Silent Sundays: Daydreams (1922)

“I've come to ask for your daughter's hand in marriage.” 

 “How will you support her?”
“I don't know. I'll leave for the city to make good. If I'm not a success, I'll come back and shoot myself.” 
“Splendid. I'll lend you my revolver.”

           

            The story to this Buster Keaton short film, Daydreams, is simple.

            A Young Man (Keaton) asks for The Girl’s (Renée Adorée) hand in marriage. The father asks how he will support his daughter. The Young Man does not know but he is willing to go to the city to find a job to make money. If he does not succeed, he tells the father, he will kill himself.

            The Young Man goes through several jobs. He writes to The Girl that he is working in a hospital and performs several surgeries a day. He is really working at an animal hospital. He has to leave after he mistakes a skunk for a cat. The next job he has he writes to The Girl that he is cleaning up on Wall Street. He’s cleaning up alright but it is not money. He is a street cleaner on Wall Street. Of course this job goes bust. His garbage bin has a hole in the bottom so none of the dirt gets cleaned off the street. He gets out a hose to clean the dirt and it is too powerful. The water hits a parade that is going by. Next his writes home that he is going to use his artistic side to become an actor. He is an extra who totally bombs just being a Roman soldier who has to march in place in the background. He leaves the theater still in his costume. A police officer sees him and chases after him because his clothes are not appropriate. The Young Man evades the police for a bit outside a second hand store. He changes his clothes to the ones on sale but does not have the money. That is until he reaches into the pocket the pants and finds a wad of money. When he walks away the pant are too big and he loses them. His last note home to The Girl is that his performance was not too good and now he has to be followed around by the police. He has caused so much trouble with his shenanigans that the entire police force in the city is after him.

            The Young Man manages to make it back to The Girl by have the mail truck deliver him. Of course he was not successful so the father gets out his revolver. The Young Man misses and misses again and again.

            Daydreams was alright. It is not as funny or entertaining as some of Buster Keaton’s other films but it did manage to give me a good chuckle every now and then. I pretty much watched it for Renée Adorée. I like her very much so, as with any actress/actor I like enjoy, I try to watch as many of her films as I can find. She was not in it for the most part and she really did not have too much to do. Still it was great to see Adorée in a film. Keaton was of course adorable and great with his comedy. Daydreams is only twenty-one minutes long. Watch it if you like Buster Keaton, Renee Adorée or have the time for a short silent film.

Silent Sundays: The Show (1927)

“You shouldn’t have to live in the same world with a thing like me.”

            The Show takes place in a small town in Hungary. A young girl from the country named Lena, has come to town with her father to sell his herd of sheep. Since she has come to the city Lena has been seeing a sideshow performer named Robin (John Gilbert). Whenever they go out Robin makes her pay for everything.

            In the show Robin performs the story of Salome with an actress (Renée Adorée) he used to date who plays and is known as the title character. After the show Salome asks Robin if he is going to see Lena again that night. She is downtrodden when he says he will be.

            On the streets a man simply known as The Greek (Lionel Barrymore) stalks the city streets with an associate. The associate saw Lena’s father that morning sell his sheep and heard how much money he had made. The two men attack Lena’s father and kill him. When they look in his wallet he has nothing. Lena was told she had to stay in their room that night to watch the money.

            In the dressing room after the show, Salome gets jealous of the other women looking at Robin. She shoves one away and tells the others to mind their own business. The Greek walks into the dressing room. He has been seeing Salome. He pulls out his knife. Robin has a sword and makes it look like he is going to use it on The Greek. Instead he does something with his shoe and walks out. Robin goes to a bar to wait for Lena. The Greek and Salome come into the bar as well. It is clear from Salome’s face that she is still in love with Robin. Even The Greek can see it and he is not too happy.

