And after "The Artist"...

Discussion:

(too old to reply)

Igenlode Wordsmith

2013-07-20 13:37:40 UTC

Apparently there's *another* prize-winning new silent movie set in the
1920s: "Blancanieves" (compared favourably with the two recent sound
'updates' of the Snow White story)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2013/jul/11/blancanieves-review

--
Igenlode Visit the Ivory Tower http://ivory.vlexofree.com/Tower/

We live in a culture in which being well-spoken is considered
proof of insincerity.

hislop

2013-07-20 16:07:26 UTC

Permalink

Post by Igenlode Wordsmith
Apparently there's *another* prize-winning new silent movie set in the
1920s: "Blancanieves" (compared favourably with the two recent sound
'updates' of the Snow White story)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2013/jul/11/blancanieves-review

Yes, I have seen it, it is available from amazon.co.uk I read somewhere
it is to be released in the USA later in the year.
It is very good, similarly to The Artist, it uses silent film methods.
I have criticisms of recent film styles used though, shakey camera
whenever there is movement in the action, and fast edit cuts. There is
one annoying scene where there is barely a one second shot of a picture
on a carriage with lingering looks on the faces of people looking at it.
I wonder if it is time to make a silent movie without having it in black
and white and 4:3. But please avoid contemporary film styles.
And I hope they use English intertitles on this when it is released in
an English market, as was the custom with silent movies. It is from
Spain. Subtitles on the intertitles, but none at all on the extras,
which includes a news conference.
Hazardly lip reading is impossible unless you know Spanish.
And there was color in some silent movies.

Igenlode Wordsmith

2013-07-21 09:02:29 UTC

Permalink

Post by hislop

Yes, I have seen it, it is available from amazon.co.uk I read somewhere
it is to be released in the USA later in the year.
It is very good, similarly to The Artist, it uses silent film methods.

An interesting thing is that I gather it actually predates (or at least
doesn't postdate) "The Artist"...
http://thetfs.ca/2012/09/13/tiff-2012-interview-with-pablo-berger-director-of-blancanieves/

I wonder how many more 'new' silent film projects have been fermenting
out there over the past few years?

Post by hislop
I have criticisms of recent film styles used though, shakey camera
whenever there is movement in the action, and fast edit cuts. There is
one annoying scene where there is barely a one second shot of a picture
on a carriage with lingering looks on the faces of people looking at it.

That does sound a bit pointless in the context of a silent film, where
you're totally reliant on reactions to convey what's going on... (I
never got on with the Soviet 'montage' style, but I wonder if the
director is attempting a similar subliminal effect?)

Post by hislop
I wonder if it is time to make a silent movie without having it in black
and white and 4:3. But please avoid contemporary film styles.

Personally I love the 4:3 ratio -- I find it actively relaxing when a
film comes on in 'normal' shape and I don't have to keep scanning from
side to side of the screen or viewing shots of people with their
foreheads cut off (the 'lowbrow' closeup is one of my pet bugbears where
modern screen composition is concerned...)

But of course there are large chunks of most modern films that are
effectively silent anyway (chase scenes, long meaningful landscape or
tracking shots) so there's no reason why it should be such an alien idea
to have extended sequences in a modern, colour setting. (And 8mm home
movies were always silent, up until the video age -- but often in
colour.)

Post by hislop
And I hope they use English intertitles on this when it is released in
an English market, as was the custom with silent movies. It is from
Spain. Subtitles on the intertitles, but none at all on the extras,
which includes a news conference.

Ironically it is apparently this year's 'foreign-language' Oscar entry
for Spain... despite being probably the easiest entry of all to submit
in an English version!

Post by hislop
Hazardly lip reading is impossible unless you know Spanish.
And there was color in some silent movies.

Not terribly successfully, in the ones I've seen -- colour used as
nominal decoration, rather than 'naturalism'. Although the same could
essentially be said of Technicolor, of course: if you had colour, you
were going to have *lots* of colour, and make sure the audience
appreciated it! Admittedly I'm mostly thinking of musicals here...

--
Igenlode Visit the Ivory Tower http://ivory.vlexofree.com/Tower/

* Never assume malice when ignorance is a possibility *

hislop

2013-07-22 15:06:26 UTC

Permalink

Post by Igenlode Wordsmith

Post by hislop

Yes, I have seen it, it is available from amazon.co.uk I read somewhere
it is to be released in the USA later in the year.
It is very good, similarly to The Artist, it uses silent film methods.

An interesting thing is that I gather it actually predates (or at least
doesn't postdate) "The Artist"...
http://thetfs.ca/2012/09/13/tiff-2012-interview-with-pablo-berger-director-of-blancanieves/
I wonder how many more 'new' silent film projects have been fermenting
out there over the past few years?

Post by hislop
I wonder if it is time to make a silent movie without having it in black
and white and 4:3. But please avoid contemporary film styles.

I disagree with that entirely, I think the 16:9 shape is more natural
for two eyes. That is, the full frame, not with letterboxing.
Sit back from the screen a bit maybe.

Post by Igenlode Wordsmith
But of course there are large chunks of most modern films that are
effectively silent anyway (chase scenes, long meaningful landscape or
tracking shots) so there's no reason why it should be such an alien idea
to have extended sequences in a modern, colour setting. (And 8mm home
movies were always silent, up until the video age -- but often in
colour.)

There are silent films full of dialog too.

