Silent Films, More Films and Soundtracks

It’s been a long time since I last posted about Internet Archive here and more new films were added since then. So, now is the time to talk about it again. Most of those interesting films are silent films, but there are some others with a lot of noise for those of you that feel uncomfortable with the lack of sound. This is my list of suggestions:
- Angel and the Badman: one of those classic western films, that we call bang bang, but with John Wayne. Check the information on IMDb.
- Blood And Sand: is another of those classics that you must see. Directed by Fred Niblo the most important on this film is the presence of Rudolph Valentino also know as Rodolfo Valentino. Valentino was a very famous star, what we call “galã” in Portuguese, when the actor is handsome. Unfortunately he died very young, but left us almost forty films. I saw two other versions (this and this) of Ibanez’s classic Blood and Sand and I can say that I like this version, probably because it’s a silent film and I usually like silent films. And if you have time, also watch this satire with Stan Laurel called Mud and Sand.
- Bronenosets Potyomkin (Battleship Potemkin): this is the kind of film that need no introduction. It’s a masterpiece of cinema history, it’s a classic in editing, history, semiotic, visual language. It’s one of the greatest films ever made. I don’t like politics, and I’m not defending the position of the film, but this film is brilliant and Einsenstein knew marvellously well how to construct an idea using images. Did I mention that I LOVE this film? Well, I do. Take a look at the Wikipedia entry too.
- Buster Keaton selection: Daydreams, The Electric House, The Blacksmith, The Boat, The Playhouse, The Paleface, Steamboat Bill, Jr. and Keaton’s masterpiece The General. Most of those films are also directed by Keaton.
- Doll Face: A former burlesque queen needs to acquire some culture to give herself some legitimacy. It doesn’t seems so interesting, but it has Carmen Miranda an that’s why I will see it.
- My Dear Secretary: a comedy directed by Charles Martin, which doesn’t give me much information about it. So why am I suggesting it? Because it’s one of the first films with Kirk Douglas.
- Scarlet Street. I will tell you three reasons for you to watch the film: 1. Fritz Lang; 2. film-noir; 3. the beautiful Joan Bennett. In fact, the first reason is good enough.
- Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon: an English adaptation from the Sir Authur Conan Doyle story “The Dancing Men” with Basil Rathbone. If you like that film do also take a look at Dressed To Kill, also based on a Conan Doyle’s story and featuring Rathbone.
- The Outlaw: my first reason to see this film: censorship blocked it for a time. Anyway, it’s a classic western, a great movie (yes, I watched it before), has the gorgeous Jane Russell and it’s one of the two films directed by the eccentric multi-millionaire and aviator Howard Hughes.
- The Phantom of the Opera: not my favourite adaptation of the book to the cinema, my favourite is one from 1943. But it is a classic, and that means you have to see it, it has Lon Chaney and I prefer this silent version to the Andrew Lloyd Webber version.
- Things to Come: is the adaptation of the homonym book of H.G. Wells with his screenplay. Now you don’t need any more reasons to watch the film if you are a Wells fan.
If you appreciate the old movies from the end of the XIX century and beginning of the XX check out those films: At The Foot Of The Flatiron, What Happened on Twenty-Third Street, Buffalo Dance and Princess Nicotine. They aren’t very amusing, but I love those kind of rarity.

Soundtracks: I also made a nice selection (well, I liked it) of links to soundtracks and a book about cinema. I hope you enjoy:
- As Time Goes By is a homage to Casablanca provided by Rato Records. It’s a special cd where you can find, besides the music and dialogues from the original soundtrack, some classic interpretations from the 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s through the voices of such performers like Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Peggy Lee, Connie Francis, Natalie Cole…. Here are the links to the track list and As time goes by lyrics.
- Basic Hip Digital Oddio posted the soundtrack of In Cold Blood composed by Quincy Jones. Go for it. (via PCL)
- Coeur de Verre by Popol Vuh. The soundtrack of Werner Herzog’s Coeur de Verre, aka Herz aus Glas composed by Popol Vuh.
- Corpse Bride: yes, Planet Xtabay found a link with all the songs of the wonderful Tim Burton’s film Corpse Bride. Of course, the soundtrack composed by Danny Elfman is fantastic.
- Ennio Morricone soundtrack to Sans mobile apparent, directed by Philippe Labro. Posted by Sounds of Champaign.
- Geoff Love & His Orchestra: orchestration version of twelve popular soundtracks, like Jaws, Tubular Bells,Earthquake and others.
- Italian Soundtracks: a collection of covers of Italian, French, American, German and Japanese soundtracks. (via growabrain)
- Music To Scare Your Ass Off! a great selection with the 10 horror movie soundtracks chosen by Backwash with one track of each album to download. (via PCL)
- Orson Welles and Peter Bogdanovich: This is Orson Welles. You must listen to this audiobook if you like the works of Welles.
- Score Blog – Soundtracks audioblog. It’s not a link to a soundtrack, but to a French audio blog with soundtracks files. Always check for new stuff there.
- Planet Xtabay has also a Soundtracks Page with more 3 cool soundtracks from the films Hatari!, Wild in the Streets and Shaft in Africa.

Plus: I selected six wonderful original tracks of Alfred Hitchcock’s films composed by Bernard Herrmann, excluding the first file, composed by Charles Gounod. Herrmann knew, as any other composer, synthetize, transform the idea of each Hitchcock’s film in music. Not all the Hitchcock masterpieces had the composition of Herrmann, but the most wonderful title sequences of his films, and maybe some of the best film overtures, were a result of the work genius minds of Hermann, Saul Bass and Hitchcock. Enjoy.
- The Alfred Hitchcock Theme – Funeral March Of Marionette
- Marnie – Prelude
- North By Northwest – Prelude
- Psycho – Suite For String Orchestra
- Vertigo – Prelude
- The Trouble With Harry – Portrait Of Hitch
And if you like the album bye the CD with 27 tracks from the original soundtracks here.
Related posts (with links to movies on Internet Archive): Caligari on Internet Archive, The Vampire Bat and Fay Wray, Public Domain Films Now Available For Free Download, Nosferatu: watch it!, Munchers: A Fable, Plan 9 From Outer Space, The Golem (Der Golem), More Horror and Sci-fi movies on Internet Archive, Dressed to kill (1946), Burlesque and exotics dancers, The Corpse Vanishes and Some interesting links.