Tag Archives: city symphonies

London Symphony approaches

Posted on 5 August 2017 by silentsplease

Almost three years ago, I posted about London Symphony, a contemporary silent film production by British filmmaker Alex Barrett. For this project, Barrett has revived the silent-era genre of the city symphony—a cinematic portrait of a city, more poetic evocation than … Continue reading →

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Douro, Faina Fluvial | Labour on the River Douro (PT 1931)

Posted on 26 February 2015 by silentsplease

In 1931, a young Portuguese filmmaker named Manoel de Oliveira made his first completed film: a cinematic portrait of the River Douro, lifeblood of his hometown of Porto. De Oliveira was working in direct conversation with the briefly flourishing genre … Continue reading →

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British despatch: London Symphony, and BFI-1914

Posted on 18 September 2014 by silentsplease

Is it too soon to speak of a ‘wave’ of 21st century silents? We’ve had a great one (The Artist, 2011), a visually beautifully disappointment (Blancanieves, 2012), and some that totally missed the mark (cough). Add to the former category a current … Continue reading →

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Навесні | In Spring (UkrSSR 1930)

Posted on 1 September 2014 by silentsplease

It is September the first, so spring has officially sprung! (In the southern hemisphere, at least). Therefore, it’s the perfect time to take a look at the Ukrainian film Навесні (Navesni); known in English as In Spring, and also known by its Russian title Весной … Continue reading →

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