Got a good laugh when the shooting took place and Vidor shows about two dozen close-ups of the different people on the street. Not only is this overdone but sped-up for comic effect.
shareI agree that scene was corny and took away, (slightly), from an otherwise good movie. I think the rest of the film held up though. That scene should have been cut out.
shareI'm not sure if it was sped-up for comic effect, but more to show the suddenness of what happened. I can imagine it had an effect on movie goers at the time of shocking them into being one of the characters that strains to catch a glimpse of what happened. But I felt at the time that it did seem to go on a bit long-18 shots I believe.
But the crane shot of Rose running to the scene afterward more than makes up for it. Imagine how hard that must have been through the crowds.
BIG RED.... pffft...whatever, it was a great scene....even if it was comical as you say...and it was a great movie.
Enrique Sanchez
I agree Enrique, this is an amazing movie. As an old movie buff, I can't believe I have never seen this. The closing scene of Sam in his room crying, and Rose walking away is a real heart breaker.
shareI saw it as an almost manic reaction to terminal boredom. To have something BIG happen on their own street, in their own HOUSE was important. The neighbours were actually "famous" for a while, what with police and reporters talking to them.
My Gran used to talk about "Execution Parties", where the neighbours would gather at the house of somebody who had a radio....listening to every word.
Gran also said that if "Poor so and so" had as many friends as gave stories to the tabloids, he wouldn't have ended up in the Chair."
Man, that film was great!
Agreed, joystar5879. At first, I wasn't sure how to take the effect, but then I understood it from the point of view of Sylvia Sidney's character. All these strangers turning and rushing at her and her family out of idle curiosity, a strange fascination. People who she doesn't know attracted to the details of her family's life like flies to honey. It was a shade horrific.
The closest movies to my heart: http://www.imdb.com/mymovies/list?l=46910443
Loved the movie, but I have to admit that I did laugh at the reaction shots and the dramatic music that accompanied them. But I also understand that 80 years ago, those shots weren't the cliche that they are today, so I try to keep it in perspective. I'd love to be able to go back and see some of these old movies through the eyes of the audiences of the times...
share[deleted]
Exactly. Even Shakespeare can come off cliche these days. It needs to be viewed from the perspective and limitations of the day.
shareVidor was one of the most inventive and creative of the directors from the 20s and 30s, one of the few to embrace sound for its cinematic possibilities. As such, one should understand that not everything works. That's the price for trying things outside the box. It's absurd to start a thread dealing ONLY with one minor fault in the film.
I want to shake every limb in the Garden of Eden
and make every lover the love of my life
I just saw this movie after reading this thread, and paid particular attention to this scene.
Although many have defended King Vidor's innovative techniques for their daring, I think in this instance the use of so many closeups one after another may have also had a practical reason: it explains the huge crowd gathered outside the apartment building.
The numerous closeups convey the lurid fascination of people with this kind of event, and how news like this travels quickly through all neighborhoods of the city, thus paving the way for the shot of the huge crowd surrounding the building.
If the film had simply cut to the crowd after the shooting, the presence of so many people gathered outside so quickly would have been as dramatic.
"Don't call me 'honey', mac."
"Don't call me 'mac'... HONEY!"
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