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: Not Rated
: Image Entertainment
: Documentary, Silent
: English
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This title is currently out of print.
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The Origins of Film Collection: "African American Cinema" (1999)
The Origins of Film series (a joint project of the Library of Congress and Smithsonian Institute) is a presentation of rare American motion pictures from the early days of filmmaking. Part One of the African American Cinema portion of this series is the earliest known surviving feature directed by an African American. Oscar Micheaux's 1919 film, Within Our Gates is directly concerned with racism and includes a scene of a lynching. Discovered in a film archive in Spain in 1970 (retitled as "La Negra" with the English-language intertitles replaced by Spanish ones) the film has been painstakingly restored to approximate Micheaux's original version.
~ Alice Duncan, All Movie Guide
The Origins of Film: "America's First Women Filmmakers" & "Origins of the Gangster Film" (1993)
Filmed in collaboration with the United States Library of Congress, The Origins of Film: America's First Women Filmmakers takes a comprehensive look at the role of females in the overwhelmingly male world of film production. Among those profiled are Alice Guy-Blaché, who directed two short films in 1913 (Matrimony's Speed Limit and A House Divided), as well as Lois Weber, who made a name for herself as a director at Universal before deciding to produce films independently. Weber's contributions include a feature-length satire (1921's Too Wise Wives), as well as the short comedy How Men Propose. Both films offer a unique perspective on preconceived gender roles of the time. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
The Origins of Film: "Origins of American Animation" & "Origins of the Fantasy Feature" (1999)
This joint production from the United States Library of Congress and the Smithsonian Institution has compiled several hallmarks of early American animated features. Among the titles explored are Fun in a Bakery Shop, a short film from Tony Sarg, several excerpts from animator Winsor McCay's creations, a handful of the popular Krazy Kat cartoons, and King Kong director Willis O'Brien's The Dinosaur and the Missing Link. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
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| The Origins of Film: "America's First Women Filmmakers" & "Origins of the Gangster Film" (1993) |
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| The Origins of Film: "Origins of American Animation" & "Origins of the Fantasy Feature" (1999) |
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| The best disc in the series
by AKrizman
March 17, 2003 - 7:42 PM PST
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6 out of 6 members found this review helpful
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Instead of being a documentary that shows clips from dozens of silent movies while a narrator explains
their relevance, The Origins of Film series shows a handful of obscure films from the silent era in their entirety with only introductory title cards provided for explanation.
Volume 1
"Origins of American Animation" includes the following 23 short films:
The Enchanted Drawing (1900) 1.5 min.
Though not strictly animation, this familiar film is an inspired execution of stop motion trickery deftly performed by vaudevillian J. Stuart Blackton.
Fun in a Bakery Shop (1902) 1.5 min.
Humorous Phases of Funny Faces (1906) 3 min.
J. Stuart Blackton, again; this time he's experimenting with true animation. This film plays like a sampler of animation exercises rather than a coherent piece.
Keeping up with the Joneses [Women's Styles] (1915) 3 min.
Keeping up with the Joneses [Men's Styles] (1915) 3 min.
Primative animation from Harry S. Palmer. Not particularly remarkable.
Dreamy Dud Resolves Not To Smoke (1915) 5 min.
Us Fellers: Dud Leaves Home (1919) 5 min.
This marks a step up in the level of sophistication in animation.
Bobby Bumps Starts a Lodge (1916) 5 min.
Krazy Kat Goes A-Wooing (1916) 2.5 min.
Krazy Kat - Bugologist (1916) 3.5 min.
Krazy Kat and Ignatz Mouse at the Circus (1916) 3 min.
Endearing proto-Mickey characters
The Phable of a Busted Romance (1915) 2 min.
The Phable of the Phat Woman (1916) 2 min.
Never Again! "The Story of a Speeder Cop" (1916) 2 min.
Mr. Nobody Holme: "He Buys a Jitney" (1916) 1.5 min.
Tom E. Powers adds an element of the surreal to his cartoons.
Mary and Gretel (1917) 7 min.
A fairy brings two dolls to life then kills them for picking flowers, and a bunny dies of alcohol poisoning. All of this and elf bowling, too! These are just a few of the charming moments that highlight this wonderous stop motion tale sure to enchant children and the young-at-heart.
The Dinosaur and the Missing Link (1917) 6 min.
Willis H. O'Brien's stop motion primate vs. dinosaur career starts here.
W.S.S. Thriftettes (1918) 0.5 min.
huh?
AWOL; or, All Wrong Old Laddiebuck (1919) 6 min.
I found this one a bit inscrutable, but Charles R. Bowers' bio is intriguing enough to give a look.
The Katzenjammer Kids: "Policy and Pie" (1918) 6.5 min.
from "Gertie on Tour" (1921) 1.5 min.
from "The Centaurs" (1921) 2 min.
Two unfinished pieces by animation pioneer Winsor McCay.
Tony Sarg's Almanac: "The First Circus" (1921) 6 min.
A disjointed novelty cartoon in silhouette - shadow puppets perhaps?
"Origins of the Fantasy Feature" includes the following two films:
The Patchwork Girl of Oz (1914) 66 min.
Produced by the author himself, this early Oz work is intriguing as an authentic reflection of Frank Baum's artistic vision. The set decoration and costumes were faithfully consulted when the more famous Oz movie was made 25 years later. The film stands quite well on it's own, too. The acrobatic Pierre Couderc is particularly pliable as the titular Patchwork girl, and the Scarecrow and Tin Man make welcome cameos.
A Florida Enchantment (1914) 63 min.
The premise: magic seeds turn men to women and women to men; madcap situations ensue. The interesting twist is that they don't actually physically change gender - they just start behaving and, eventually, dressing like the other gender. This brings up some surprisingly bold gay themes.
