While it may not be as visually ravishing as F.W. Murnau's masterpiece Sunrise from the same year, this fully-restored 1927 silent production of Hindle Wakes (adapted from a 1912 play by Stanley Houghton) is a dazzling, innovative work that's nearly as prestigious and still engrossing nearly 80 years after its debut. The title refers to the annual weeklong vacation for mill workers in the factory town of Hindle, during which Fanny Hawthorne (Estelle Brody) enjoys a fun-loving break in Blackpool (England's equivalent to Coney Island), and has a one-night fling with Nathaniel Jeffcote (Norman McKinnell), the son of a wealthy mill owner. When their respective fathers learn about the brief affair, inevitable scandal ensues, forcing Nathaniel to propose marriage to Fanny, but she opts for independence--a decision that defied conventional morals of Edwardian society and turned Hindle Wakes (both play and film) into a notorious cause celébre. The Blackpool sequence alone makes the film worthy of appreciation, with its documentary-like amusement park scenes full of fun, romance, and visual splendor, but the plot is also compelling enough to imagine a remake with, say, Ewan McGregor and Samantha Morton. The DVD offers two musical scores, one traditional, the other a splendid modern accompaniment by the British group In the Nursery. Other extras include a photo gallery from the film and 1912 stage production, the original 1927 press kit, and DVD-ROM documents (in PDF format) of production notes and an appreciation of Hindle Wakes by anarchist Emma Goldman. This important British silent is easily recommended. (J. Shannon)
Hindle Wakes
Image, 120 min., not rated, DVD: $29.99 Volume 20, Issue 4
Hindle Wakes
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