            When Robin returns home Lena is waiting for him. She does not want to be alone with all the money. Robin is tempted to take the money for himself. He has it in his hand when he hears a knock on the door. Before he can even open it Salome comes charging in trying to warn Lena that Robin is only going around with her because of her money. Robin grabs Salome and almost hits her. Lena runs out of the house frightened leaving her money behind.  He throws Salome on the ground and goes to hit her with a stick he has. She stays calm and winds up talking him out of hurting her.

            The Greek’s associate was standing outside Robin’s house and saw Salome come out. He tells The Greek that Robin has Lena’s money and that Salome is in on it with Robin.

            The following night is the last night of the show. The Greek has beaten the man who plays the executioner in the show to take his place. Robin plays John the Baptist. The character has his head cut off. There are two different swords that are used: one is a real sword the other is a fake. Someone backstage watching the show notices the swords were not switched out and stops The Greek just in time. The Greek manages to get away. At that moment Lena shows up with a police officer who is looking for Robin for stealing the money and possibly the murder of the father. Salome tells Robin to go to her apartment and hide in the attic. That night The Greek has climbed the room to Salome’s room and sees Robin has brought the money to the attic.

            Salome keeps letting a blind neighbor come into her room so she can read his letters to him. He is excited about his letters that are from his son. She reads the latest one that says the son is now a captain in the navy. Robin cannot understand why she lets the old man come in and why she has to read to him. She confesses that she is the one who writes the letters to the man because his son is going to be hanged the following morning. The only thing keeping the man alive is receiving the letters and hoping his son will be home soon. Salome told the man that he will know his son will be home when he hears the bands playing outside. The following day there is a parade with bands playing. The man gets excited and comes racing to Salome’s room wanting to see his son. The man brings Robin into his room to speak to him alone. The man says he is proud and happy for the son to be home. At the moment the real son is hanged the man dies. When Robin walks into Salome’s room she is on her knees praying to a crucifix. A police officer from the prison comes to her door telling Salome that her brother has officially been hanged that morning and that if her father wants he can come and pick up the brother’s belongings. Robin is so upset for everything he has put Salome through and for her father dying at the same time her brother did. He kisses her and then falls to the ground hugging her legs. Salome sits down and holds Robin in her arms. Robin wants to give the money to please her.

            In the meantime, The Greek has gotten into Salome’s attic and taken the money. When Robin gets up into the attic he notices the money has gone. The police are at the door looking for Robin now. In the attic a deadly lizard from one of the shows has somehow gotten in there. Robin comes face to face with The Greek when the lizard scares both of them. The two men fight and are broken apart when the lizard jumps up to attack them. One of the police officers sees the lizard and shoots it. The Greek comes down holding the side of his neck from where the lizard got him. Robin comes down after. He gives the money to the one officer and tells them he is ready to go to the prison.

            The show of Salome is again performed.  Robin is back in his role as John the Baptist after being released for having given the money back.

            John Gilbert and Renée Adorée were wonderful together. I love them as a pair as so much. Gilbert may best be known for his pairing with Garbo but he did not look half as good with the “Divine One” as he did with Adorée. Adorée looked like a normal, real life woman. Of the films I have seen her in she is completely believable as her characters I never see her as just an actress. In his pairings with Adorée, Gilbert also becomes his character and not just an actor as he is with Garbo. I just like the way Gilbert and Adorée look together. Out of all the Hollywood pairs I like they look the most realistic and believable. In The Show you can believe that Robin has some good in him otherwise Salome would not have loved him so much. I have to say out of all the John Gilbert films I have seen so far this was definitely his best acted. There was no hamminess or over emoting he was just perfect.

            The Show is now one of my favorite silent films and it has a lot to do with John Gilbert and Renée Adorée. The story was not too bad. I liked the twist with the neighbor being her father and her brother being the one in jail. The whole thing with the killer lizard was a cheesy but that could be forgiven since the rest of the film is good. The Show is available to view in full on Youtube and I highly suggest seeing it. 

Redemption (1930)

“I love those I love and hate those I hate.”

