Duck Soup (1927)

Run Time: 17 minutes. Studio: Hal Roach Studios Director: Fred Guiol. Supervising Director: Leo McCarey. Writer: H.M. Walker . Adapted from a skit written by  Arthur Jefferson. Producer: Hal Roach. Main Cast: Stan Laurel Oliver Hardy, Madeline Hurlock,William Austin. Cinematographer: Floyd Jackman


Since I always post these on the first of the month and this month that is April Fools Day, I feel my only option of this installment of Silent Film of the Month is to do a Laurel and Hardy film. This month's film is the first time the boys worked as a team, Duck Soup. This is not the famous Marx Brothers film of the same name, but this film's supervising director, Leo McCarey, directed that Marx Brothers movie. Leo McCarey also directed such film classics as The Awful Truth, and Going My Way. He is also the one often given credit for coming up with the idea to team Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. It is interesting to note that this film was originally going to star Stan Laurel and Syd Crossley. It is unknown why Syd Crossley would be replaced by Oliver Hardy in this film. Syd Crossley's first screen appearance had been in the short film Dr. Pyckle and Mr. Pryde which starred Stan Laurel.

Unlike other comedy teams like The Marx Brothers, Abbott and Costello, and The Three Stooges, Laurel and Hardy first worked together on films. They also both had fairly good solo careers before teaming up. Stan Laurel had worked as both an actor and a director. Oliver Hardy had often times played villains opposite such comic actors as Larry Seamon and Billy West (not the voice actor but a Charlie Chaplin imitator). Though this is the first time they worked as a team, this was not the first time the two had worked together. Both had appeared in the 1921 comedy short The Lucky Dog, but here Stan played the hero, while Ollie played the bad guy. Stan also directed a short called Yes, Yes, Nanette which featured Ollie as an actor.

The story line of this film was based off of a skit written by a British Music Hall comedian named Arthur Jefferson, who was also Stan Laurel's father. In this short Stan and Ollie (played by Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy, of course) are being pursued by a forest ranger (played by Bob Kortman) . They hide in a house that belongs to a big game hunter. After the boys find that the big game hunter and his servants are out of town, Ollie pretends to be the owner and Stan pretends to be the servant, when some tenants (played by Madeline Hurlock and William Austin) are looking to rent the place. This plot would later be used in a talkie Laurel and Hardy short called Another Fine Mess.

While there would be some better Laurel and Hardy films in the future, this film is still very funny and enjoyable. The intertitles by H.M. Walker are hilarious, and the chemistry between Stan and Ollie is excellent. However I do wish Jimmy Finlayson would have played Colonel Buckshot like he did in the remake as he was very funny there, but James A. Marcus does do a good if not as memorable job. After watching this film it was no wonder the boys went on to as great of careers as they did.

After this film the boys didn't immediately become a full time team. For instance Stan Laurel would appear in the short film Eve's Love Letters without Oliver Hardy and Ollie would appear in short films such as The Honorable Mr. Buggs, No Man's Law, Baby Brother, and Crazy to Act without Stan. They would also appear together in the short Sugar Daddies, where they would not work as a team.

-Michael J. Ruhland

Resources Used
The Complete Films of Laurel and Hardy by William K. Everson
Laurel and Hardy: The Magic Behind the Movies by Randy Skretvedt

The Blue Bird (1918)

Run Time: 70 minutes. Studio:  Paramount. Director: Maurice Tourneur. Writer: Charles Maigne. Adapted from a play written by  Maurice Maeterlinck. Producer: Adolph Zukor. Main Cast: Tula Belle, Robin Macdougall, Lillian Cook, Gertrude McCoy, Charles Ascot,Tom Corless, Mary Kennedy, Charles Craig, Sammy Blum, S.E. Potapovitch  Cinematographer: John van den Broek            


