Customer Reviews

Crowd, The [VHS]

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Made in 1926-27 by King Vidor, with brilliant cinematography by Henry Sharp of huge crowd scenes, often with superimposed layers of film, this is a classic; beautifully acted and scripted, it is one of the best films of the silent genre.
It follows the life of John Sims, born on July 4th, 1900, who is average in every way, with great hopes and dreams, struggling to make a living in New York City. Every scene is full of symbolism, representing man searching for his uniqueness among the masses, and with the eventual acceptance of himself as an individual.
There are quite a few moments of comic relief (the Christmas Eve conversation with the in-laws is hilarious), but most of it is tragic; as he finds out after a death in the family, "the crowd laughs with you always...but it will cry with you for only a day".

This was an experimental film for Vidor, and one of the many risks he took was casting an unknown actor, James Murray, to play John, and the choice was a good one. Eleanor Boardman (who was married to Vidor at the time) is marvelous as John's long suffering wife Mary. Also excellent is Bert Roach, who plays John's best buddy Bert.

There is a famous camera shot early in this film, that was made with the help of a scale model, which seems as though one is going up the side of a skyscraper, through a window, and into an office. It also is a film without a heroic figure, which made the studio hesitant to release it; little did they know it would stand the test of time, and would be still seen by many, 75 years later, and appreciated as a work of cinematic art.
The restoration is excellent, and it is enhanced by an orchestral score by Carl Davis.

"The Crowd" is rightly considered one of the enduring classics of the American silent screen. King Vidor's 1928 film tells the story of an average man, John Sims (James Murray), married to the average woman, Mary (Eleanor Boardman, who might be the most beautiful actress I have ever seen in a silent film), told in a naturalistic style (for the most part; there are some obvious exceptions such as the distorted sets and strange perspectives) that enhances its simple truths. Murray had been an extra until Vidor made him a star, knowing that his story would never work with a leading man in the role of the American everyman. John Sims is one of the faceless office workers (#137) in New York City, a dreamer who secretly writes advertising slogans hoping one will be his big break. He finds Mary and proposes, honeymooning in Niagara Falls and then returning to live in a Manhattan flat overlooking the noisy el-train. Years go by and John has made nothing of himself to improve the lot of his wife and two children. The pivotal point in the film comes when the long dreamt for success finally arrives, only to be followed by a brutal tragedy. Yet while the characters find themselves trapped in the depths of despair, the audience will certainly recognize the uplifting ending, especially since it is obviously a reflection of themselves. Still, even with its final sense of hope, the film offers no solutions, an idea audiences would have been uncomfortable with if it had been made more explicit. Vidor was nominated for an Oscar, the first year the awards were given, but lost out to Frank Borzage's "Seventh Heaven," a more popular film that enjoys no where near the reputation of "The Crowd" today. My Top 10 Silent Film list is still being developed, but this one has got to be on it.

"The Crowd" is quite simply one of the most powerful and moving films ever made. I have had the pleasure of watching it many times over the years, both alone and as part of a "crowd", and its impact has always been the same: leaving me and the rest of the audience breathless with emotion. Directed and co-written by the wonderful King Vidor (surely one of the greatest talents ever to work in the Hollywood system) and featuring extraordinary cinematography from Henry Sharp that still startles 80 years after the fact, "The Crowd" is one of those rare instances where everything comes together to form a perfect artistic whole. An integral part of that artistic perfection is the acting from the two leads, James Murray and Eleanor Boardman, who give riveting, true-to-life performances as the film's symbolic "everyman and woman", John and Mary. Anyone who believes the old chestnut that silent film acting is too artificial and stylized to work for modern audiences should see this film. I know that the term masterpiece gets used far too frequently and lightly these days, especially apropos Hollywood cinema, but IMO "The Crowd" is one instance when it is truly merited. Thanks to the combined efforts of Thames Television and composer Carl Davis (a great talent in his own right and major friend to lovers of silent Hollywood film), we are fortunate today to have a beautifully remastered and re-scored copy of "The Crowd" but sadly it is only available on VHS, and even this is discontinued, or through the occasional cable TV screening. Surely , this is a film that demands a major DVD release...hello, Criterion?

