Scott Lord Silent Film: Greta Garbo In The Joyless Street (G.W. Pabst, 1...

In The Film Till Now, a survey off world cinema, Paul Rotha writes, “It is impossible to witness the showing a Film by Pabst without marveling at his unerring choice of camera angle for the expression of mood or his employment of the moving camera to heighten action.” Notwithstanding he describes the “tempestuous and badly received” “The Joyless Street” as being only the second film made by the director and that the directors poularity as only having increased later. “With unerring psychology by which he caused the smallest actions of his characters to convey meaning. Pabst brought to his picture moments of searing pain, of mental anquish, of clear unblemished beauty. His extreme powers of truthfulness, of understanding, of reality, of the virtual meaning of hunger, love, lust and greed rendered this extraordinary film convincing.” Rotha noted the collaboration of actress Greta Garbo with the director Pabst. “Mention has been made of Greta Garbo in the film, for it is by this that one theorizes on her beauty and ability. In Hollywood this splendid woman has been wantonly distorted into the symbol of eroticism. But Greta Garbo, by reason of her sympathetic understanding of Pabst, brought a quality of loveliness into her playing as the professor’s eldest daughter. Her frail beauty, cold as ann ice flower warmed by the sun, stood secure in the starving city of Vienna, untouched by the vice and lust that dwelt in the dark Street.”

Roger Manvell, author of Film and Public, writing in 1955, pointed out that Pabst had added a level of tragedy to the events which encompassed his characters, "It was not untill Pabst emerged into the silent German cinema that German melodrama deepened into tragedy....The plots of Pabst's silent film are melodramatic, with happy endings superimposed upon them in almost every case."

The script to the film was based on a novel by Hugo Bettauer that only a year earlier had been serialized in a newspaper in Vienna. The length of the film is listed as five reels, but apparently screened with extensive censorship cuts in a version considerably shorter than the modern restored version and in American versions which edited out the character portrayed by Asta Nielsen.

In his volume A Tale from Constantinople, written with Patrick Vondeau, Bo Florin, University of Stockholm, notes that originally actress Vilma Banky had been considered for the lead in the film "The Joyless Street", her having left for America before the shooting of the film. Mauritz Stillerwas on occaision seen at the studio, his apparently having had an interest in directing the film and he in fact having had an offer to direct six films in Europe when he decided to depart for America.

Actress Greta Garbo came directly to America without filming in Sweden after working with G.W. Pabst, and had in fact been working on a Film with Mauritz Stiller before having been given her role in “The Joyless Street”. The Private Life of Greta Garbo, published in 1931 by Rilla Page Palmborg at a time when the world didn’t know how private the life of Greta Garbo would later become, gives an account of Mauritz Stiller, Greta Garbo and Einar Hanson being in Constantinople to film the first movie ever made there. After delays in completing the script, it had finally been finished and Mauritz Stiller had started to direct when its financing had abruptly been discontinued and Stiller’s telegrams had gone unanswered. “In a few days, Mr.Stiller returned with the sad news that the backers of the picture had gone broke. There was nothing to do but disband and go home. But Mr. Stiller had plans for another picture that he wanted to make in Berlin. While she was waiting...Mr. Stiller got her a part in ‘The Street of Sorrow’...During this time, Louis B. Mayer, production head of the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios in Hollywood was making a trip through Europe on the lookout for new talent. The night he saw ‘Gosta Berlings Saga’ he saw photography and new directorial tricks that had never been done before.He wanted to see the genius who directed the fine picture.”

Author Forsyth Hardy, typically as he is usually concise, devotes only a paragraph of his volume Scandinavian Film to the Mauritz Stiller endeavor "Kostantinopel", noting that after he had interested them in his already underway project, Stiller involved Greta Garbo and Einar Hanson deeply in the on location making of the film. The brief account continues: subsequently Garbo completed "The Joyless Street" and then agreed to go to Hollywood with Stiller.

Danish Silent Film Star Asta Nielsen remained in Berlin to film similar social dramas about the decadence, or downfall, of society, among them “Tragedy of the Street” (Rahn, 1927) and “The Vice of Humanity” (Meinhart, 1927) . At first glance, the films are connected to “The Joyless Street” by belonging to The New Objectivity, which depicted the cities of Germany realistically as being in post-War poverty. During 1925, already famous for her portrayal of “Hamlet” (Sven Gade, 1921), Asta Nielsen played the title role of Hedda Gabler in a film adapted and directed by Frank Eckstein and starred in the film “The Living Buddhas” under the direction of Paul Wegner. Only five minutes of the original footage of the film now survive, adding the film to the many now lost films of the silent era.

