39. The Docks Of New York (1928)

Directed By Joseph Von Sternberg

Synopsis

Man is stoker on boat. Very dirty with coal. Very dirty. Gets shore leave. Saves girl who has thrown herself to the sea in suicide attempt. Steals dry clothes for her. Whirlwind night and marries her. Next morning gets on boat. Goes back to girl who is going to jail for stolen dress. Saves her and goes to jail himself. There was much rejoicing.

Review

This is a stylish film, if nothing else. Both the setting and characters are beautiful, mostly set at night in New York, with the underworld of the docks. Everyone smokes, main character has great tattoos of women's names in his arm, as well as a naked lady and a heart... gotta love that!

On the other hand there isn't much of a plot here, it is the story of a one night stand that might possibly be something else. Although this is quite risqué for the time it doesn't make it a great story. The acting is amazing however, everyone is very blasé, very despondent and cool. Bill, the stoker, swaggers around the screen like no one before and his wife has a constant look of sultry depression which is lovely.

So, it is a good film, and silent cinema is definitely come of age by now. It is almost a pity that it's era is almost coming to an end. You can buy it at Amazon US on VHS as there is no DVD version and the UK doesn't sell it. It is a pity, really that so many of these silent films have not yet made the transition to DVD.

Final Grade

7/10

Trivia

Josef von Sternberg was born Josef Sternberg (the von was added by a Hollywood studio head) to a Jewish family in Vienna, Austria but spent much of his childhood in New York City where his father, a former soldier in the army of Austria-Hungary, tried to make a new life for himself. Sternberg grew up in poverty and dropped out of high school. As a youth he got a job cleaning and repairing movie prints and soon found himself apprenticing in the movie industry. He made his directorial debut in 1925 with The Salvation Hunters (called by some the first American independent film) and had commercial success later in the decade with a series of early gangster films including Underworld and Thunderbolt.

His new found prosperity made it possible for him to commission an impressive mini-mansion from the famous architect Richard Neutra. Even after its demolition Von Sternberg house remained an example of modernism in Architecture.