The silent film of this month is a fantastic fantasy from 1918 called The Blue Bird. The Blue Bird was directed by Maurice Tourneur. Maurice Tourneur began his career in France in 1911. There he worked first as an assistant director and eventually moved up to be a director himself with films like Jean la Poudre. In 1914 he moved to America where he would direct many great films including the one I'm writing about today, The Poor Little Rich Girl, and The Last of the Mohicans . After some trouble with MGM in 1928, he would move back to France and direct more films over there and in Germany such as The Crew, The Ship of Lost Men, and Dilemma of Two Angels. Despite the many types of films Maurice Tourneur directed, he always had a taste for the fantastic, which of course works perfectly in this fairy tale film. Maurice Tourneur's son,  Jacques Touneur would later become a Hollywood director and direct such films as Cat People, Out of the Past, and I Walked with a Zombie.

 Tula Belle the main child actress in this picture, had a very short career as a child actress appearing in films from 1915 to 1920. Some of these films inculde George Foster Platt's Deliverance, and Charles Miller's At the Mercy of Men. Later in 1918, the same year The Blue Bird was released. she would appear in A Doll's House, which is another film directed by Maurice Tourner. She was also the sister of another child actress named Ebba Mona, who appeared in Henry Otto's The Temple of Venus and Edmund Mortimer's The Wolf Man, those are the only 2 films Ebba Mona was in. The main child actor of the film was Robin Macdougall, and this appears to be the only film he was in. The Blue Bird was also the last film appearance of Lillian Cook. Though she was talented actress Lillian Cook's career never really took off. Her first film appearance was actually in a 1914 short film directed by Maurice Tourneur, entitled Mother. For much of her filmography she played supporting and minor roles, though occasionally she would get the lead such as in Robert Thornby's A Woman's Power.

 This film was made in Fort Lee, New Jersey. Before Hollywood Fort Lee was the movie making capital of the United States,  Though around this time period studios were already moving to Hollywood, there were still quite a few films being made in Fort Lee including this one.

In this film two kids, Mytyl (played by Tulla Belle), and Tyltyl (played by Robin Macdougall) are sent on a mission by the magical fairy Berylune (played by Lillian Cook)  to find the blue bird of happiness. Berylune gives them a magic hat that allows them to see the spirits that live inside their house.  They are joined by the spirits of Light (played by Gertrude McCoy), Fire (played by S.E. Potapovitch), Water (played by Mary Kennedy), Milk (played by Eleanor Masters), Sugar (played by Charles Craig) and their own cat (played by Tom Corless) and dog (played by Charles Ascot). On their journey the kids visit various places including, the land of the dead, the land of the unborn, the palace of night, and the palace of happiness.

The Blue Bird is one of the greatest fantasy films ever made. It is very beautiful, absorbing, and charming. The whole film has a strong sense of magic and wonder from beginning to end.

Very important to the artistic success of this film is the work of production designer Ben Carré. Ben Carré has worked as a production designer and/or art director on many other great films such as Rupert Julian's The Phantom of the Opera, Rex Ingram's Mare Nostrum, Alan Crosland's Old San Francisco, and A Night at the Opera (with the Marx Brothers). He also worked with Maurice Tourneur on such films as The Poor Little Rich Girl, The Last of the Mohicans, and A Doll's House. The worlds he helps create here are amazingly detailed and downright breathtaking.

This film received great reviews from critics. However it was not a hit at the box office. Some film historians and critics believe that this film had a big influence on German Expressionist films.

This wasn't the only time this story was adapted for the screen. In 1940 another film version would be released under the same name, directed by Walter Lang and starring Shirley Temple. However this 1918 film is considered the best film adaption of the source material.

-Michael J. Ruhland    

Resourses Used
http://www.jbkaufman.com/movie-of-the-month/blue-bird-1918
http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/453452%7C453523/The-Blue-Bird.html
http://www.silentfilm.org/archive/the-blue-bird

Her Night of Romance (1924)

Run Time: 70 minutes. Studio:  First National Pictures. Director: Sidney Franklin. Writer: Hans Kraly. Producers: Constance Talmadge, Joseph M. Schenck. Main Cast: Constance Talmadge,  Ronald Colman, Jean Hersholt, Albert Gran, Robert Rendel. Cinematographers:  Ray Binger, Victor Milner.

