, the actors looked so glamorous, so alluring -- so mysterious. Without a sense of mystery, an actor isn't interesting to me. And thanks to YouTube, camera phones and aggressive paparazzi, today's film stars are way too overexposed.
THOMAS J. STATHES, 18
Student blogger
One of my earliest memories is that of my father digging around a friend's house and finding some dusty 16mm reels of silent cartoons. From the moment that I first saw the primitive animation flickering on a sheet he had taped against the wall, I was hooked. A few years later, a department store was closing down, and I found a bin of cheap videos featuring oddball silent shorts. I picked up armfuls, and my interest has snowballed to the point where I have now dedicated most of my free time to posting information about them online on my blog, CartoonsOnFilm.blogspot.com.
VICTORIA PRINCIPAL, 57
Actress and entrepreneur
In 1995, I attended a Silent Film Gala, and soon afterward I began contributing to film restoration efforts and watched dozens of old silent movies. The arts can be an antidote to chaos in the world. If the longest journey is from the head to the heart, then silent films speed that journey. With a silent film, you don't talk or look away. It demands undivided attention -- you become utterly focused. In today's world, how often does that happen?
MIKE GEBERT, 45
Advertising copywriter
There are two reasons why I'm a devoted fan of silent movies. As the hysterical laughter of my 6- and 9-year-old sons proves, there's no one around today funnier than Laurel and Hardy, Buster Keaton or Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle. These films also serve as a time machine, taking you back nearly 100 years to a more innocent era. There's just something magical about films made in the '20s -- the grand passions, the unique perspectives. Watch a good silent movie and you'll be swept away by the experience in a way that today's big, noisy movies seem too clumsy to achieve.
DANYKA KOSTURAK, 32
Guitarist for the Vaticans, a San Francisco-based rock group
When I was 6, I sneaked into our living room and watched the horror film "Nosferatu" on TV. The story, the shadowy light -- it was transfixing. I couldn't look away. These movies are just so much more moody and elegant than anything from my own generation. Watching a good silent film is similar to walking on air -- they pick you up and take you on a ride.
|
