The 13 Greatest Horror Films Of The Silent Era in Silent Horror Forum

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The 13 Greatest Horror Films Of The Silent Era

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Wich2		#61	[-]
Apr 28 12 4:54 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Well, EGGScuse me!
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jamesenstein31		#62	[-]
Apr 28 12 5:14 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Wich2 wrote: Well, EGGScuse me!
jamesenstein31		#63	[-]
Apr 28 12 5:15 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	jamesenstein31 wrote: Wich2 wrote: Well, EGGScuse me! You are eggscused.
DEG		#64	[-]
May 12 12 11:35 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Great list. As for KORKARLEN, I'd say it's more of a drama than a horror film, though it has great Reaper images and dream flashbacks. Fritz Lang's DESTINY (DER MUDE TOD) has a similar feel. DESTINY is another film that might make the list, but might be more of a surreal drama than a real horror film. But both KORKARLEN and DESTINY are impressive coming so early, both 1921.
jamesenstein31		#65	[-]
May 13 12 2:54 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Thank you! THE PHANTOM CARRIAGE is a good movie, though. Certainly in league with the supernatural.
chrismartin4u		#66	[-]
May 17 12 12:56 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	What about Silent Hill. It also very scary movie.
jamesenstein31		#67	[-]
May 22 12 1:09 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	SILENT HILL...you mean, the greatest film ever made in the history of cinema?
stuthehistoryguy		#68	[-]
May 30 12 2:35 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Rider wrote: If I was watching Edison Frankenstien at the turn of the century the melting wax effect would have freaked me out. These are the same people who were freaked out by shots of trains rushing towards camera. I just watched Der Golem for the first time in years. I love how Wegener refers to this in a religious/mystical sense.
Wich2		#69	[-]
Jun 1 12 3:33 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Religion/mysticism is the basis of the original tale.
atenolol		#70	[-]
Jun 23 12 7:28 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I didn't see this list until just now. Excellent list. My only quibble is that I think THE UNKNOWN is too low. I would put it in the top five as the best of the Chaney-Browning series. On why some silent films don't get much support--I suppose is is because there are only rather shoddy public domain prints available for several of the lesser titles.
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stuthehistoryguy		#71	[-]
Aug 31 12 1:29 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Wich2 wrote: Religion/mysticism is the basis of the original tale. Sorry; I was being oblique. I meant to say that it was intriguing how Wegner made Rabbi Loew a sorceror in general (casting several spells throughout the film). However, since my posting, I've read Elizabeth Baer's The Golem Redux, which paints Rabbi Loew's general magic ability (along with his reliance on astrology and demonology) as an antisemitic trope. In Wegner's work, the creation of the golem goes from a great act of piety and gnosis to a general work of black magic by a dangerous, exotic magician who is too dangerous to really trust. I still love the film--it's a cinematic achievement by any standard--but I'm a good deal more skeptical about Wegner's motives now. This has probably been discussed elsewhere on this board--I'll have to go dredge it up. Last Edited By: stuthehistoryguy Sep 2 12 4:45 PM. Edited 2 times.
sthorntn		#72	[-]
Sep 8 12 8:55 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	<< I still love the film--it's a cinematic achievement by any standard--but I'm a good deal more skeptical about Wegner's motives now. >> I've never picked up an antisemetic vibe while watching DER GOLEM. Has anyone else experienced this?
hnicolella		#73	[-]
Sep 13 12 10:15 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	For a very persuasive defense of the film against charges of anti-semitism take a look at S.S. Prawer's "Between 2 Worlds; the Jewish presence in German and Austrian Films 1910-1933". Much of the book is can be read on Google Books and a still from the 1920 film is on the cover. Henry Nicolella
stuthehistoryguy		#74	[-]
Sep 13 12 11:09 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	sthorntn wrote: << I still love the film--it's a cinematic achievement by any standard--but I'm a good deal more skeptical about Wegner's motives now. >> I've never picked up an antisemetic vibe while watching DER GOLEM. Has anyone else experienced this? I hadn't either until I read Baer's critique. It may not be an obvious "vibe", but look at it this way: Imagine a horror film made today whose antagonist is a priest in Phoenix's Latino-American community. This priest is the top community leader in that community's efforts to secure better conditions in the city, as well as relief from onerous searches under Arizona's immigration laws. The situation comes to the point where the priest becomes an olorisha and starts using malevolent Santeria against Phoenix's mayor (or whomever). The community knows he is doing this and supports it, even looking to the priest to cast certain spells at times. Given that this subverts everything anyone knows about Latino culture and the Roman Catholic faith, would this be considered a racist film? If this becomes a derail to the thread, I'll gladly take this elsewhere. I will reiterate that I LIKE Der Golem as a work of art and that's not likely to change. Then again, many reputable film scholars would certainly say the same thing about Birth of a Nation, Battleship Potemkin, and Triumph of the Will. Henry, I haven't read Prawer. I'm sure there are valid points there--I'll look him up!
atenolol		#75	[-]
Sep 28 12 11:49 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Thanks for the very interesting and fun read. I definitely agree with your top two placements, off my limited viewing (poor prints, etc) so far. Buying better copies is on my agenda. No major disagreements with the list, except I would move THE UNKNOWN up quite a few spots. Unlike THE PHANTOM and THE HUNCHBACK, this one is told leanly without a lot of subplots detracting from the impact. I have recently purchased WEST OF ZANZIBAR and THE MAGICIAN from Warners and will be interested in seeing how they stand up. *Gee, I am getting old. I see looking back at the thread that I had already commented. Oh, well. Memory is the second to go.
PhantomXCI		#76	[-]
Sep 28 12 1:30 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	In alphabetical order: Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, The Faust (1926) Golem, The (1920) Haxan Man Who Laughs, The Metropolis Nosferatu Phantom of the Opera, The Siegfried Student of Prague, The (1926) Thief of Bagdad, The Unknown, The Waxworks and seven more to make it an even 20: Cat and the Canary, The Dr. Mabuse Hunchback of Notre Dame, The Magician, The Monkey Talks, The Penalty, The West of Zanzibar
atkalu		#77	[-]
Sep 29 12 9:23 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Hey PhantomXCI, That's a fantastic list - can't go wrong with any of them. Think that would be a great curriculum for a silent horror course. I think my list would substitute about 5 or so, and Thief of Bagdad and Siegfried only because I think "fantasy" first for their genres, but still only due to preference, not quality.
jamesenstein31		#78	[-]
Sep 29 12 11:01 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	That's a great list, covering ALL bases in the genre of the fantastic. Many are not horror, but certainly important in many ways. One missing: THE BAT(1926).
PhantomXCI		#79	[-]
Sep 29 12 11:22 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Well... there are LOTS missing from my list (THE BAT, SEVEN FOOTPRINTS TO SATAN, DESTINY, THE WOMAN IN THE MOON, THE MYSTERIOUS ISLAND, THE HANDS OF ORLAC, ALRAUNE, THE LAST WARNING, THE LAST PERFORMANCE...), but you only wanted 13.
jamesenstein31		#80	[-]
Sep 29 12 12:21 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	13 IS the lucky number! I was going to mention THE HANDS OF ORLAC as essential, and yeah, THE LAST WARNING is a notable one. THE WOMAN IN THE MOON is less important to horror, than it is science fiction, but I can understand it's inclusion. You seem to be very keen on the silent films, which is good to see! I'm very fond of them, myself.
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The 13 Greatest Horror Films Of The Silent Era