Directed: William A. Wellman

Year: 1927

Nominated: Best Film

Won: Best Film

Plot in 25 Words: Two enemies to go war. Become friends. One accidentally kills the other. Remaining soldier comes home and falls in love with the girl next door.

In My Opinion: Wow that went on for a long time. And then a bit longer still. I enjoyed the film and plot but at over two and a half hours if did drag on a bit for quite a simple story.

I’m a big fan of some of the ways Hollywood has shown the horror of war in recent years. Whether on the TV, with Band of Brothers and Over There or on the big screen with the epic Saving Private Ryan and The Thin Red Line, I was looking forward to seeing this one.

It was directed by William A. Wellman, who’d fought in the first World War, a man apparently chosen for the job based on his military experience. I wouldn’t say his knowledge made any kind of difference to the film but the fight scenes/sequences were impressive.

I don’t know very much (anything!) about film making so i don’t know how/why it happened but on every gun fire burst there was a flicker of yellow – do explosions show up differently on block or white or was it an artistic choice? Either way it made them stand out.

Richard Arlen as David Armstrong gave a fairly wooden performance. In a gentler film it might not have made so much of a difference but in appearing against Charles Rogers it made a rather negative impression. His portrayal of Jack Powell was incredibly animated and expressive. His emotions were clear and in a silent film that’s needed. Especially in one showing such dramatic situations. His drunk acting with the ‘special effects’ champagne bubbles was very sweet and became sweeter still once I’d read that he had never drunk alcohol before filming, and was fairly tipsy on set!

The highlight of the film for me was either the training sequences or the Dutchman. The training scenes show our male leads finally bonding over something besides romantic competition. There’s a genuine camaraderie shown between the two, that’s grown over a few scenes. Quite a few scenes. Seriously, this film was loooong. The Dutchman was the comic relief. Desperate to fight, he tattoos an American flag on his bicep that he can then make ‘wave’. It’s the Dutchman who fails the shooting test laughably, who gets sick after spinning in the practice cockpit. As to be expected from a film depicting the first World War there weren’t a great deal of laughs but certain parts were humourous and that helped break up some of the longer, drearier moments.

Star Performer: Clara Bow as Mary Preston. Brilliantly lively as the tomboy girl next door. She pines without being pathetic but is so facially expressive it’s possible to know exactly what she’s thinking. At the time the film was released there was no such award category for supporting actress, but had there been she would have been a shoe-in.

Overall: Not a bad story, but it was just far too long. I’ll admit to reading my book at certain points during the film – just for something to focus on.