Modern Silent Films on DVD? (1 Viewer)

[ShaunS]

Thought I'd tap our collective knowledge here...

Anyone have, or point me in the direction of, a list of modern silent films, preferably within the last 20 years? Preferably R1 DVDs, but VHS would be fine as well.

Thanks in advance,
ShaunS

 

[Brian PB]

The most obvious example would be the films of Canadian experimental director Guy Maddin, who has a modern (and often disturbing) take on German Expressionism. His films on DVD:

Tales from the Gimli Hospital (1988/Kino)
Careful (1992/Kino)
The Guy Maddin Collection: Twilight of the Ice Nymphs/Archangel/The Heart of the World (1997/1990/2000/Zeitgeist)
Dracula: Pages from a Virgin's Diary (2002/Zeigeist)--being released May 18th

Of these, his best work is probably the 6-minute short The Heart of the World, Archangel, Dracula: Pages from a Virgin's Diary, and Careful.

 

[Brian PB]

Two others (unfortunately, neither is available on DVD that I'm aware of):

Juha (Aki Kaurismaki/1999)
Silent Movie (Mel Brooks/1976)

Also, several of Jacques Tati's films have very little dialogue, in particular:

Mr. Hulot's Holiday/Les Vacances de M. Hulot (1953/Criterion)
Playtime (1972/Criterion)--OOP, but due to be re-released sometime in the next year

 

[Juan M. Rico]

Another Guy Maddin silent short, can be found in the WD collection SHORT volume 2. The piece is called Eye Like A Strange Ballon.

This DVD also happen to have Chris Marker's La Jetee, which was the inspiration for 12 Monkeys.

 

[Shane Gralaw]

By the way, is Dracula Pages From a Virgin's Diary any good or worth a blind buy...I have a love-hate relationship with Maddin's work. Love Gimli, love love LOVE the shorts. Can't sit through Careful or Twilight. Anyone seen this?

 

[Brian PB]

Shane:

I missed Dracula: Pages from a Virgin's Diary during its brief run in Seattle, but have pre-ordered the DVD based on the excellent reviews (and my past experience with his films). Plus, the music is by Gustav Mahler--one of my favorite composers.

Oddly enough, I loved Careful, but couldn't stand Gimli...

 

[Ken Horowitz]

"Sidewalk Stories", 1989 by Charles Lane. Very heavily influenced by Chaplin -- a homeless street artist helps a child find his lost family. There may have been a couple of lines of dialog (haven't seen it since '89). However, it doesn't appear to be on DVD.

 

[Bob Pierce]

Excellent news about Dracula: Pages from a Virgin's Diary , Brian! I've been waiting for this to come out on DVD for months, and hadn't seen a release announcement. It looks kind of pricey at Amazon, so I'm checking around to see where I can get it for less. Either way, this film will be mine on 5/18!

Thanks for the heads-up,

Bob

 

[Brian PB]

Bob: I sent you an email, but for others who are interested, Deep Discount DVD seems to have the best price ($18; retail is $29.95). For some reason, it's not listed on DVD Price Search.

 

[Bob Pierce]

Thanks, Brian! FYI, I asked Terry over at DVDPriceSearch.com to add the disc, and he told me it would be in today's database update. So, it should be online by Monday at the latest.

- Bob

 

[Craig Sherman]

Maddin's Dracula is spectacular, and this is from somebody who could not STAND Careful. Dracula: PFAVD is a hauntingly beautiful, surprisingly faithful adaptation of the Stoker novel, as seen in standard narrative film throughout the last century (give or take). Not only is it a silent film, but it is a performance piece, utilizing the work of (I believe, not looking this up right now) the Montreal Ballet Company to tell the story with beautifully choreographed, graceful moves. As far as a blind buy, that's up to you, you should definitely rent it. I was lucky to catch it at LA's NuArt when it premiered, so there's no question for me as to whether I'm getting it on May 18th.

Are Zeitgeist a quality company? Do we know about the special features?

Speaking of silent films, I just picked up the Momentum release of Delicatessen (R2). That one is practically silent, as well.

BOMM,

CS

 

[Bob Pierce]

FYI, I picked up "Dracula: Pages from a Virgin's Diary" today for $18 at DeepDiscountDVD! Aaaaaand, they listed the release date as 4/27!

Can't wait!

- Bob