Silent film director Georg Wilhelm Pabst is perhaps best known to contemporary audiences for directing actress Louise Brooks in the films "Pandora's Box" and "Diary of a Lost Girl" (Das tagebuch einer verbrenen"), both filmed during 1929.
Greta Garbo and Mauritz Stiller

Greta Garbo

Scott Lord Silent Film: King of Kings (De Mille,1927)

"I have always made pictures with a message and a moral. True, I have dressed up these in elaborate trappings, principally because I wanted people to see my pictures. Messages without an audience aren't worth very much." Photoplay Magazine during 1927 featured an interview with silent film director Cecil B. De Mille titled "How Christ Came to Pictures" in which he briefly explained his father had been a lay reader who preached in an Episcopal church in Pompton, New Jersey before quickly continuing to his earlier marriage comedy films made before 1920. De Mille ended the interview with "'The King of Kings' has the ring of sincerity. We did it with complete sincerity." Photoplay Magazine during 1927 reviwed "King of Kings" as being an authentic depiction of the events in the Holy Bible, "De Mille has followed the New Testament literally and with fidelity. He has taken no liberties. Frequently, in his groupings, he has followed famous Biblical paintings...Mr. Warner meets the accepted ideas of Christ and gives a very well sustained performance."

Harvard Buisness Reports, describing "The King of Kings" as a film about the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, reported in 1930 that the film cost $ 2,000,000 to produce.

silent film Noah's Arc Jesus

Scott Lord Silent Film Biblical Drama: Flight into Egypt

"The Flight into Egypt" appears in The New Testament in the scriptural passage Matthew 2:13-23. silent film Noah's Arc

Silent Film, The Photoplay, Silent Movie Posters

Ben Hur (Fred Niblo)

King of Kings

Silent Film Silent Film

The Abyss (Urban Gad, Afgrunden, Denmark 1910)

Urban Gad directed Asta Nielsen in her first film "The Abyss" (Afgrunden, 1910) in Denmark, a film often written about due to her popularity and to a scene contained in it in which she dances erotically. Uli Jung and Martin Lorperdinger, editors of Importing Asta Nielsen, the international filmstar in the making 1910-1914, see the rise of Asta Nielsen as meteoric with her first appearance on screen, "she became a well-known and popular actress in many countries on the continent in the 1910/11 season." The film is described by Casper Tybjerg as her "breakthrough film". Scholar Casper Tybjerg, University of Copenhagen/online instructor, notes that "The Abyss" was promoted as an art film, a drama in two acts. Author Forsyth Hardy, in his volume Scaninavian Film, sees the principal stars that had brought international recogption to the country's cinema as having been Asta Nielsen and Valdamar Psilander, " It was an immdeiate success and audiences everywhere responded to a sensitive, expressive acting style of scting which contrasted clearly with the grimmacing antics of her contemporaries."

It was also that year that Urban Gad and Asta Nielsen would travel to Germany to film for Duetsche BIoscop. Asta Nielsen appeared on screen under Urban Gad's direction with cinematographer Karl Fruend behind the camera that year in the films "Moth" (Nachtfaler) and "The Strange Bird"" (Der Frerde Volgel). Asta Nielsen would later star with Greta Garbo for G.W. Pabst in "The Joyless Street" and in a silent version of "Hamlet" (1920). Scholar Isak Thorsen, University of Copenhagen, in his paper,Nordisk Film Kompagni and Asta Nielsen, explains that director Urban Gad had signed a contract with Kunst Films Kompagni (Copenhagen Art Film) which allowed his to direct film abroad, with a similar contract for wife Asta Nielsen stipulating that she play as many parts as permissable; Nielsen who had already gained international recognition in regard to transnational cinema,
Janet Bergstrom, in her paper Asta Nielsen's Early German Films, chronicles Asta Nielsen asking Urban Gad if he would write a film for her. "Afgrunden" not only secured an international audience for her but it heralded the film itself becoming an art form. Bergstrom notes Nielsen having written that she aspired to improve her acting ability by watching herself on the screen.

Although many films from the time period were adaptations of theatrical plays, "The Abyss" has no dialougue intertitles, but rather insert shots containing written letters. Both insert shots of printed material and dialougue intertitles are part of the diegesis of a silent film, whereas expository intertitles that either summarize the action or prepare the audience for it are not part of the film's diegesis, insert shots of letters bringing a more first person authorial camera that provides identification with the character.


Scott Lord Danish Silent Film

Scott Lord Silent Film: Lon Chaney in The Unholy Three (Tod Browning, 1925)

Picture Play Magazine of 1925 featured an article entitled The Troubles of an Actress in which Dorothy Manners interviewed actress Mae Busch. "On Stage No. 1 of the Mtero-Goldwyn-Mayer emporium, 'The Unholy Three' unit was winding up the first day's production. The first scenes - that is the first scenes in the studio- are set against the background of a freak museum. Hence the bearded lady, the sword swallower and the midgets. 'The Unholy Three' is a wonderful box office title. It is also a crook opera of amazing plot."

silent film

Tod Browning