I remember being surprised and rather disappointed when I first started watching this video. From the cover, I expected it to be another "Metropolis." I ended up enjoying it nonetheless for its realism. The beginning of the film is actually quite comical once the leading character arrives in New York and meets his mate. It includes a fun look at the rides of Coney Island. As the film goes on (and does it ever! It is very long) one sees the leading character's perfect little world crumbling before him as he is buried in the drudgery, frustrations, disappointments, and tragedies of life in "the crowd." The acting is superb. James Murray is perfect as the pitiful, yet well-meaning loser and Eleanor Boardman is excellent as his strong wife. I did not get the same uplifting feeling at the conclusion of the film as did some of the other reviewers. The conclusion seemed a little weak after so long a movie. Also, I see the symbolism of the final scene in a darker way. I see a more negative message from "The Crowd" about life in the city. Check out this film and judge for yourself.

Gotta confess: I've never cared much for silent movies. The pancake makeup, the googly eyes, the permanent waves, the heaving sighs--they never did anything for me. But _The Crowd_, surprise, surprise, just so happens to be the best movie I've seen this summer. The simple human tale of waves of dreams being dashed into spray on the cliffs of New York satisfies the viewer far more than the latest computer FX ever could.

The film has its own remarkable special effects, achieved mostly through clever framing. The scene with 12-year-old Johnny ascending the staircase is a masterpiece of the use of the lines of perspective. The camera panning over to the adult John at his desk totting up columns of numbers, in a vast room with other men doing the same thing, is a great evocation of anonymity.

The story itself is streets ahead of silent films from just ten years previous to it. It has its share of pathos and melodrama-the plot twists at strict right angles--but a surprising element of ambivalence pervades the film, too. The plucky young go-getter gets the girl with little effort--no Bluto to overcome. But his hard work and winning personality don't win him the brass ring, either. Instead, as he drifts further down into the anonymous mass, he finds reasons to count his blessings. The film ends with everyone having a good laugh--for tonight. This is not the stuff of _Rescued by Rover_. Quite an experience.

This is one of those films that just about everyone seems to love and praise as a classic, even if they might not ordinarily be fans of the genre or the people involved in it, and it's definitely one of the Top 10 films of the silent era. While it's not one of the great epic silents such as 'Ben-Hur' or 'The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse,' it can be seen as an epic in its own way, the epic story of an individual's life.

John Sims is born on the Fourth of July in the first year of the 20th century, and his father, quite proud of his new son, is sure that he's going to grow up to be someone great. And throughout much of his life, John does believe that, even as life keeps handing him one rotten turn after another. He knows he's going to be someone, more than just another anonymous face in the crowd, that his big break really is just around the corner this time, that everything will start to go swimmingly before he knows it. While he's, on close analysis, not really a particularly likeable or ambitious character, that's part of the appeal of the story, and of his character. He's just like so many of us, starting out believing he would be something great, really make something of himself, automatically climb the ladder of success, and even when life hands him lemons, he keeps persisting in his belief that it's not going to be like this forever, that his whole life couldn't really be wasted and nothing more than squandered missed opportunities. After all, he's done well in school, gets a job at as good company, scores a wife lightning-fast (his seemingly first dating experience ends with an impulsive marriage proposal based on a subway advertisement for a house he catches sight of!), and despite some marital problems (many based on his in-laws' disapproval of him), establishes what he thinks is a good home life with two good kids. His big chance to make something of himself really does seem to him to be only a matter of time. His story is captivating and incredibly real to life, becoming even more so the further he sinks. It is a depressing story, but many times real life is depressing and has no real happy ending.

This film was made when the silent cinema was at its peak, such an evolution in comparison to some of the films from even five years earlier. This story would never have worked nearly so well had it been made as a talking picture. All of its power, beauty, emotions, pull, and nuances would have been lost. Among the great scenes and shots illustrating the power of silence to tell a story are the camera panning up the skyscraper, the shot of all of the desks in the huge office John works at, the scene on the train during John and Mary's first night together as a married couple (the fear and nervousness over how they're going to have to sleep in the same bed for the first time is portrayed incredibly realistically), twelve year old John at the top of the stairs upon learning his father has died, and the haunting final shot, truly one of the most memorable endings in all of cinema. It's difficult to understand why this, one of the greatest of all silents, has never been issued on DVD, while numerous lesser silents have been merited worthy of DVD treatment.

