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D.W. Griffith - Monumental Epics [1915]


RRP: £49.99
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Editorial
Amazon.co.uk Review

There’s little doubt that much of what we now take for granted about cinema owes much to the vision of director D W Griffith. Monumental Epics collects five of his most influential silent masterpieces.

The Birth of a Nation (1915) is also the birth of the epic film. Made to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the end of the American Civil War this provocative film unflinchingly shows the humiliation of Southern culture, the "heroism" of the Ku Klux Klan, and links the Union and Confederacy by a common Aryan birthright. All of which has to be viewed in its period context if it is to be viewed at all.

Intolerance (1916) is film-making of epic complexity. Human intolerance is related through a modern tale of wrongful conviction, intercut by three stories from Babylonian, Judean, and French history to point up the issue through the ages. The intricacy of the intercutting is breathtaking even now, but those as confused as the first audiences evidently were can opt to see each story separately. Sensitively tinted, this is Griffith's finest three hours.

Broken Blossoms (1919) has Griffith venturing into domestic melodrama. Although there's a clear moral to be drawn from this tale of compassion in the face of ignorance and brutality, neither the over-acting of Lillian Gish and Donald Crisp, nor the vein of sentimentality that creeps into their characters' relationship allow the viewer to forget the period-piece nature of the film. Here an appropriately expressive musical score helps keep viewing at an attentive level.

Way Down East (1920) shows Griffith moving from the epic to the personal, though still on a large scale. The combining of old-style melodrama with latter-day female emancipation is tellingly brought off, and Lillian Gish excels as the country girl used and abused by male society, until "rescued" by a farmer of true moral scruples. Unconvinced? Then go straight to the climactic snowstorm and ice floe sequences--Eisenstein et al are inconceivable without this as trailblazer.

Abraham Lincoln (1930) marked Griffith's entry into the talkie era. Tautly directed, it offers a historically accurate account of the 16th US President's rise to power and his visionary outlook on American society. Civil War scenes are implied rather than enacted, and its Walter Huston's robust yet understated acting that carries the day, with sterling support from Una Merkel as Ann Rutledge and Hobart Bosworth as General Lee.

On the DVD: Stylishly packaged, restoration and digital remastering has been carried out to Eureka's usual high standard, and the 4:3 aspect ratio has commendable clarity. Birth of a Nation has Joseph Carl Breil's original orchestral score and a pithy "making of" film by Russell Merritt. Intolerance contains a useful rolling commentary and a great wurlitzer soundtrack too. Way Down East includes a commentary. Abraham Lincoln also has a commentary, though Hugo Riesenfeld's score often verges on the mawkish. Overall this set is a must for anyone remotely interested in film as a living medium.--Richard Whitehouse


D W Griffiths best films ?
Review date: 2004-02-13 Rating: 8 out of 10

This box set contains a good selection of Griffith's films spanning from 1915 to 1930, and show the master film maker both at his peak and in decline. The films are:
The Birth of a Nation (1915):-
This is the version restored by film preservation associates and therefore music and picture quality is outstanding, the film also features colour tinting which adds greatly to the overall atmosphere of the film. Extra's include a 25 minute documentary which manages to include everything you could really want to know about the film, including rare scenes from Griffith's earily Cival war Biograph shorts which acted as a kind of training ground for this film, the controversy the film caused and its ultimate effects on Griffith's reputation.
Intolerance (1916):
Intolerance is split into four different parts showing intolerance through the ages. I must admit that I have never really liked this film as although brilliant, I always get confused trying to follow the plot of four different stories at the same time. (It is like trying to watch four diffent television stations all at once). This version solves the problem by allowing you to watch each as an individual story separately. I found the modern story 'The Mother and the Law' to be really entertaining. Picture quality on this film is again outstanding given its age.
Broken Blossoms (1919)
This film although on a much smaller scale then the other two, is in my opinion far more entertaining. The film features the most horrible villian in screen history 'Battling Burrow's', played by Donald Crisp and has Lillian Gish in one of the best performances of her career. The final scenes of Lillian Gish's histera are still among the most harrowing in cinema history.
The version on the DVD features colour tinting and the original music written for the film in the 1920's
Way Down East (1920)
This is by far the best film in the set, and is in my opinion possibly the finest film made in the silent era. The film's greatness belong's entirely to the performance of Lillian Gish, who is hardly of the screen from the beginning to end. It is hard to discribe why this film is still so entertaining today, given that the basic plot of the film was out dated even in 1920, but it just is. I still get carried away while watching the film, even though I have now seen it at least ten times.
The print on the DVD is again by film preservation associates and therefore picture quality is the best you are likely to see.

The music, like that for Broken Blossom's was composed for the film in the 1920's and works really well.
Abraham Lincoln (1930)
This was one of only two sound films which Griffith made, and show that his talent's were not restricted to silent films. However I did not find it as entertaining as the previous four films and would have preferred another silent film (such as Orphan's of the Storm with Lillian and Dorothy Gish). It is for this reason that I have deducted one star.
Overall a very good box set, which is worth the price for Broken Blossoms and Way Down East alone. If you have not already seen these films and are interested in silent cinema buy this set now - you will not be disappointed.

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Product Details/Specifications


Actor(s):
Norman Selby
Lowell Sherman
Florence Short
Lillian Gish
Josephine Bernard

Creators:
Lillian Gish (Primary Contributor)
Norman Selby (Primary Contributor)

Director(s):

Recording label: Eureka Entertainment
Manufacturer: Eureka Entertainment
EAN: 5060000401264
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 4
Format: Box set, Black & White, PAL, Silent,
Release date: 2002-06-24
Audience rating: Parental Guidance
Region code: 2
Running time: 694 minutes
Theatrical release date: 1915
Language: English (Original Language)

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