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| I steal my ideas from the best |
What follows are my favorite ten films. These are not necessarily the "best" movies technically. I don't pretend it's an exhaustive list (while I did catch 54 movies, I also "only" saw 54). These the ones that stuck with me and gave me a real appreciation for cinema a hundred years ago.
1. Intolerance (1916) - My favorite feature by the decade's best director. D.W. Griffith's basically invented the language of cinema and Intolerance is his most ambitious project. Beautiful to look at with compelling stories (particularly the modern and Babylonian tales).
2. Shoulder Arms (1918) - Once I started watching Charlie Chaplin films, I was always looking forward to the next one. Shoulder Arms is a funny comedy that pulls off an incredibly delicate balancing act between propaganda and critique. And the tree disguise is amazing.
3. The Blue Bird (1918) - Easily the prettiest movie I saw. The effects work throughout is great and it even held my son's attention.
4. Algie the Miner (1912) - One of the first films to center around a stereotypical gay character and it shows a real sophistication in the telling. It could have descended into farce and parody at any moment. Thankfully, it never does.
5. Broken Blossoms (1919) - The other side of Griffith's work shows he can do an intimate drama as well as a large spectacle. Lillian Gish is amazing here.
6. Spiders, Part 1 (1919) - This movie is about Kay Hoog. Kay Hoog is a yachtsman, a skydiver, an adventurer and a treasure hunter. In other words, Kay Hoog is the coolest fictional character ever.
7. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1919) - If you haven't seen this, you have not seen surreal. It's better at mood than story, but that is okay by me.
8. Frankenstein (1910) - You always remember your first and this one kicked off the project. I watched this one on-line three times in a row. Loved it each time. I then watched it a fourth time after reading this review at The Silent Volume and it completely changed my view of it. If you haven't seen it yet, watch it first, then read The Silent Volume piece. Then try not to watch it again.
9. 20,000 Leagues under the Sea (1916) - A mash up of several plots with a convenient yet convoluted ending, but you can feel the sense of wonder the filmmakers had in showing some of the first undersea images ever. The sharks look alien and the moment when the crew of the Nautilus fights them is awesome.
10. The Musketeers of Pig Alley (1912) - There's a reason this film is featured on my banner. I did not give it the best review the first time around, but I've fallen more in love with this one with each rewatch. The Snapper Kid is awesome (though he's no Kay Hoog).
Honorable Mentions: Twilight of a Woman's Soul (1913), A Natural Born Gambler (1916), The Tramp (1915), The Unchanging Sea (1910), The Bell Boy (1918)
Some other observations after the jump:
Best Animation - The Sinking of the Lusitania (1918)
Most of the animation did not tell a story, so I am separating it into its own category. I was fascinated by Winsor McCay's stuff, but The Sinking of the Lusitania was amazing in its detail. Just the idea of attempting an animated documentary has an audacity I love.
Biggest Disappointment - The Birth of a Nation (1915)
I won't say more about it. You can read my review and further analysis.
Worst Movie - The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1910)
Hey, my high school is putting on a production of The Wizard of Oz. Let's bring a camera down and film it!
Honestly, just look at that picture and tell me you see Tarzan in it. Anywhere.
Most Interchangeable Films - Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm (1917), The Little American (1917), Amarilly of Clothesline Alley (1918) and Daddy Long Legs (1919)
I was shocked when I reviewed my top ten and realized Mary Pickford did not appear once. She was my second favorite performer of the decade after Chaplin. Then I looked again. She is fantastic playing basically the same character in a handful of movies that didn't entirely work for me. The only real stretching that she did was in Stella Maris.
Movie I Forgot I Saw - King Lear
Seriously. When did I see this thing?
Photo from The Huffington Post
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