Variant running times

Very frequently, choice of projection speed, where remastering of Silent films is concerned, makes a significant difference in a movie's duration, even when there's no difference, whatsoever, in actual footage shown. Typically, in such cases, although length of a movie can be several minutes difference, the action will look entirely natural to the human eye, only with one version seeming like things are proceeding at a livelier (but still realistic) clip, the longer version seeming more studied. It's only when you've seen both of the alternate-speed versions (I'm referring to any such movie, not to "The Hands of Orlac" specifically) that you are able to perceive that one FEELS brisker or slower than the other. Choice of projection speeds, when transferring is being done, is a matter that has long left many viewers perplexed about what footage may or may not be missing, when, in fact, there's often no, or close to no, difference in footage. I've seen about this in the Extras on certain Silent movies DVDs, also read about it. I think that, during recent years, there's come to be more of a set standard, where choice of projection speed is concerned, though sometimes, for this or that legitimate reason, it becomes a judgement call at the time of remastering.

Nope, I watched the TCM version last night and it definitely lasted around 110 minutes not including the host segments.



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