Customer Reviews

Movies of the 20s

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

 

 

This is the newest installment of a series on movies by decade. I have already the rest in the series and was quite pleased with the 20's. First surprise was that it actually covers the earliest films before 1920. It then continues through the twenties into the first "talkies" and on to the first grand masterpieces of the screen from 1930. As with the others it is fun to go through the pages of this book pictorially and just bring back memories that one may have. I think about all the film studies done by television and remember these old silent movies being mentioned. The second surprise is that each movie has a commentary written, so that someone such as myself may gain a broader understanding of the movie (especially if you have not seen or heard of that movie). Then each movie will also have a highlighted focus on either someone related to the picture (actor,director,cinematographer,etc.), or it may focus on the genre, the production set, or the movie studio (MGM is one). Finally, quotations are taken from the movie and media reviews of the time to round things out. A must for the movie buff!!!! It is a visual treat, but then becomes so much more. The pictures covered truly cover a wide range of the industry, not just Hollywood, but European and Russia as well. Pick this up and start finding out why pictures have always piqued our interest. You won't be sorry!

This big and heavy book full of glossy black & white photographs is simply a great pleasure to behold by anyone who loves early film or just elegant and beautiful pictures. Although I would already give it 5 stars for the quality and quantity of photos from 1920s movies, I found the texts with the pictures and the introductory article to also be of a very high standard. While not lengthy or involved, the articles supply enough information to satisfy any novice to early cinema, as well as the expert. Apart from thorough listings of cast, crew and other details pertaining to each movie, the first 75 pages describe the beginnings of moving pictures and cinema, highlighting a few landmark pre-1920 films such as D.W. Griffith's "Intolerance", the Italian 1914 epic, "Cabiria", as well as the early French serial "Fantomas" and ten other important early films. Then the book continues in chronological order, featuring both the classic and best known movies of the 1920s, as well as a few that are not so well-known today. Furthermore, the layout of the book is quite professional, with a general index and also a film index, as well as a list of academy award winners, and on the back cover an easy-to-find list of all movies included in this book. The selection strives to feature a good example of every genre and style, from comedy to horror, documentary to animation. Even though I was familiar with all but one movie, I still found it a very pleasant experience to look through and glean bits of information, or just delight in seeing so many fine stills from my favourite movie era. Furthermore, this is a very good quality book, printed on thick glossy paper inside a solid, hard cover, making it a good, value-for-money buy for any film enthusiast.

This is one of the best collections of stills from films of the 1920's available today. The pictures are also beautifully reproduced in high quality resolution. My only quibble is with the text, which is well researched, but is printed in white on a black background, which I find particularly difficult to read. But hey, movies, especially silent ones, are dominated by the visual sense and there and there is no shortage of iconic images here. Recommended for any enthusiast of early cinema.

As the author of Silent Films & Early Talkies on DVD: A Classic Movie Fan's Guide, I think I can claim some expertise in this area. This is truly an outstanding book, not only jam-packed with evocative stills (many full-page) of many of the decade's most unforgettable pictures, but laced with interesting comments and fascinating background information as well. One of the 85 or so movies detailed in the book was even unfamiliar to me: "Mother Krause's Journey to Happiness" (1929). Of course, in a book of this mammoth size, you have to expect a few errors here and there (I came across two in the brief Ramon Novarro bio), but who will cavil at such minor details? In each volume in this wonderful series, one movie is always seemingly selected as the decade's best. In this case, that movie is "Nosferatu" (1922). A popular pick certainly, but my choice (limited to those covered in this book) would be "The Thief of Bagdad" (1924). Admittedly, I'm a great fan of Douglas Fairbanks, Anna May Wong and William Cameron Menzies!

I had high expectations for this book and I wasn't disappointed. Wonderful pictures, many of which I've not seen in other books. Excellent commentary and good selection of films, not just American ones. Beautifully done and a great addition to my silent film library.