We didn't need words... we had FACES!

We begin this kooky quest with the era of the silent films. Silent movies hold a special place in my heart because the restored 1925 film The Phantom of the Opera, starring the brilliant Lon Chaney, was one of the first versions of the Phantom story that I had ever seen (touching off a life-long obsession), and I shall never forget Chaney's heartrending mix of maudlin and menace as Erik, the Opera Ghost.






Since then, I have seen many other silents, including the comedies of Chaplin, epic tales, and the dark expressionism of directors like Fritz Lang. Silents are unique to me because I view them as a true test of the camera, where visuals and incredible pantomime (often alone) pull an audience into the story. The fact that these movies can still transport me to other worlds is a credit to the universal themes and motifs of these classics: The Gold Rush is still funny, just as there is something that remains deeply disturbing about The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari.

(The List 1900-1928)
Silence is Golden

1. Le Voyage Dans la Lune- A Trip to the Moon (1902)
2. The Birth of a Nation (1915)
3. Broken Blossoms (1919)
4. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920)
5. Nosferatu: Eine Symphonie Des Grauens (1922)
6. Battleship Potemkin (1925)
7. The Gold Rush (1925)
8. Greed (1925)
9. The Phantom of the Opera (1925)
10. Metropolis (1927)
11. The Man Who Laughs (1928)