VHS : Birth of a Nation (1915) (Silent)
|
|
In association with Amazon.com
|
starring: Spottiswoode Aitken, Mary Alden, George Beranger, Elmer Clifton, Miriam Cooper
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Binding: VHS Tape
EAN: 9786302730760
Format: Box set, Black & White, Color, Silent, Special Edition, NTSC
ISBN: 6302730767
Label: Kino Video
Manufacturer: Kino Video
Number Of Items: 2
Publisher: Kino Video
Release Date: December 10, 2002
Running Time: 165 minutes
Sales Rank: 39331
Studio: Kino Video
Theatrical Release Date: March 03, 1915
Related Items:
Editorial Review:
Amazon.com essential video:
A pivotal moment in film history. After The Birth of a Nation, nothing was the same: not the way audiences watched movies, not the way filmmakers created them. D.W. Griffith's jumbo-size saga of the Civil War expanded the boundaries of storytelling on the screen, conveying a richer, more complicated (and certainly longer) tale than anyone had seen in a movie before. The delicate relationships, the sad passage of time, the spectacular battle scenes all look as fresh and innovative today as they did in 1915. So do Griffith's brilliant actors, most of them--including favorite leading lady Lillian Gish--drawn from his regular stock company. What has become increasingly problematic about The Birth of a Nation is Griffith's condescending attitude toward black slaves, and the ringing excitement surrounding the founding of the Ku Klux Klan. Griffith, whose political ideas were naive at best, seemed genuinely surprised by the criticism of his masterwork, and for his next project he turned to the humanist preaching of the massive Intolerance. Despite protests, Birth sold more tickets than any other movie, a record that stood for decades, and President Woodrow Wilson famously compared it to 'history written in lightning.' That judgment has lasted. --Robert Horton
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - Mostly interesting as part of the history of cinema
I've seen the Feuillade serials from 1914/1915, I've seen the Garbo silents, I've seen most of Keaton's and Chaplin's features, etc. In short, I enjoy and appreciate a lot of silent films. I found Birth of a Nation a chore to get through.
It's obvious that from a technical standpoint, especially editing-wise, the film is quite revolutionary. But as a whole, the melodrama is trite soap opera stuff, and the acting for the most part is unimaginative and repetitive. Only Lillian Gish and ... Read More
Rating:  - Racist?
Many say that this film has racist overtones but I could see nothing wrong with it other than it went for too long... about THREE HOURS too long. Also there was something wrong with the audio on my dvd because although I could hear music, there was no dialog even though their lips were moving like they were saying stuff. On a positive note, the guys in the pointed hats looked pretty 'kewl'. Pass on this one and watch Coal Black and the Sebben Dwarfs instead. It'll save you 2 hours and 53 minutes of ... Read More
Rating:  - i was almost conviced...and that horrified me
this movie bored me in the first hour or so but then i started to notice the implications i was incredulous ,i actually thought there was going to be a catch or something..i guess i kept forgetting the times then.when i realized what the film was saying i was horrified yet fascinated by the fact that i actually fund myself -on a superficial level- buying into the story and wishing the clansmen triumph...talk about powerful propaganda.i never understood-as in felt for myself- how rational people could ... Read More
Rating: - Racial Classic of the Civil War
What makes this opus worthwhile is its significance as a study in early film. In a way its too bad Griffith did not end the film with the conclusion of the Civil War. This would have made for a shorter, tighter film without all the bizarre stuff of the latter part.
Even as a Civil War film there is a lot lacking here. The classic friends and brother against brother film is shown here and its a theme that the movies would use many times again. The battle scene showing Peterburg seems ... Read More
Rating:  - Beware of those skeletons in your closet...
Throughout my cinematic life there has always been that one film that both critics and audiences have agreed, both time and again, to be one of the greatest films created. Upon watching sed film, I was unimpressed. It was grandiose alright, but a continued classic? This critic would have to disagree. The blatant racism, the glossy view of the South, as well as that final line that instead of joy, sends a painful shiver down your spine - that is not the grounds for a film that continues to show up on ... Read More
|
|
|