SEE ALSO:
Origins of Film Collection (Disc 1 of 3)
Origins of Film Collection (Disc 3 of 3) |
| Mostly irrelevant, but one gem
by AKrizman
February 7, 2003 - 9:43 AM PST
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4 out of 4 members found this review helpful
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Instead of being a documentary that shows clips from dozens of silent movies while a narrator explains their relevance, The Origins of Film series shows a handful of obscure films from the silent era in their entirety with only introductory title cards provided for explanation.
Volume 1
"America's First Women Filmmakers" includes the following films:
How Men Propose (1913) 6 min.
A short comedy skit wherein three men propose to the same woman. Stylistically very different from Too Wise Wives, Lois Weber's other feature on this disc.
Matrimony's Speed Limit (1913) 14 min.
A House Divided (1913) 13 min.
Both of these films are Slapstick comedy shorts directed by Alice Guy starring Fraunie Fraunholz and Marian Swayne. In Speed Limit, a man has 12 minutes to get married or he'll lose a fortune. In A House Divided, a married couple try to remain separated while living in the same house. Both films are pleasant enough, and at the time their now-trite premises must have seemed fresh, but 90 years of movie comedies and 60 years of tv sitcoms have rendered these irrelevant. Alice Guy is considered the first female movie director, but it would seem that she is more a pioneer for the Nora Ephrons than the Mary Harrons.
Too Wise Wives (1921) 80 min.
Director Lois Weber effectively captures the minutiae of domestic hell in this story of two wives. Mrs. Graham (the good wife) begins to suspect that her husband is still carrying a torch for former flame Mrs. Daly (the bad wife). Gender attitudes have evolved considerably in the 80+ years since this film was made and it has aged gracelessly, but somehow the film is rendered more intriguing because of it. Mrs. Graham's Martyr act comes across as pitiful and ironically selfish by today's standards, and Mrs. Daly's schemes make her seem empowered and refreshingly autonomous.
"Origins of the Gangster Film" includes the following films:
The Narrow Road (1912) 18 min.
Mary Pickford stars in this D.W. Griffith short about a former convict trying to go straight. His former accomplice constantly tries to convince him to return to his counterfeiting scheme, while the suspicious detective, convinced that convicts can't reform, is relentlessly trying to find him guilty of something. This would set the stage for a very intriguing ethical suspense drama, if the former convict were forced to wrestle with his dedication to the straight life. Unfortunately, his conversion is complete and unwavering, undermining any suspense the film might have had.
Alias Jimmy Valentine (1915) 65 min.
Like the previous film, this film is about a former convict who goes straight overnight for the love of a woman. This one has the same flaw as the previous one too; it's moral absolutism undermines potential ethical suspense. Combine this with the obvious and ironic ending that you would expect from a an O. Henry story, and you've got the kind of movie that only Frank Darabont could redeem. Fortunately, director Maurice Tourneur is up to the challenge. Thanks to two exceptional and suspenseful set pieces (The opening bank robbery, and the aforementioned predictable ending), this movie transforms from the hackneyed pap it should have been, to the remarkably entertaining gem that it is. This film is easily the highlight of this volume.
SEE ALSO:
Origins of Film Collection (Disc 2 of 3)
Origins of Film Collection (Disc 3 of 3) |
| Primarily of historical interest
by AKrizman
February 4, 2003 - 10:52 AM PST
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5 out of 5 members found this review helpful
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Instead of being a documentary that shows clips from dozens of silent movies while a narrator explains their relevance, The Origins of Film series shows a handful of obscure films from the silent era in their entirety with only introductory title cards provided for explanation.
Volume 3 features "African American Cinema" and includes the following Titles:
Within Our Gates (1920) 79 min.
It seems that the director, Oscar Micheaux, filmed a series of set pieces that addressed a laundry list of race issues and then tried to tie them together afterwards. The result is an incoherent plot with lots of dropped story lines. It's not without its provocative moments, however - particularly in a sub-plot where a black preacher inadvertently demonstrates the rather Marxist idea that religion keeps the oppressed compliant.
Within Our Gates will always have a place in movie history for being the earliest surviving feature directed by a black man. Unfortunately, it has nothing else going for it. It's production values and acting are amateur even by 1920 standards.
Noble Sissle and Eubie Blake (1923) 3 min.
Vaudevillians Sissle and Blake perform the song Affectionate Dan in this short pre-Jazz Singer sound film.
Scar of Shame (1927) 68 min.
The first act of Scar of Shame promises an unabashed melodrama with its pat morality and palatable politics. Eddie, the cigar chomping villain, proves the vices of gambling, liquor, and cabaret, while Alvin, the virtuous (if a bit snobby) hero displays his assimilationist ideals as prominently as the portrait of Frederick Douglass on his wall.
After Alvin rescues and marries Louise, the true-hearted damsel in distress, Eddie devises a fiendish plot to kidnap Louise and make her a cabaret girl.
At this point, the film takes an unexpected but welcome turn towards unpredictability. Alvin's integrity becomes suspect when it's revealed that his altruistic attitudes about race don't apply to class issues, and Louise's devotion is exposed as limited. In the beginning, the movie claims that a lack of 'higher ambitions' leads to tragic results, but by the end, it's not obvious whether the tragic results were caused by Eddie's ambition to run a cabaret, or by Alvin's elitism.
The director, Frank Peregini, started his career as a cinematographer, and it shows. In the nighttime and dark room scenes, he evokes palpable suspense and a sense of isolation.
This feature is easily the highlight of this volume.
SEE ALSO:
Origins of Film Collection (Disc 1 of 3)
Origins of Film Collection (Disc 2 of 3) |
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