Paul Leni’s Haunting ‘Waxworks’ Come to Life in This Restoration
Paul Leni’s silent film Waxworks (1924) is a brilliantly acted, engaging, and exhilarating example of German Expressionism on film.
silent film
Silent Classic ‘The City Without Jews’ Wavers Between Satire and Grim Prophecy
It's the privilege of satire to apply one's opponents' "logic" towards a reductio ad absurdum, as we see in The City without Jews.
The Best Classic Films on Blu-ray in 2020
Many formats have come and gone and streaming competes, to a degree, but these best classic films offered on Blu-ray in 2020 prove irresistible.
John Ford Silent Westerns ‘Straight Shooting’ and ‘Hell Bent’ Raise a Ruckus
We're treated to many eye-catching examples of John Ford's talents in Universal's 4K restoration of silent westerns Straight Shooting and Hell Bent, now available on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber.
Paul Leni’s Silent Film ‘The Man Who Laughs’ Is Serious Cinema
There's so much tragedy present, so many skullduggeries afoot, and so many cruel and vindictive characters in attendance that a sad and heartbreaking ending seems to be an obvious given in Paul Leni's silent film, The Man Who Laughs.
Buster Keaton’s Last Silent Masterpieces: ‘The Cameraman’ and ‘Spite Marriage’
Buster Keaton was aware that the camera can be a catalyst of violence, especially stereotypical violence, for audience consumption -- and that it could also evoke the shared joy of cathartic laughter.
Buster Keaton’s ‘The Cameraman’ Casts Light on MGM’s Tyranny
The Cameraman is Keaton's last great film, a jubilant, chaotic, and overactive silent romantic comedy that, intentional or not, doubles as a vision of the precarity of celebrity, independence, and artistry in the brutal Hollywood system.
Silent Women Filmmakers No Longer So Silent: Alice Guy Blaché and Julia Crawford Ivers
The works of silent filmmakers Alice Guy Blaché and Julia Crawford Ivers were at risk of being forever lost. Kino Lorber offers their works on Blu-Ray. Three cheers for film historians and film restoration.
The Tortured Mind of Anthony Asquith’s Silent British Gem, ‘A Cottage on Dartmoor’
Silent film A Cottage on Dartmoor brilliantly captures Anthony Asquith's fascination with the French impressionists' preoccupation with the still, singled out expression.
‘The Douglas MacLean Collection’ Pokes Fun at Our Love of Clam, Cabbage, and Kale*
The bamboozle is on in silent films One a Minute and Bell Boy 13, starring comic actor Douglas MacLean.
Hitchcock, Quietly Suspenseful
Hitchcock's silent films demonstrate that he was not only a master of visual storytelling but confidently made silents as though they had sound effects.