Faust

So you know yesterday I was a whole bunch of whine about how bad I felt and I couldn't focus. Today I watched a movie that, despite my mood, I was totally engrossed in and focused on. I watched Faust, directed by F. M. Murnau in 1926. It's silent - which I know is off-putting to many, but not to me. I think I've written pages about how much I like silent film. "Dreamlike!" I always say. "Otherworldly!" I'll try not to, uh, say that too much this time. :)

This was one of the coolest looking silent films I've seen - tons of really neat practical effects and fantastic costumes and makeup. The story is interesting, but it's pretty blunt and the characters are sort of just...symbols? That's not the right word. They're like...caricatures. They don't have a lot of development, they mostly just exist to represent something and forward the plot. I don't mind, though. I loved how this movie looked and felt, and that alone made it really incredible for me, however shallow that might be.

Sunrise

It's hard to write about a silent film that did something groundbreaking with visuals. Today's Movie, directed by F.W. Murnau in 1928, did just that. It did a lot of things that were new and exciting, but they are so commonplace now that it's hard to ever catch them. Ebert does a great job writing about the cinematography, and his essay is a good read.

Not knowing any of that before I watched it, I was surprised at home awesome this film is! I loved the story, and there were many scenes that were really impressive. The camera seemed so light and full of movement, which I'm not used to seeing in silent films. Sometimes (all the time, in my experience), silent movies can make people fall asleep or feel really tired. This sometimes happens to me, too. This movie really kept my attention and even with barely any intertitles, it was so easy and engrossing to watch.

The Last Laugh

I got a lot of good news today, and much celebration followed. I went out for a big, nice meal with my parents and Anthony. I watched this movie before we left, so I'm going to try to post before I fall into a food coma.

The film, directed by F. W. Murnau in 1924, is a really interesting and great silent film. I wasn't really in the mood for a silent film at first. I was antsy and unfocused, and I wondered if that is how everyone else I know feels when they try to watch a silent movie. Once it got going and I settled in the plot, I was totally hooked. I loved this movie. It is really different from other silent films I've seen, and although it was a first at little sad, it didn't dampen my excited mood at all. I never would have found this movie on my own, so I'm really happy I was able to watch it for my project. The poster for this looks scary. It is not a scary film,. I promise.