It’s not just the answer to a trivia question (What was the first film awarded Best Picture?), Sunrise is now in the public domain, freely available to watch, and quite good. If you’re familiar with Murnau, it’s likely not your favorite of his films, but as one of the emblematic directors of German Expressionism to come to Hollywood and debut with this is a legendary feat of its own.
This was a film I first discussed in a 31 Days of Oscar post. While I often think of other Chaplin works first. This is one I still rate as a 9/10. Enjoy.
The film debut of musical legend Duke Ellington.
Warner Archive released a set of three adaptations of Seven Keys to Baldpate, the earliest of which is now available to stream for free. All the versions of this story I’ve seen thus far have been quite entertaining. Enjoy!
Laurel and Hardy as kids. That’s about all you need to know, isn’t it?
There were cinematic milestones made in the travelogue, or symphony of a city mold, but what legendary filmmaker Jean Vigo sough to create in his experiment À Propos de Nice was a bit different. It has a bit of subversion and class commentary that still lands to this day.
Watch if you’re up for some classic Pre-Code melodrama.
This was a film I first viewed on the Criterion Channel.
It’s a morality tale from the Jazz Age and a milestone in early Black cinema, which only remains extant thanks to preservation efforts of cobbling together partial prints to restore the whole. As such it has been included in the National Film Registry.
Take a little over an hour to enjoy one of the greatest films ever made. Nicolas Cage’s feelings on this film in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent are completely justified.
This was a film I featured on my Film Discoveries of 2012 list. Here is what I wrote about it:
Spinning off from No Greater Glory George Breakston, after his days as an actor, went on to be quite a prolific and successful B-Movie director and producer. At random I chose one of his titles the seemingly schlocky Manster and was quite impressed by it. It’s low-rent, there are downright mistakes in it, but most of the handling and the narrative is highly effective for what it’s attempting.
Only now did it hit me that it’s a public domain film, so if you’re curious watch and enjoy!
The Movie Rat 