Silent Photoplay Forum

Yay!! I just got my copy!

I think mine is supposed to be here tomorrow.

Nifty. I just ordered one also.

dachshundonstilts wrote: ↑

Sun Sep 02, 2018 7:53 am

Nifty. I just ordered one also.

Yay!

That was quick... it’s here already.

dachshundonstilts wrote: ↑

Tue Sep 04, 2018 3:42 pm

That was quick... it’s here already.

Awesome! That was quick.

So I watched it. Interesting to see a whole lineup from 1917, even if the feature wasn't the top of the heap. To tell the truth, I didn't even realize the Edison company used to make feature-length films, so this was a revelation.

I haven't watched the whole thing yet. I wanted to watch all the shorts multiple times first. I also sort of wanted to read the book first before I watched Kidnapped. I have an old copy (that was my uncle's. I really don't know where it came from, but he wrote his name in it. I was shocked when I saw his name in the cover one day when going through my collection) but haven't gotten through it yet.

I finished watching the shorts. To be honest, I did not find the first two highly interesting. Friends, Romans, and Leo seemed rather ditzy, and Little Red Riding Hood, while unique, did not add anything really to the familiar story.

However, I did enjoy the Quaint Provincetown tour. I thought it was most charming—that looked like such a pleasant place to live, and the people looked so likable and happy. I'm sure it wasn't quite as idyllic as the film made it to be, but still, I'd like to go there.... And this is another of those things you see where the thought pops into your mind—I wonder who those people were and what happened to them....

I am enough of a nerd to admit I also liked Microscopic Pond Life. That seems quite a feat of photography, considering the technology at the time. I can imagine that it fascinated the audience. There is another similar one done by Edison on magnetism (1915, I believe) that is one of my favorite little shorts.

Ben Model’s piano scores are splendid throughout. It amazes me how he is able to come up with a suitable score for things like the views of microscopic pond life. How the heck do you compose something for views of an amoeba swimming?? Yet, he is able to do it, and manages to come up with music that evokes a gentle sense of discovery and that enhances the film quite well. I don’t know of another accompanist who could do that.

Thoughts? Agreements? Disagreements?

So far I have only watched the first short. I really liked it. The lion is the star of the show. It's very funny on multiple viewings.