For February I feel it is only right that the silent movie of the month would be a romantic comedy, so I selected this charming film from 1924 entitled Her Night of Romance. Director, Sidney Franklin is more well known for films like The Good Earth and The Dark Angel. Readers of my Feature Films of Walt Disney blogs might know him as the director who originally wanted to make Bambi, but when he discovered that the film would work better as an animated movie, sold the rights to Walt Disney (however he still worked on the film as a consultant). Sidney Franklin would also go on to have a great career as a producer, producing such films as Mrs. Miniver,  Ninotchka, and The Yearling.

Actress Constance Talmadge, while not as well remembered as she should be, was a big star at this time. Though her acting years started in 1914, she did not receive a major role until she appeared in D.W. Griffith's Intolerance in 1916, where she appeared as both the mountain girl and as Princess Marguerite of Valois. Along with her sisters Natalie and Norma Talmadge she was part of the infamous Talmadge sisters. Her sister Norma was known for being in tragedies, while Constance was known for being in comedies like this one. Natalie's career didn't take off, but many may know her for marring silent screen legend Buster Keaton. However Natalie did appear in some films like Yes or No, The Love Expert, and Our Hospitality (last one alongside her husband). Constance is unfortunately one of the stars of the silent screen who didn't make the transition to talkies. Her co-star Ronald Colman's Career was just beginning. His first role as leading man had been just a year before this film, with Henry King's The White Sister, where he stared along side one of the biggest stars of that era, Lillian Gish. Ronald Colman would go on to a great career with such films as The Prisoner of Zenda, A Tale of Two Cities, and Lost Horizon. 

The plot of the film begins when ex-wealthy socialite Paul Menford (Played by Ronald Colman) meets current wealthy socialite Dorthy Adams (Played by Constance Talmadge) and falls for her. Paul's business partner Joe Diamond (Played by Jean Hersolt) thinks Paul should marry a wealthy person and in exchange Joe will get 10% of the money earned from the marriage. Paul is against this until he discovers that the woman Joe is talking about is Dorthy. The plan involves Paul pretending to be Dorthy's doctor. This leads to one misunderstanding after another, including a surprise meeting in Paul's old home, which Dorthy and her father (Played by Albert Gran) are planning to buy, and a fantastic ending sequence that you have to see.

While the story might seem a bit unoriginal and predictable, it is done very well, and often leads to some very funny humor. Much of this movie is laugh out loud hilarious, and every plot point that might be predictable leads to enough good humor, that you don't mind at all. However even with the focus being on the comedy, the romance is still quite charming and Ronald Colman and Constance Talmadge are excellent in their roles.

Also helping with the film's success is art director William Cameron Menzies. Menzies earlier that same year had done some of his best work for Raoul Walsh's The Thief of Baghdad, starring Douglas Fairbanks. Menzies would go on to do work on such films as Gone With the Wind, and For Whom the Bell Tolls. William Cameron Menzies does a great job of bringing a sense of sophistication to Her Night of Romance. His version of how high society  London looks is a delight to see. Menzies helped make this film more than just another romantic comedy.

Her Night of Romance was a success both critically and financially. In fact in 1925 it received a sequel called Her Sister from Paris. The sequel would also be directed by Sidney Franklin, written by Hans Kraly and star Constance Talmadge and Ronald Colman.

