I didn’t know that about Cabiria.
Cabiria shows Archimedes setting fire to the invading fleet using his parabolic mirror (made up of segments). An interesting flick.
What did you think about the Carthaginians feeding children into the flaming mouth of Moloch? Interesting indeed. Good ol’ d’Annunzio!
I am SO PLEASED that I offered you something you didn’t know, since you are one of the most knowledgeable fuckers here.
It’s a wonder that Buster Keaton wasn’t killed filming one of his stunts.
I’m also fond of The General.
Thanks again for all of the responses. And I have to agree that the correct music makes a big difference when watching these films. I especially like the KINO DVD releases.
That picture of Keaton from Steamboat Bill Jr. - a building front falls around Keaton but he happens to be standing in just the right spot to avoid being crushed - reminds me of another story.
When they were ready to film the stunt, the director went up to Keaton and assured him that the stunt presented no danger, they had determined exactly where it was safe to stand. A bit later the assistant director told Keaton the same thing. Then the person who built the special-effects building assured Keaton it was 100% safe. Keaton later recalled: “At that point, I started to worry.”
Higher praise there is not. Especially phrased like that.
We now (as of the last couple of years) know that the Carthaginians really did that.
Technically not silent (two words are each whispered twice) but I quite like Luc Besson’s first feature, Le Dernier Combat.
Didn’t he actually fracture his neck filming a stunt at one point? Still, he was a piker compared to Jackie Chan.
I dont know if they did feature-length movies or just shorts in their silent days but laurel and hardy is just as funny silent as their works from the 30s and 40s and most of them are public domain so they should be easy to find …
He was blasted onto the track by one of those retractable water pipe things that refill steam engines. He didn’t find out it was broken til years later, iirc.
The anecdote sounds plausible, but Keaton directed his own films up to and including THE CAMERAMAN.
Yup, that was in THE GENERAL.
Actually, Sherlock, Jr.
The Larry Semon silent version of Wizard of Oz is something…
There’s a transvestite dance number in the first few minutes…
A young Oliver Hardy as the Tin Man.
Casual racism.
Semon had a wild imagination, but I can’t help but think his being kinda weird looking didn’t help his career. I know one thing, I’d never be able to get through junior high with a name like Semon.
As mentioned earlier, I expected more westerns, so I’ll add a John Ford silent western: 3 Bad Men (1926).
A precursor to John Ford’s 3 Godfathers (1948), but instead of a baby the “godfathers” adopt a young woman.
panache45, I just now saw this thread and came to mention Broken Blossoms.
For comedy I love Buster Keaton’s Seven Chances.
For shorts try Charlie Chase in Limousine Love
Frau im Mond, the first serious science-fiction film.
More recently, The Artist.