{"id":24429,"date":"2012-02-29T11:41:20","date_gmt":"2012-02-29T18:41:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=24429"},"modified":"2020-12-25T18:34:57","modified_gmt":"2020-12-26T01:34:57","slug":"wind-the-1928","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=24429","title":{"rendered":"Wind, The (1928)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;Day in, day out, whistlin&#8217; and howlin&#8217; &#8212; makes folks go crazy, especially women!&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Poster.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Poster-189x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"189\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-24434\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Poster-189x300.jpg 189w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Poster-81x128.jpg 81w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 189px) 100vw, 189px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nA young Virginian woman (Lillian Gish) comes to live with her cousin (Edward Earle) and his family in wind-swept Texas; but Earle&#8217;s wife (Dorothy Cummings) quickly becomes jealous of Gish&#8217;s presence, and demands that she find another place to live. Rather than accepting an offer to be the mistress of a married man (Montagu Love), Gish agrees to marry an uncouth but earnest cowboy (Lars Hanson), who is distressed to learn that his new wife doesn&#8217;t love him; meanwhile, Gish&#8217;s mental stability becomes increasingly volatile, especially when Love re-enters her life.\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Feminism and Women&#8217;s Issues<\/li>\n<li>Historical Drama<\/li>\n<li>Jealousy<\/li>\n<li>Lillian Gish Films<\/li>\n<li>Marital Problems<\/li>\n<li>Mental Breakdown<\/li>\n<li>Silent Films<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nPeary doesn&#8217;t review Victor Sjostrom&#8217;s final American silent film in his <em>GFTFF<\/em>, but he discusses it extensively in his <em>Alternate Oscars<\/em> book, where he not only gives Lillian Gish the &#8220;Best Actress&#8221; award, but names the film itself &#8220;Best Movie of the Year&#8221;. Sjostrom, screenwriter Frances Marion, Gish, and Hanson had previously worked together on a successful cinematic adaptation of <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=18199\"><em>The Scarlet Letter<\/em> (1926)<\/a>; they collaborated again for this film (based on <a href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/The_Wind_%28novel%29\">a novel by Dorothy Scarborough<\/a>), which afforded Gish another opportunity to perform in an &#8220;ahead-of-its-time feminist drama about a woman without money or opportunities who tries to survive in a man&#8217;s world&#8221;. (Interestingly, Gish isn&#8217;t the film&#8217;s only female protagonist in such a position; though we may dislike Cumming&#8217;s character for &#8220;her cold treatment of Gish&#8221;, we understand that despite being a &#8220;bitter woman she is no villain&#8221;, given that &#8220;she dearly loves her husband and without him, in this harsh world, she has no life, no options&#8221;.) <\/p>\n<p>Peary accurately notes that &#8220;<em>The Wind<\/em> is beautifully acted by Gish and the talented, handsome Hanson&#8221;, whose portrayal here in a tricky role possesses a surprising amount of subtlety and emotional nuance. Gish, of course, can&#8217;t be equalled: as Peary notes, she&#8217;s &#8220;dynamic in a role that lets her run the gamut of emotions&#8221;, and &#8220;well aware&#8230; it is through her incredible eyes that we perceive the changes her character goes through&#8221;; he argues it&#8217;s likely that &#8220;no one was more aware of the camera than this shrewd actress&#8221;. Meanwhile, the film itself is &#8220;exquisitely photographed (by John Arnold), with much emphasis on motion&#8221;, and Sjostrom creating a &#8220;tremendous sense of claustrophobia with repeated shots of the sand swirling towards windows and penetrating everything&#8221;. (To that end, one can&#8217;t help wondering what area of Texas actually has sandy wind storms that are <em>this<\/em> insistent and <em>this<\/em> devastating; would people really choose to live in such a place, given any other option?)<\/p>\n<p><em>The Wind<\/em> (like all of Sjostrom&#8217;s work) is filled with many memorable, psychologically complex images &#8212; not just Gish&#8217;s &#8220;fantasized image of a white horse charging through the skies&#8221;, but her very breakdown itself, represented with increasingly expressionistic flair as the elements around her (the incessant sand storms, lecherous Love&#8217;s creepy return) eventually destroy every bit of resistance she possesses. Without saying more about the film&#8217;s controversial denouement (changed at the insistence of the producers), I will note that the ending manages to satisfy on multiple levels: Gish&#8217;s ultimate fate (while perhaps &#8220;a little hokey&#8221;) is the only one we would have wished for this most put-upon of feminist heroines. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Lillian Gish as Letty<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Gish.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Gish.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"576\" height=\"432\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-24436\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Gish.png 576w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Gish-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Gish-300x225.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Lars Hanson as Lige<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Hanson.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Hanson.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"576\" height=\"432\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-24437\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Hanson.png 576w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Hanson-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Hanson-300x225.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Dorothy Cumming as Cora<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Cumming.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Cumming.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"576\" height=\"432\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-24435\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Cumming.png 576w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Cumming-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Cumming-300x225.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Many powerful, memorable images<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Imagery4.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Imagery4.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"576\" height=\"432\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-24433\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Imagery4.png 576w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Imagery4-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Imagery4-300x225.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Imagery.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Imagery.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"576\" height=\"432\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-24430\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Imagery.png 576w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Imagery-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Imagery-300x225.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Imagery2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Imagery2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"576\" height=\"432\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-24431\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Imagery2.png 576w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Imagery2-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/Wind-Imagery2-300x225.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes, for Gish&#8217;s knock-out performance, and as a provocative silent melodrama by a master director. Listed as a film with Historical Importance and a Personal Recommendation in the back of Peary&#8217;s book.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Historically Relevant<\/li>\n<li>Noteworthy Performance(s)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p> (<span style=\"color:red;font-weight:bold;\">Listed in <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-static\/1001Movies.htm\"><em>1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die<\/em><\/a><\/span>) <\/p>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0019585\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1928\/11\/05\/archives\/the-screen.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/95934\/the-wind#articles-reviews?articleId=62579\">TCM Article<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.timeout.com\/movies\/the-wind-1\">Time Out Capsule Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Day in, day out, whistlin&#8217; and howlin&#8217; &#8212; makes folks go crazy, especially women!&#8221; Synopsis: A young Virginian woman (Lillian Gish) comes to live with her cousin (Edward Earle) and his family in wind-swept Texas; but Earle&#8217;s wife (Dorothy Cummings) quickly becomes jealous of Gish&#8217;s presence, and demands that she find another place to live. Rather than accepting an offer to be the mistress of a married man (Montagu Love), Gish agrees to marry an uncouth but earnest cowboy (Lars&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=24429\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-24429","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24429","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=24429"}],"version-history":[{"count":23,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24429\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":59527,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24429\/revisions\/59527"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=24429"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=24429"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=24429"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}