-Michael J. Ruhland

Recourses Used
http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/495565/Her-Night-of-Romance/articles.html

The Ring (1927)

Run Time: 89 Minutes. Studio: British International Pictures. Director: Alfred Hitchcock. Writer: Alfred Hitchcock. Producer: John Maxwell. Main Cast: Carl Brisson, Lillian Hall-Davis, Ian Hunter, Forrester Harvey. Cinematographer: Jack Cox



Welcome to my silent film of the month. Each month I will pick a different silent film to write about. The film can be a feature or a short, live action or animated, and from any genre or country. The film has to be silent, and I will not include any of the most popular silent films. So I will not write about films like The General, Metropolis, City Lights, The Gold Rush, Safety Last, A Trip to the Moon, Un Chien Andalou, Gertie The Dinosaur, Nosfuratu, Sunrise, Greed or any very well known silent films, no matter how great these films are. I will instead focus on some of the more forgotten films of the silent era. They don't have to be completely obscure to where few silent film fans would have even heard of them, but they just can't be films that are that are very widely  regarded as classics by silent film buffs and scholars. However the films chosen for this honor are ones I really enjoy, not one of the films picked as the silent film of the month will be one I don't really like. They will all be well recommended by me.

Alfred Hitchcock has often times been rightfully referred to as the master of suspense. He is often the first name that comes into peoples minds when they think of thriller films. However many of these people would be surprised to see my silent film of the month. It is not a thriller, horror, or any similar type of movie. It is rather a romantic melodrama about a boxer fighting for his girl. However with films like this Hitchcock proved he was one of the greatest filmmakers that ever lived, no matter what genre he was working in.

When The Ring was made Hitchcock had not yet moved to Hollywood. He was still making films in Britain. In fact The Ring was his forth feature film. He had only made one suspense movie at this time and that was the film right before this, The Lodger. Producer John Maxwell had seen this film and since The Lodger was a huge hit was very surprised by Hitchcock's decision not to follow it with another thriller. What is interesting about Hitchcock's British period is that the films he made there did not always fit into what people associate him with today. At this time he was not known as the master of suspense, but rather as a director who did a wide variety of different genres.

This film is written by Hitchcock himself. Hitchcock is not known as a writer. In fact he would stop being his own writer in the 1940's. Most other films Hitchcock wrote on were based off of books, and plays. So this is a very rare completely original screen play by him. It is also the only film Hitchcock wrote by himself without any co-writers.One reason Hitchcock would later stop writing his own screenplays was that he thought in mainly visual terms, and dialog did not come naturally. However this works just great when he was handling a silent film like this.

In this film two boxers, "One Eyed" Jack Sander (played by Carl Brisson) and Bob Croby (played by Ian Hunter), fight over a woman (played by Lillian Hall-Davis), both in and out of the boxing ring. The title refers to the boxing ring, a wedding ring, and a symbolic snake bracelet. Jack is a carnival attraction, and people pay to see and to fight him. Members of the audience try and see if they can last more than one round in a boxing match with Jack. In comes Bob, who not only stays more than one round with Jack, but also wins the match. Jack's girlfriend develops an interest in Bob, and Bob an interest in her. At the same time, Bob's manger is impressed with Jack and has him join the same boxing torment as Bob. Jack upon hearing this news figures he has finally made it big, and marries his girlfriend. However Jack suspects that Bob is interested in his new wife, and vows to fight for his girl in the boxing ring. However when he finds that his wife might be interested in Bob, the fight for his girl, becomes a fight for revenge.

Hitchcock, even though he wrote the film, interest laid not in the plot, but rather in how he could use the camera to tell the story. This was not always easy considering he fired his original camera man due to a contract dispute. This new camera man, Jack Cox, was so liked by Hitchcock that he would be the cameraman on Hitch's next nine films.

The camera work rather than showing off, adds layers of depth to the film. It gives you an insight to how the characters perceive what is happening in the story. This is particularly true in a fantastic scene at a party, when Jack becomes jealous of Bob's relationship with his wife. This is all shown visually through the camera, and it tells what is happening better than any intertitle could.

The Ring while not a box office success was a huge critical success. Some critics even referred to it as the greatest British film ever made.

The Ring is a delightful film, and should be much better remembered. There is no doubt after you watch this film that Hitchcock is not only a the master of suspense, but also a great filmmaker no matter what type of film he was making, and one of the greatest directors who ever lived.

-Michael J. Ruhland


Recourses Used
http://www.silentfilm.org/archive/the-ring
http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/449788/The-Ring/articles.html
Hitchcock's British Films by Maurice Yacowar