Anyone catch the image in which diesel fuel costs $123/gallon? Whoa.
Screen Shot Quiz #31
Since the contributors have been passing some emails back and forth about the movie I chose fore today, I will ask that they don’t post their guesses and not to discuss this movie until someone has figured it out.
I just watched the movie last night and I was actually somewhat stunned with how dark this one is. I really expected something lighter.
Perhaps my screen shots are getting to difficult or maybe just the fun of it has worn off. If you are enjoying the screen shots but just don’t have a clue what the movie is please post a comment.
I’ll give a clue on this one. Its a silent film that has a bright title but a dark mood (for the majority of the movie at least).
Comment by John Allison — April 30, 2008 @ 1:13 pm
It’s Sunrise: a Song of Two Humans. I love this scene. Murnau’s best i think.
Comment by Luis Alaji — April 30, 2008 @ 1:46 pm
Well Done Sir!
Comment by Kurt Halfyard — April 30, 2008 @ 2:13 pm
I’m a sucker for these screen shots, so I check them out daily, usually. That said, I had no clue on this one (and won’t for just about any older flick, I’d imagine). Definitely keep it up, though!
Comment by Fletch — April 30, 2008 @ 5:52 pm
A dark movie? What are you talking about? This is a run-of-the-mill romantic thriller. The comic relief is amazing, and the romantic plot conquers all. It’s one of the best blockbusters I have seen, certainly not a ‘dark’ film.
Comment by Henrik — April 30, 2008 @ 7:29 pm
I totally disagree, if you cut out the whole city part this is one hell of a dark movie. The city part lightens it up a lot.
As long as I have one or two people enjoying the screen shots I’ll keep doing them.
Comment by John Allison — April 30, 2008 @ 8:24 pm
It’s no darker than like, Indecent Proposal with Woody Harrelson or Double Indemnity or something.
Comment by Henrik — April 30, 2008 @ 8:31 pm
Perhaps its a misconception I have about old silent films, or perhaps its the acting style but while I was watching it last night I just couldn’t get the similarities to Nosferatu out of my mind. When the main character was lurking he moved and came across like a monster more than a person.
Comment by John Allison — April 30, 2008 @ 8:55 pm
I would definitely think it’s because of the film being from 1927, although I didn’t want to say so. Alot of the people I saw it with thought I was crazy when I said it was a blockbuster, because you feel like your automatically experiencing high-culture when you’re watching a silent film. As for similarities with Nosferatu, I didn’t really get that. I definitely thought the performance of the lead male was one of the best I’ve seen in silent films ever.
Comment by Henrik — April 30, 2008 @ 9:08 pm
We all know (from Film 101) that the first big Blockbuster was the earnestly racist “Birth of A Nation” which was followed by the even bigger in scope and cast of thousands, “Intolerance”!
Comment by Kurt Halfyard — April 30, 2008 @ 9:23 pm
What is this, a trivia quiz?
Comment by Henrik — April 30, 2008 @ 10:36 pm
I’m on your side John, I find it to be an incredibly dark film but nonetheless very enjoyable. Definitely keep up the screen shot quizzes, I rarely get them but they’re always a ton of fun.
Comment by Luis Alaji — May 1, 2008 @ 12:55 am
***SPOILER ALERT***
I believe there are definitely dark elements in that story, above and beyond the mere fact that it’s a silent film. Murder, even if it’s only an intent to murder, is a pretty dark topic, whether the film is from 1927 or 2007. However, the tone does shift before the halfway point, becoming much lighter.
John: You mention the lead actor moving more like “a monster than a person”. Interestingly enough, in the scene where the man is approaching his wife in the boat, Murnau had weights put in the actor’s shoes, so that his movements would appear to be those of a tortured soul, unsure of whether or not he really wanted to go through with his murderous scheme.
Comment by Dave — May 1, 2008 @ 2:40 am
***Continue spoilers***
Any sort of murder plot that is spurred on by seduction (not an unfamiliar element in popular entertainment), is completely upstaged by the presence of a drunken pig. Some of the best comic relief I have ever experienced in a populistic film.
Comment by Henrik — May 1, 2008 @ 3:02 am
The whole point of these quizzes isn’t just to see who can get the shot but to start a discussion based on the picture. I’m really glad that this got some discussion going.
The weights really explain his movement and also really fit in with the exaggerated acting that I’ve seen in the couple of silent films I’ve seen so far.
@Henrik - I actually love the bit that I used for the screen shot more than the pig. One of the people that I watched the movie with was just shaking their head at the pig scene. I think I’m going to stand by what I said about it being dark but I really do love how Murnau brings in the whole comedy aspect during the middle. If the movie remained dark like the beginning, and all but the end I don’t think it would be thought of as well as it is. I don’t have a lot of basis for this since my knowledge of Silent film is pretty weak and perhaps I’m totally wrong but I just imagine most silent films followed a theme and didn’t shift tone like this one did as much.
Please correct me if I’m wrong.
Comment by John Allison — May 1, 2008 @ 6:14 am
This is definitely about as modern as silent films get. It’s apparently pretty widely regarded as the best ever, I definitely don’t agree with that, but it is an awesome film.
Comment by Henrik — May 1, 2008 @ 9:37 am
So far I’ve enjoyed both The General and Sunrise and I’m looking forward to delving deeper into silent film as I can find the time.
Out of the two I’d say I enjoyed The General a bit more but both were quite excellent and I can see why they are on the AFI list.
Comment by John Allison — May 1, 2008 @ 10:35 am
Murnau’s The Last Laugh is a must!
Also, the doc Haxan and Buster Keaton’s Seven Changes are highly recommended.
Comment by Kurt Halfyard — May 1, 2008 @ 10:39 am