The Great Chase

Rating:
Summary: All of the great chases from the era of silent movies
Review: "The Great Chase" is a documentary look at the era of silent films and some of the wildest chases and stunts of the early years of the movies. Included are clips from Buster Keaton's "The General," D.W. Griffith's "The Birth of a Nation," Douglas Fairbanks, Sr.'s first great swash-buckling role in "The Mask of Zorro," William S. Hart's classic western "Tumbleweed," Lillian Gish on the ice flows from "Way Down East," and Pearl White in "The Perils of Pauline." The documentary begins with the first movie chase from the first movie feature, Edwin S. Porter's "The Great Train Robbery" and also includes some interesting segments from films you have never heard of before let alone seen. Each sequences covers the cinematic importance of the film. Larry Adler provides music on the harmonica and the silent scenes have been augmented with sound effects, which may or may not offend your sensibilities. However, the cinematic sequences are pretty much provided intact, so you are getting a lot more than film clips in the course of this 81-minute documentary. I appreciate the fact that "The Great Chase" presents analysis along with the clips, because this documentary is very much in the tradition of film appreciation and not just a clip show. My only complaint is that there should be more Keaton clips, but that is just me. If you have any sort of interest in the historical antecedents of the great chases sequences from modern films, then check out this documentary.

Rating:
Summary: All of the great chases from the era of silent movies
Review: "The Great Chase" is a documentary look at the era of silent films and some of the wildest chases and stunts of the early years of the movies. Included are clips from Buster Keaton's "The General," D.W. Griffith's "The Birth of a Nation," Douglas Fairbanks, Sr.'s first great swash-buckling role in "The Mask of Zorro," William S. Hart's classic western "Tumbleweed," Lillian Gish on the ice flows from "Way Down East," and Pearl White in "The Perils of Pauline." The documentary begins with the first movie chase from the first movie feature, Edwin S. Porter's "The Great Train Robbery" and also includes some interesting segments from films you have never heard of before let alone seen. Each sequences covers the cinematic importance of the film. Larry Adler provides music on the harmonica and the silent scenes have been augmented with sound effects, which may or may not offend your sensibilities. However, the cinematic sequences are pretty much provided intact, so you are getting a lot more than film clips in the course of this 81-minute documentary. I appreciate the fact that "The Great Chase" presents analysis along with the clips, because this documentary is very much in the tradition of film appreciation and not just a clip show. My only complaint is that there should be more Keaton clips, but that is just me. If you have any sort of interest in the historical antecedents of the great chases sequences from modern films, then check out this documentary.