The Wind (A- or 3.5/4 stars)
'The Wind' (directed by Swede, Victor Sjostrom) is largely considered to be one of the few silent films to stand the test of time. Even viewed from today's lens, it is wildly impressive to experience. The film opens with an emotionally fragile & destitute young farm girl named Letty Mason (Lillian Gish, superb) traveling via train from her small hometown in Virginia to the vast, barren Texas prairie to stay with her amiable, if clueless married cousin, Beverly (Edward Earle); he is a struggling cattle man who is married to the overbearing, hen-pecky Cora (Dorothy Cumming, effective).
This poor couple is raising 3 kids in the harsh frontier and, the children prefer Letty to their own mother. On the train ride over, Letty was wooed by cocky Fort Worth cattle trader Roddy (Montagu Love), who promises to return to her. Jealous Cora, thinking Letty will steal her man, forces her to marry one of two crude locals, dimwitted Sourdough (William Orlamond) or unsavory Lige (Lars Hanson), or else she'll kick her to the curb.
When Roddy returns, he says he is already married but wants Letty to be his mistress. She rejects him, but with no $$ home, a depressed Letty has no choice but to marry Lige, despite loathing both him & the ceaselessly howling prairie winds. Refusing to sleep with Lige, he respects her wishes & says he'll earn $$ for her trip home. During some severe weather, Lige goes on a cattle round-up while scoundrel Roddy attempts to rape Letty. Tragedy ensues. But so, too does some surprising acceptance & love for someone; and even a tolerance to the wind {test audiences wanted a happy ending, ha}.
Sjostrom does a great job transforming the desolate wilderness of the Mojave Desert to double as the bare, eerie Texas terrain. 'The Wind' is a wonderful example of creating characterization, mood & visual atmosphere, all without the aid of a sound track. Sound/"talkies" were just starting in Tinseltown.
Lillian Gish is excellent. For all the gale winds, tornadoes, & hysteria among the crowds, it is Gish's subtly-pained portrayal that makes the biggest impression; I'd have given her the Academy Award for Best Actress {the film could've won, too}. Funnily enough, the director had an awful time during the shoot & left for Sweden never to return to Hollywood. Too bad, because the film is a great piece of work, chock full of gripping emotions & great spectacle.
This poor couple is raising 3 kids in the harsh frontier and, the children prefer Letty to their own mother. On the train ride over, Letty was wooed by cocky Fort Worth cattle trader Roddy (Montagu Love), who promises to return to her. Jealous Cora, thinking Letty will steal her man, forces her to marry one of two crude locals, dimwitted Sourdough (William Orlamond) or unsavory Lige (Lars Hanson), or else she'll kick her to the curb.
When Roddy returns, he says he is already married but wants Letty to be his mistress. She rejects him, but with no $$ home, a depressed Letty has no choice but to marry Lige, despite loathing both him & the ceaselessly howling prairie winds. Refusing to sleep with Lige, he respects her wishes & says he'll earn $$ for her trip home. During some severe weather, Lige goes on a cattle round-up while scoundrel Roddy attempts to rape Letty. Tragedy ensues. But so, too does some surprising acceptance & love for someone; and even a tolerance to the wind {test audiences wanted a happy ending, ha}.
Sjostrom does a great job transforming the desolate wilderness of the Mojave Desert to double as the bare, eerie Texas terrain. 'The Wind' is a wonderful example of creating characterization, mood & visual atmosphere, all without the aid of a sound track. Sound/"talkies" were just starting in Tinseltown.
Lillian Gish is excellent. For all the gale winds, tornadoes, & hysteria among the crowds, it is Gish's subtly-pained portrayal that makes the biggest impression; I'd have given her the Academy Award for Best Actress {the film could've won, too}. Funnily enough, the director had an awful time during the shoot & left for Sweden never to return to Hollywood. Too bad, because the film is a great piece of work, chock full of gripping emotions & great spectacle.