Customer Reviews

The Deerslayer

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While still "collector's quality", this is a much better print then I would normally expect from Alpha (normally Alpha appears to have little to no quality control; their dvd's often look like they were mastered from a 5th generation VHS copy). Previously hard to find early Bela Lugosi film in MUCH BETTER quality then the public domain dvd's on ebay.

ALPHA VIDEO offers bargain priced, often hard-to-find vintage movies that are ideal for those willing to skip DVD extras. Their transfers show no evidence of restoration, so quality varies from one title to the next, with "fair to good" being the average.

THE DEERSLAYER (1920) is a German cinematic production of one of James Fenimore Cooper's Leatherstocking tales. Although published last, "The Deerslayer" is actually volume one of the series; it introduces Natty Bumpo (here portrayed by Emil Marnelok) and his companion Chingachgook (Bela Lugosi).

Shot in the European countryside and containing a fair amount of action sequences, the film is marred by an overabundance of intertitles. The main interest here is seeing Bela Lugosi's only surviving silent-era performance.

Another horror movie actor in feathers is Boris Karloff, who plays a Native American in the 1920 version of Fenimore Cooper's THE LAST OF THE MOHICANS (with Wallace Beery), and an Indian CHIEF in Cecil B. DeMille's 1947 epic, UNCONQUERED (starring Gary Cooper and Paulette Goddard).

Parenthetical number preceding title is a 1 to 10 IMDb viewer poll rating.

(5.4) The Deerslayer (silent-Germany-1920) - Emil Marnelock/Herta Heden/Bela Lugosi/Gottfried Kraus/Edward Eyseneck/Margot Sokolowska

Bela Lugosi's Chingachgook flashes past but is the best thing in this confused telling of James Fenimore Cooper. Filmed in 1920 in Germany as two features, mashed down to this one-hour cut for 1923 US release. Competently made and occasionally pretty. Brutal abridgement means film often flirts with incoherence, and Emil Mamelok plays Hawkeye like a stolid German burgher. Much energetic canoeing. Lugosi's role is largely cut, but he shines when onscreen. This edition offers a soft 16mm print, ungainly intertitles and no extra features. Essential for Lugosi completists, not without interest for students of early German film, otherwise pass.

I'm thankful Alpha Video was able to locate and release this early and little-seen film featuring Bela Lugosi. The print is clear and stable, but having just watched the film in its entirety I felt I should pass on a few observations.

However, the print used seems to be missing quite a bit of footage, making parts of the story difficult to follow. Characters refer to actions and scenes without us having seen them. Most telling are the repeated shots of a Boy Scout Troop reading a book around a campfire - presumably "The Deerslayer." There's no explanation to the Scouts' presence, and they're not given any dialogue at all. The music seems to be original but not scored for this film. It seems to repeat itself after every 15 minutes and doesn't reflect the action. I'd wager Alpha commissioned the music for another film and just used it here.

Despite the above omissions it's pretty doubtful a longer or more complete edition exists (this isn't "Metropolis" after all). But for any silent film or Bela Lugosi fan I'd recommend giving this one a look.