Reviews

The only thing correct about this entry is that is was made at the Pathé studio in France. The real title is Japonaiseries (Japanese Varieties) and it was directed by Gaston Velle in 1904. There is an entry on IMDb under that title as well. Perhaps the Magic Bricks title and identification of de Chomón as director was dreamed up by the producers of the Kino DVD, The Movies Begin, which contains a lot of errors similar to this one. This entry should be removed.

Here's an obscure Dutch film I found out about on the Classic Horror Film Board though it's more of a fairy tale than a horror film. One might also consider it a film for kids though it is rather dark. The score plays a major role in the film as there is not a lot of dialogue. The lighting and cinematography are highly stylized. It's about a little girl playing by herself in the woods with her pets and dolls who falls into the clutches of a group of demons who are portrayed by puppets and bizarrely costumed actors. I can't say I've ever seen anything quite like this. As of 5/8/15 the film is available on YouTube but you need to search for it with the Dutch title: Myrte en de demonen.

Based on the homonymous novel by Émile Zola, the film tells the story of a worker who loses his job as a mechanic and wanders to northern France where he starts working as a coal miner, gets involved in a rivalry over a girl, and becomes the leader of a strike against the mine owners. This is probably the earliest film with a running time well over two hours. It was made at a time when European directors like Feuillade and Capellani were attempting to elevate film to an art form by basing their screenplays on great literature and achieving realism by filming on locations and and toning down the theatrical acting style that was common at the time. Yet this film is still an example of what film historians would consider a primitive film. The scenes play out as if on a stage in front of a seldom moving camera without being broken into a series of shots. The story is told in the intertitles and then recreated by the actors with no intertitles for dialogue. Nevertheless I admire the film for its realism and the crowd scenes which are among the few instances where the camera gets to tell the story.

I believe the other reviewer, Mike, has mistaken Paramount's 1930 version for this film. Paramount didn't get started until 1912 and was known as the Famous Players Film Company at first. As far as I can tell, the 1907 version has been lost.

From Wikipedia:

"Tom Sawyer is a 1907 American silent film based on The Adventures of Tom Sawyer made by Kalem Studios in New York City, and was the first time Mark Twain's character had appeared on film. Very little else is currently known about the film, other than the screenplay was written by Gene Gauntier, the first of over 300 screenplays she eventually wrote."

A romantic comedy along the lines of 'It Happened One Night' (1934) but Ronald Colman is the incognito one. Ginger Rogers isn't in the know but agrees to take a Platonic road trip with him even though she's engaged to someone else. This is pretty risqué material for 1940 and there's a bit at the end which could be interpreted as a jab at the Hays Code (thanks to Equinox23 for that insight). Directed by Lewis Milestone ('All Quiet on the Western Front', 'Of Mice and Men') with a story that keeps one intrigued thanks to its unpredictability, it is a perfectly delightful piece of entertainment guaranteed to leave a warm fuzzy feeling. Several other reviewers here are rather harsh on this film, citing lack of plausibility, chemistry, etc. If you want plausibility see 'Judgment at Nuremberg' but if you enjoy romantic comedy don't let the nitpickers here dissuade you from seeing this charming film.

I've never understood why some people are gaga over Greta Garbo. I don't find her the least bit attractive and I'm not impressed with her acting abilities. In this dreadful adaptation of a Broadway play she portrays an Italian opera singer who is scorned by polite society because she's an adulteress (gasp!). Perhaps that gave the film some shock value in 1930 but can you imagine making that the crux of your story today? Garbo delivers her lines with an at times indecipherable accent and in an overdramatic style. I find the sound of her voice really annoying. Lewis Stone once again plays an older man involved with a younger woman (Garbo) and his performance is probably the best thing the film has going for it. Gavin Gordon plays the puritanical clergyman who falls in love with Garbo. If you see the film you'll understand why the rest of his career consisted of secondary roles and bit parts. Perhaps only of interest to Garbo fanatics.

An Australian film (one of a very few that survive from this era) based on a story by Australian writer John Cosgrove (who also appears in the film) and directed by John K. Wells, an American who lived in Australia from 1919 to 1923. I was expecting something dreadful as the film is in the public domain but I think it deserves to be restored and have a score written for it. The well- written screenplay is complex but all of the subplots are tied up nicely by the end. The acting is surprisingly natural compared to most films from this era. The editing is smooth and the scenes don't go on longer than necessary. The lighting for the night scenes is particularly good and almost noirish. It's not a masterpiece or anything but it's a competently made film that compares well with other films from the early twenties. I couldn't find much information on director Wells. He apparently quit the film business after 1921 and returned to the U.S. in 1923.