Post by Igenlode Wordsmith

Ironically it is apparently this year's 'foreign-language' Oscar entry
for Spain... despite being probably the easiest entry of all to submit
in an English version!

Post by hislop
Hazardly lip reading is impossible unless you know Spanish.
And there was color in some silent movies.

TigerLily

2013-12-15 21:08:06 UTC

Permalink

Post by hislop

Yes, I have seen it, it is available from amazon.co.uk I read somewhere
it is to be released in the USA later in the year.
It is very good, similarly to The Artist, it uses silent film methods. I
have criticisms of recent film styles used though, shakey camera
whenever there is movement in the action, and fast edit cuts. There is
one annoying scene where there is barely a one second shot of a picture
on a carriage with lingering looks on the faces of people looking at it.
I wonder if it is time to make a silent movie without having it in black
and white and 4:3. But please avoid contemporary film styles.
And I hope they use English intertitles on this when it is released in
an English market, as was the custom with silent movies. It is from
Spain. Subtitles on the intertitles, but none at all on the extras,
which includes a news conference.
Hazardly lip reading is impossible unless you know Spanish.
And there was color in some silent movies.

There is a National Film Board of Canada silent color short called "The
Railrodder" staring Buster Keaton released in 1965. there are no
intertitles because there is no dialogue.

Also, Keaton's 1925 silent feature "Seven Chances" has an opening done
in early Technicolor. Not all prints have it but the one I have does.

hislop

2013-12-15 23:26:02 UTC

Permalink

Post by TigerLily

Post by hislop

Yes, I have seen it, it is available from amazon.co.uk I read somewhere
it is to be released in the USA later in the year.
It is very good, similarly to The Artist, it uses silent film methods. I
have criticisms of recent film styles used though, shakey camera
whenever there is movement in the action, and fast edit cuts. There is
one annoying scene where there is barely a one second shot of a picture
on a carriage with lingering looks on the faces of people looking at it.
I wonder if it is time to make a silent movie without having it in black
and white and 4:3. But please avoid contemporary film styles.
And I hope they use English intertitles on this when it is released in
an English market, as was the custom with silent movies. It is from
Spain. Subtitles on the intertitles, but none at all on the extras,
which includes a news conference.
Hazardly lip reading is impossible unless you know Spanish.
And there was color in some silent movies.

There is a National Film Board of Canada silent color short called "The
Railrodder" staring Buster Keaton released in 1965. there are no
intertitles because there is no dialogue.
Also, Keaton's 1925 silent feature "Seven Chances" has an opening done
in early Technicolor. Not all prints have it but the one I have does.

The DVD release has that technicolor sequence.

If you get the Treasures series, I can't remember which one, you can get
the first 2-color technicolor movie from about 1922 with Anna Mae Wong.
If you get the Edison collection on DVD you get experiments in color
and sound from very early on.
Silent movies are usually better without intertitles. Some have too
much talking, I think it is the very last feature in the Edison
collection is full of cuts and too many intertitles, nothing like the
image of silent movies as being slow and not modern enough.
The Mel Brooks Silent Movie had too much talking.

I wonder what the American release of Blancanieves is like.

I wonder when the optical printer was invented so titles could be put
over the image. I think I have seen that done on a silent film but not
many.

Igenlode Wordsmith

2013-12-21 22:41:38 UTC

Permalink

hislop <***@gmail.com> wrote in message <l8ldqf$rck$***@dont-email.me>

[snip]

Post by hislop
I wonder when the optical printer was invented so titles could be put
over the image. I think I have seen that done on a silent film but not
many.

The trouble with putting titles over the image is that it makes it much
harder to issue the film abroad -- and it severely limits the amount of
text you can use in each title without obscuring the action...

--
Igenlode Visit the Ivory Tower http://ivory.vlexofree.com/Tower/

* The Truth Shall Make Ye Fret *

hislop

2013-12-23 00:54:04 UTC

Permalink

Post by Igenlode Wordsmith
[snip]

Post by hislop
I wonder when the optical printer was invented so titles could be put
over the image. I think I have seen that done on a silent film but not
many.

that's very sensible I never thought of that, it also causes lowering of
picture quality while they use an optical printer

the_navigator_23

2014-06-14 01:18:56 UTC

Permalink

Post by TigerLily

Post by hislop

Yes, I have seen it, it is available from amazon.co.uk I read somewhere
it is to be released in the USA later in the year.
It is very good, similarly to The Artist, it uses silent film methods. I
have criticisms of recent film styles used though, shakey camera
whenever there is movement in the action, and fast edit cuts. There is
one annoying scene where there is barely a one second shot of a picture
on a carriage with lingering looks on the faces of people looking at it.
I wonder if it is time to make a silent movie without having it in black
and white and 4:3. But please avoid contemporary film styles.
And I hope they use English intertitles on this when it is released in
an English market, as was the custom with silent movies. It is from
Spain. Subtitles on the intertitles, but none at all on the extras,
which includes a news conference.
Hazardly lip reading is impossible unless you know Spanish.
And there was color in some silent movies.

There is a National Film Board of Canada silent color short called "The
Railrodder" staring Buster Keaton released in 1965. there are no
intertitles because there is no dialogue.
Also, Keaton's 1925 silent feature "Seven Chances" has an opening done
in early Technicolor. Not all prints have it but the one I have does.

There's I DO DO WINDOWS with ''Dizzy'' Daniels, which was also shot in color. You can see a clip from it here: