Toronto Silent Film Festival Preview

We’re heading into the final countdown… only one week ’til the launch of the 2012 Toronto Silent Film Festival! Heck to the yeah.

At this point in a run-up to a film festival, reviewers would have screeners in their grubby little paws and would be anxiously rolling the dice about what to say about a film without benefit of knowing what everyone else would say. Talk about a critical nightmare!

Ah, but not so for a silent film festival or a silent film reviewer! We have history on our side and the chances that an angry director will turn up to quibble with us are nil. But how do you preview a silent film festival?

Just like this. Check out each listing for what I have to say about Toronto Silent Film Festival’s line up and screening times for each film.

See ya at the festival!

March 29 – Our Dancing Daughters

March 30 – Tabu: A Tale of the South Seas

March 31: Blood and Sand

April 1: 1000 LAFFS: Playmates

April 2: The Italian Straw Hat

April 3: Variety

The Life and Death of Willam Taylor Desmond

Today is the birthday of William Taylor Desmond, silent film actor and director. Though he acted in or directed over 80 silent films (most considered lost), Desmond is most famous for being rather mysteriously murdered. The investigation of his murde…

Coming Up in Toronto: A Silent Cinema Dilemma

 

This weekend in Toronto is either a silent film fan’s greatest fantasy or her worst nightmare? Why? There’s not one, but two silent film screenings – on the same day!
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Timelapse Drawing of Charlie Chaplin

 

Thanks to The Cinementals, I found this charming little time-lapse video of someone drawing Charlie Chaplin. Really, it brightened my day and hopefully it will brighten yours, too. Now I’m…

Hot Docs: China Heavyweight

Stereoscopic Cinema and the Origins of 3-D Film 1838 -1952

Sometimes I watch terrible movies so you don’t have to, and occasionally I even read boring books so you don’t have to. See how good I am to you?

But seriously, Stereoscopic Cinema and the Origins of 3-D Film 1838-1952 is probably going to be more interesting to silent film fans than anyone else, including 3-D film fans or stereographers. The never ending parade of patent numbers remind be of the “he begat then he begat who begat blah blah blah” section of the Good Book – you know the set up before the action and character development. But still, you can skim the patents and just read the cool parts, of which there are many.

Check out my review over at Toronto Film Scene:

Stereoscopic Cinema and the Origins of 3-D Film 1838 -1952

3-D film is all the rage these days, not least because the Hollywood superstructure decided to invest heavily in the production and distribution of this technology. “This is it!” they say, “3-D is here to stay this time!” “You’re gonna love it!” But as Ray Zone thoroughly demonstrates in Stereoscopic Cinema and the Origins of 3-D Film 1838-1952 inventors, technologists, filmmakers, and production studios have been chasing that stereoscopic dragon for a long, long time. CLICK ON TO READ THE REST