5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
May be a landmark, but just "okay.", January 20, 2010
Have been collecting 20's and 30's horror films and came across a review of this one in a book about horror films which noted it as a landmark in film history. The storyline is intriguing and even though the film overall is not as great as I'd hoped it does manage to surpass its limitations.
The film manages to be entertaining even though it's more of morality play than a horror film, and has typical 1920's overly-dramatic acting and plot. Added to this are the large number of unlikely coincidences which are necessary to the plot.
Other reviews make much of the film's use of double exposure to create the ghostly carriage and for the spirits walking about. At times I found myself wondering how they'd created some of the shots given the limitations of the time, so I guess this is a testament to the film's special effects. At times the effects manage to be genuinely creepy.
The acting is good, especially the main character David Holm and his drinking buddy who drives the carriage. Some of the minor parts are played with less quality but they're at least equal to the actress playing Mina Harker in Nosferatu.
The film is effective at capturing the atmosphere and society of the 1920's and this makes me wish it could be re-written to reduce the overly dramatic aspects and morality message, and to flesh out the creepiness. It would be good to see a remake with modern production and good actors.
The DVD film transfer is poor at times showing pixelation and makes me wish they would just do it over again using higher resolution and sampling. Problems with the original add to this as the print was in poor condition with scratches, spots, very poor washed-out contrast at times, and with some skipping or frame jumping. It could really use some digital cleaning up, but with all these problems the film still manages to be watchable and entertaining.
The sound is very good with a recent pipe organ composition that is appropriate and even masterful. Occasionally there are added special sounds such as for a gunshot that at first were merely confusing, as I didn't expect them for a silent film.
The DVD includes not only the original Swedish release but the heavily edited American release as well. It's good to have them both but I believe the original is the better of the two.
Trying to rate the film in comparison with other 1920's films is difficult but this is not in the league of say Nosferatu, and certainly not even on the same page as Vampyr or the 1929 version of Hunchback of Notre Dame. Highly recommend these others before considering this one.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
The call of Death!, December 28, 2010
This review is from: Körkarlen [Region 2] (DVD)
The coach man of Death must be replaced each year by the last man to die on December 31th is the main dramatic premise of this extraordinary movie whose ethical and philosophical implications is still worth to watch and admire. We should realize we are in 1920 , the same year in which Fritz Lang was making another related masterwork: Destiny.
An everlasting classic. Don't miss it.
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3.0 out of 5 stars
I good release, January 31, 2010
!!!!This is a review of the dvd and not the film!!!!
The first thing that came in mind when i saw this was, oh a crappy dvdr. The dvd case is not pretty. It looks very home made.
The film inside is okey. The picture is alittle up and down. Its okey to watch.
The dvd contains the NOVEL! Thats a huge pluss. It also contains alot of information about the film.
If you want to see this film, buy this dvd. Its nothing wrong with it. It may be ugly, but its ok inside. Please comment if you have the swedish release. I would love to hear how it is.
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