A Cottage on Dartmoor

Its strong point is the form, but formalism is perhaps also its downfall. Most of it is told in flashback, and it's directed in a way that stresses ingenuity of visual style. It's not without its emotion or humor, but I felt that narrative complexity is neglected and all but the final act of the film ends up slow and tedious. It should have been shorter and tighter.

A psychosexual thriller that may well have influenced Hitchcock, beautifully photographed and shows an impressive range of camera and editing technique. Startling flashbacks, whirlwind-edited sequences, clever insertions of newsreel footage, and poetic use of mirrors, focus, and visual metaphor. The downside is the film seems rather draggy. There's about an hour of build-up that could be whittled down by half. But it's not a bad story at all, and the visual aspects alone make it worthwhile.

Star Rating: ★★★1/2

Another reminder that silent cinema was soaring to new heights of expression even while facing its own demise. One of the film's central set pieces even directly acknowledges the transition; a darkened movie house, the glowing faces first uproariously amused at a silent comedy, then rapt by a talking thriller. A Cottage on Dartmoor is visual poetry, but I can't help but feel that it could have been leaner and meaner, leaving some of the drags and gags of the middle act on the cutting room floor.

Há 90 anos estreava na Inglaterra. Lá no meio do filme temos uma excelente homenagem à arte em questão na cena da sala de cinema, mas ao contrário do que faz a homenagem ao cinema americano pensar, a grande influência deste belíssimo filme reside mais nas escolas alemãs e russas de se fazer cinema, só não dei nota maior por causa da excessiva romantização da obsessão sexual ao final, embora esteticamente o filme seja mesmo impecável. DVDRip no MakingOff.

The last of four silent films made by Anthony Asquith, it was made so much on the cusp of talking films that the characters go see one in the film. It's a striking visual film with strong expressionist elements and odd, dynamic editing. It's also about 15 minutes too long. Asquith cameos as a customer in the quite long movie theater scene.

Fittingly for a movie about a barber, proves how cutting makes all the difference. The Swedish cut (AKA "Prisoner #53") veers wildly from romcom to crime to mawkish melodrama, while the British ups the tension, gives us far more consistent plot and character work, and plays more with the silent/talkie divide. 40 for the Swedish one, 59 for the British. Also, the lead couple is named Harry and Sally, but there are surprisingly few orgasm jokes.

I'm in love. I'll take this over 90% of Hitch.