Review of The World Moves On (1934) by Chrisanne S — 13 Aug 2008

I was beginning to suspect John Ford didnâ??t put his entire heart and soul into the creation of this film after the first several scenes, but this was merely the setup for the real meat and potatoes.

I do suspect he appreciated many of his other leading men more than Franchot Tone. He seems a little haughty, aristocratic, polished, and conceited compared to the usual Ford leads. This is not to say he doesnâ??t give an effective performance and fit the film nicely.

One can certainly see why he was in early talkies though. He and Madeleine Carroll work well together as well. Talk about unexpected when the film jumps four generations in one intertitle. It takes the story to an entirely different level than if it had been a standard continuous story.

It is photographed extremely well and has some exceptional scenes and camera movements (the cut back and forth along the empty and full wedding banquet table for one). It gradually seems to grow into a recognizable Ford film as the story progresses towards the inevitable (based on the countries involved and the time period).

Ford certainly does not glorify war here. The combat scenes are harsh and brutal; and he cuts straight to a knelling amputee by a pew with Ave Maria in the background. This is an inspired way to tell the story of war.

It is also a very apt title. Iâ??m starting to realize that John Ford is an even more consistently ridiculous director than I realized. It seems more and more that he could do no real wrong on the screen.

I am also beginning to love the Ford at Fox collection. It also seems Ford and his team were prescient to a ridiculous degree concerning the nature of nations and warfare. To top it all off this is had the first ever seal of approval from the Production Code, which makes it fairly historic for that reason alone.