            There  are several films in the early 1930s that were not too great for several reason: acting (which was still coming into a form since the actors now needed to talk), direction (cameras could now move… well to some degree), editing, and story. Several idols of the silent screen fell from grace during the early sound era. Some of them fell from their voices not being up to par with what the studios and the fans demanded. Some fell because their major popularity faded. No one suffered more from the fall from silent screen grace than John Gilbert. Unfortunately his fall came from his very home studio where they spread vicious lies about him because Gilbert did not want to cooperate. The films MGM gave Gilbert were below what any actor, let alone someone with Gilbert’s acting ability, should ever be given. Redemption was one of John Gilbert’s many completely unfortunate films that he was given so he could fail.

            A young woman named Lisa (Eleanor Boardman) has her fortune told by a gypsy in a gypsy camp. The fortunate teller reveals to Lisa that she will meet and marry a dark man. A man named Fedya (Gilbert) sees Lisa and goes to her to try to charm her. Lisa’s fiancée Victor comes over. Fedya and Victor know each other. Victor tells Lisa that Fedya is a good guy but he is very irresponsible.

            As the months pass Fedya and Lisa have been secretly seeing each other. Lisa breaks things off with Victor and marries Fedya. After a year of being married Fedya becomes restless. He begins to gamble and stay out until all hours of the night and morning. When their baby is born Lisa has Fedya promise to be good. He promises for the sake of their son. It is not long, though, until Fedya breaks his promise. He even makes a second promise and breaks that one as well. He gambles until he is bankrupt and has to sell the furniture. Lisa leaves her husband. Fedya had written her a letter that they should separate and she agreed but she still loves him. Lisa writes a letter to Fedya and has Victor take it to him. She tells Victor to tell Fedya she is waiting for him to come home.

            Fedya goes to a gypsy resort where he meets a gypsy girl named Masha (Renee Adoree). Victor tracks down Fedya to this resort and tells his friend that Lisa wants him to come home. Fedya says that he loves Lisa so much and that he wants Victor to marry her.

            Two months later Fedya is living in a cheap room. Masha is taking care of him. Her parents come to take her away. Fedya says he loves her like a sister. Masha loves Fedya more than a sister. Lisa comes during the argument. Fedya is upset she is there. Fedya tells Lisa he wants her to divorce him and marry Victor and forget him. Lisa loves him too much to let him go. Lisa goes home that night and tells Victor that seeing Masha with Fedya has let her move on from him.

            Fedya has a letter brought to Lisa and Victor. He wrote them that by the time they read their letters he will be gone. Lisa and Victor think Fedya has killed himself. Lisa has a meltdown. She yells at Victor to get away from here that Fedya was the only man she every loved.

            Fedya is not dead he went away with Masha. He reads in the paper that Lisa and Victor are to be married. Fedya talks to an old man in a bar that he had written Lisa a letter that he was going to kill himself. He was about to until Masha stopped him. She made it look like he drowned himself in a river. Another man overhears him and tells Fedya that he is going to blackmail Lisa and Victor to keep him quiet about what he has just heard. Fedya tracks the blackmailer down. The man calls for the police and rats on Fedya that he is defrauding the government pretending to be dead. Fedya is brought to jail. Lisa and Victor are brought before a judge with Fedya. To spare Lisa and Victor embarrassment Fedya takes a police officer’s gun and shoots himself.

            Let me just say that there was nothing wrong with John Gilbert’s voice or acting. Gilbert, like most actors and actresses of the time, was over dramatic in some scenes but for the most part he was fantastic. He was charming and handsome. MGM totally screwed him over. Eleanor Boardman was great. I enjoy her acting. It was sad to see her act with Gilbert who was being pushed to the ground when they were in Bardleys the Magnificent together and were amazing. Renee Adoree was only in the film for a short time. Her career suffered from sound because she was French and spoke English with a heavy accent.

            Redemption is not a very good film and it is not the fault of the acting. The story is sad, tragic and boring. No wonder the film did not do well audience were left feeling depressed. Redemption is not a film I highly recommend seeing unless you are a fan of John Gilbert or Renee Adoreee or Eleanor Boardman.