Review of The Crowd (1928) by Chris D — 08 Jul 2010

Another wonderful film from a director I'm really starting to admire, King Vidor. Although, unlike "The Big Parade", this film does occasionally lay the sentimentality on thick, I found the story absolutely believable and really quite profound: most of us are destined to just be part of the crowd, and it's that acceptance that allows you to live a fulfilling life. The acting here is all top notch, and the relationship here between Mary and John is detailed very well, as they go through the regular ups and downs of married life, but find the spirit to break out of the monotony and pain to remember why they fell in love, and why it's worth sticking with.

This film has a really timeless quality that is perfectly applicable today, and I can't help but compare it to another film that deals with a similar issue quite a bit differently, Sunrise. What this film did better was keep the focus on the people and their relationships with each other, whereas Sunrise unfortunately fell into a bland middle section of creaky comedy, almost to the point of slapstick humor, which really hurt the mood. Here, the film doesn't stray from the everyday joys: kids playing on a beach, a good song, etc. I can see why some people connect more that that film then here, but this is a film that I think will stand the test of time far longer than Sunrise ever could.