MUSEUM OF TELEVISION & RADIO SCREENING SERIES, THE:
THE SOUNDS OF SILENTS: SILENT FILMS, PACKAGE 4: LA
TERRE & THE WIND {TAPE 2 OF 2: THE WIND}
Summary
In 1976 Kevin Brownlow and the late David Gill sparked a
revival in the public appreciation of silent cinema with
"Hollywood," a mammoth thirteen-part history of the
origins of the film industry in America. The success of
the production led Thames Television to sponsor the
teamÕs meticulous restorations of such lost classics as
"Napoleon" and "The Wind," which were then presented --
with newly commissioned orchestral scores -- under the
umbrella title "Thames Silents" (and later, when Thames
lost its franchise, as "Channel Four Silents").
Subsequent documentaries on the "holy trinity" of silent
clowns -- Chaplin, Keaton, and Lloyd -- cemented
Brownlow and GillÕs reputation as the leading guardians
of our silent-picture heritage. In 1990 they joined
forces with Patrick Stanbury to form Photoplay
Productions, an independent production company devoted
to sharing the power, excitement, and grandeur of silent
cinema with audiences around the globe. The Museum
presents a selection of restored titles from the
repertoire of Photoplay Productions, along with the
documentary "Cinema Europe."
"The Wind" (1928)
Savage elements of the Texas plains take their toll on
the sanity of a virginal young woman in director Victor
Seastrom's stark masterwork, presented here with a
superbly evocative score by Carl Davis. As
producer/star Lillian Gish explains in a special
introduction, "The Wind" was made under arduous
conditions in the Mojave Desert, with eight airplane
propellers trucked in to generate the fierce gusts of
the title. The howling fury of the wind becomes more
than a metaphor for the heroine's sexual anxiety: its
persistent intrusion into every aspect of the
characters' lives suggests a heavenly force beyond
comprehension. (81 minutes)
Details
- NETWORK: N/A
- DATE: November 30, 2000
- RUNNING TIME: 1:18:41
- COLOR/B&W: B&W
- CATALOG ID: T:64474
- GENRE: Drama
- SUBJECT HEADING: Drama
- SERIES RUN: N/A
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- David Gill … Producer
- David Brownlow … Producer
- Patrick Stanbury … Associate Producer
- Andre Antoine … Director
- Georges Denola … Direction (Misc.), Assistant Director
- Julien Duvivier … Direction (Misc.), Assistant Director
- Emile Zola … Based on the novel by
- Adrian Johnston … Composer
- Michael Bland … Conductor, Arranger
- Armand Bour … Cast, Pere Fouan
- Rene Alexandre … Cast, Jean
- Germaine Rouer … Cast, Francoise
- Jean Herve … Cast , Louis known as Buteau
- Milo … Cast, Hyacinth known as Jesus Christ
- Berthe Bovy … Cast, Olympe known as La Troville (the pest)
- Jeanne Briey … Cast, Lise
- Jeanne Grumbach … Cast, La Cognette
- Emile Desjardins … Cast, the Shepherd
- Max Chavlier … Cast, Becu
- Rene Hieronimus … Cast, Nenesse
- Armand Numes … Cast
- Leon Malavier … Cast