Movie thoughts and fiction updates.
Much more in line with the urbane farce that was The Doll than the attempts at vaudeville that were the Sally Pinkus/Meyer films, The Oyster Princess is another delightful little entry in Ernst Lubitsch's early career that might not quite make the most sense but keeps its focus on the light comedic antics that drive… Continue reading The Oyster Princess
I don't think Ernst Lubitsch's comic sensibilities lent themselves that well towards vaudeville and slapstick. His was a more urbane and witty comedy that wasn't the best fit with things like physical comedy. His recurring character of Sally Meyer (formerly Pinkus from Shoe Palace Pinkus) was a successful attempt at making a German version of… Continue reading Meyer from Berlin
Erich von Stroheim has one of those faces that people tend to recognize from the silent era. Helped in no small part by roles he had in two films by Billy Wilder (Five Graves to Cairo and Sunset Blvd.) as well as Jean Renoir's Le Grand Illusion, Erich von Stroheim's look as the stereotypical Teutonic officer was part of… Continue reading Erich von Stroheim: A Retrospective
The opening shot of Ernst Lubitsch's The Doll announces wordlessly that it's going to be...different. A man, Lubitsch himself, comes out and sets up a house and yard with paper on a table, which we then zoom in on and two characters exit the house to start the story. What follows is an unrealistic tale… Continue reading The Doll
Adapted from the later parts of the novella of the same name by Prosper Merimee, Carmen is Ernst Lubitsch's third surviving feature, and he was still firmly in the part of his career where his voice was muffled by studio needs. There was room for him to operate a bit within the bounds of this… Continue reading Carmen (or, Gypsy Blood)
David Vining, Author 