La blonde ou la brune

This is one of those Bedroom Farce type things so popular around the turn of the century. I think it was from a play, so it had a track record before being turned into a movie. Not many folks realize what a leading man Adolphe could be in his younger years as a silent star, and a comedian too, although most of this film is played pretty straight and one of the reasons it works so well. It sucks you in slowly like a good John Cleese skit, so by the time it gets silly, you're totally charmed by it. I loved it, and if it doesn't make you laugh out loud, you're not… well something. The photography is also great with those big screen wide shots showing gorgeous rooms with high ceilings, another hallmark of the middle silent era. You can see and feel where these people live. The sets are very much a part of the story. If you can catch this film at a festival on a big screen, that's really the way to see it. You wouldn't think a picture that takes place indoors would benefit from the big screen, but many Silent Era pictures do, and this is a perfect example of what the great 1920's films were all about. You wouldn't think a film with no sound would have snappy Dialogue too, but it does. Ha! I just saw this film at the 2005 Capitol Fest in Rome, NY and it was my favorite film of the weekend.