MovieChat Forums > Alibi (1929) Discussion > can tell everyone was new to talkies

can tell everyone was new to talkies


.... lots of long, staring, wide-eyed glares, and awkward pauses in the dialog, since the actors werent used to saying lines along with acting. the sound quality is terrible, but this film is so old, i guess we're lucky that this one is still around at all. best acting in this bunch is by chester morris -- the others still needed to master sound...

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The film is 80 years old and the sound was from a transcription disk (not mag sound like now).

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Still, it is an excellent movie. I watched it for the first time on TCM just recently. It's a fascinating film - one of the most experimental early talkies I've ever seen. It has a surreal, dreamlike feel to it. I was hooked because the description promised one of the longest death scenes in film history. I actually thought the scene where Regis Toomey's character dies was very haunting and unforgettable. I'm surprised this film only received a 6.1 on IMDb.



"You can dish it out, but you got so you can't take it no more." - Caesar Enrico Bandello

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Surprised no one here knows this is a proto-noir. Well, now you know. Also Chester was in "The Bat Whispers" made one year later that greatly influenced Batman. Creaky and silly though they are they were among the very first of their types.

Nothing is more beautiful than nothing.

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