Even by today's standards THE CROWD is still relevant and easy to watch. A lot of the older films no matter how historically important are tedious and a chore to watch. THE LAST DAYS OF POMPEII nearly did me in.

Determined to make something of himself young man, John Sims, arrives in NYC and fills a slot in a gigantic corporation. Wife and kids happen, years pass and then finally depression about his lost dreams.

King Vidor (who's SHOW PEOPLE I rank as one of the best silents) shot most of the crowd scenes in secret to make them more realistic. If you pay attention you'll see a cop looking toward the camera and tell them to move along. Eleanor Boardman who is fantastic as the sad wife was actually Vidor's real life wife at the time. Making the movie took so long she got pregnant and had the baby before filming was over.

James Murray who played John had been a extra before he got his big break in THE CROWD, sadly thanks to alcoholism he died in 1936 at the age of 35. Vidor was so troubled by Murray's self-destructive life that he wrote a script about it called "The Actor". It was never made.

Hey Criterion how about a Vidor box set: THE BIG PARADE, THE CROWD, SHOW PEOPLE, STREET SCENE and NORTHWEST PASSAGE.

It is twenty five years since I saw this film and I find myself seeking it out now. This really is that memorable. We watch someone slowly ground down by life, by tragedy and drudgery. and learn the great truth that friendship and love is our consolation and support more than that true source of joy. who needs sound? King Vidor did not.

make sure you have hankies handy.

Director King Vidor's "The Crowd" (1928) remains among the most socially relevant films ever made. The heartbreaking yet hopeful saga of John and Mary Sims (memorably played by James Murray and Eleanor Boardman) continues to strike an emotional chord with worldwide audiences. Vidor's humanist vision evokes a powerful resonance in today's troubled times - capped by that symbolic final shot. Henry Sharp's groundbreaking camerawork deserves the highest praise. No longer in print, this masterpiece (featuring Carl Davis' brilliant score) belongs on DVD.

King Vidor was never the most subtle of filmmakers, but his heavily Baroque style served him well over a very long career with emotionally overwrought though supremely entertaining films like 1937's Stella Dallas and 1949's The Fountainhead. This seminal 1928 silent classic reflects Vidor's passion for melodrama but within a realistically bleak social commentary of America in the years leading toward the Great Depression. Written by Vidor and John V.A. Weaver, the story has an episodic structure that chronicles the life of an Everyman appropriately named John, born on the 4th of July in 1900, who believes his destiny is to become a big financial success. The movie follows his life as he works in New York as one of hundreds of accounting drones in an office building falls in love and marries a girl he meets through a co-worker (named Mary, of course), ekes out a meager existence as they raise two children and hits hard times after tragedy befalls them.

That John and Mary's seemingly mundane lives can seem universally transcendent is a tribute to Vidor's filmmaking acumen. Thanks to Henry Sharp's remarkable camerawork, Vidor produces two of cinema's most impressive tracking shots - the first moving from street level up a skyscraper into a field of identical desks and zeroing in on John at #137, the second in a most expressionistic-looking maternity ward where John finds an exhausted Mary at the far end of the room and their baby is brought to them. Even though the angles and dimensions are exaggerated in these scenes, Vidor offsets this stylization with realistic scenes of the teeming anonymity of city life. The story of James Murray, an insecure extra Vidor picked out of obscurity to play John, lends a particular irony to the movie, as his tragic, alcohol-fueled life ended eight years later with a fall off a pier. It's a shame since he plays John with sincere gumption and wide-eyed enthusiasm. Vidor's wife, Eleanor Boardman, is affecting as the constantly put-upon Mary. Together they make a convincingly ordinary couple in this sharply rendered portrait of downward mobility and self-acceptance.