The Docks of New York

What a good film and what good condition this film is in. The story is simple enough but delivered so well by a great cast.

Seaman(George Bancroft) gets shore leave for the night and goes looking for some fun. He saves a lady(Betty Compson) and is overwhelmed by her. One thing leads to another and he ask her out. From there all kinds of things happen. One of those things is love.

I was very impressed by Bancroft and Compson. They really seemed like they were living their parts rather than acting them out. Betty Compson was such a beautiful woman. That combined with her acting talent, I am surprise that she wasn't a big silent film star. I have never heard of her before.

I would recommend this film to all film lovers, silent and sound.

Docks of New York (1928) is a prime example of the power of silent film at its height. After 1928, the medium would be crushed underneath the rise of sound technology, which was a shame considering how technically dazzling and sophisticated they had become by the latter half of the 1920s.

The film is a character study of a rough stoker and a suicidal woman. The two fall in love after he rescues her from an attempt to take her own life, though there is a chance they may be separated by the stoker's aversion to commitment and responsibility. The characters are all flawed, compelling people, each one brought to life with subtle performances from the leading actors. The atmosphere is appropriately seedy and dark, with chiaroscuro lighting and crowded spaces. It's a slow film, one that will not please those who prefer more plot or action, but it is worth your time, showcasing silent cinema at its loftiest heights. It is films like Docks of New York which make one wish the silent era had lingered on a little while longer.

For me, this comes a close second to "Underworld" in Sternberg's films: the twists and turns of the melodramatic plot become ultimately a little too much for me to swallow (a twist too far?), and I found some of the camera devices simply distracting, but even so the film is more or less won by virtue of the impressive acting from all concerned. Betty Compson (who was soon to receive a well-deserved Oscar nomination for her role in the part-talkie "The Barker") stands out as the fragile, cynical girl who has "had too many good times" already but allows herself to believe in the possibility of redemption; Baclanova is memorable as the petty officer's deserted wife, while George Bancroft is a cheerful, callous but not unkindly Colossus of a stoker. The weary, sensitive features of Gustav von Seyffertitz, in a small role as the threadbare Bible-basher who ministers to this godless 'flock', also make a strong impression. The film is almost all atmosphere, but it is atmosphere well-done.

What a treat this tough, realistic movie is. George Bancroft, Betty Compson, and Olga Baclanova are all great is this cynical yet tender story of the waterfront.

Director Josef von Sternberg fills a simple tale with pathos and great atmosphere. Tough stoker Bancroft rescues a girl (Compson) from a suicide attempt and "marries" her for a night of fun. But he gets involved in a web of murder, thievery, and drunkenness.

When Norma Desmond said "we had faces then" in Sunset Boulevard (and yes I know it was Gloria Swanson), Betty Compson was at the top of the list. With her big eyes and crooked mouth, Compson was expert at expressing emotion with a twist of the mouth, a flick of the eyelashes. She is wonderful here as Mae, the waterfront gal. Bancroft is also terrific as the big lug who falls hard for Mae. And Baclanova, best remembered for "Freaks" is a dynamo as the wronged wife.

Great scenes of water and fog and birds serve as a backdrop to the drama that enfolds.

Bancroft and Compson won Oscar nominations in the early days of the award and are pretty much forgotten now, but they serve up sparks here in this terrific film. A must see!

Docks of New York, The (1928)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

Impressive melodrama benefits from some strong performances and some terrific visuals. The film tells the story of Bill Roberts (George Bancroft) a man who lives down on the docks who ends up saving a woman (Betty Compson) from killing herself. Over the period of a day he saves her life, then the two get to know one another before getting married hours later but neither of them know what the future might hold. The plot of this film is pretty simple and in many ways it's not too original but that doesn't hamper the film too much as director von Sternberg has such an amazing eye that each scene contains something fresh even if the story in that scene isn't anything new. I'm not sure how much a better story would have helped overall but it might have benefited in a few ways including the two actually falling for one another. In many ways this film plays out like a lonely males fantasy of him just happening to save a beautiful woman and then she gives him a chance of winning her heart. Being made years before the Code went into full effect allowed the director to show off some darker moments to both characters as it's made clear in a very funny scene that neither person are virgins and that they've both had their share of wild moments. What's most impressive about the direction here is his visual style, which is easily the most impressive that I've seen from him. Just take a look at the scene where Bill saves the woman. The fog is laid on very thick making the scene come off almost like a fantasy sequence and the way von Sternberg edits the thing makes it seem like some sort of strange dreamland. The way the girl is seen, pulled from the water and eventually carried home are all shot very darkly with very little light and what light there is comes mainly from the reflections off the fog. I loved the way von Sternberg shot the scene where the woman comes to and is introduced to the man who saved her. I loved where the camera was placed and how the lighting once again plays a very important part. The atmosphere is a very thick one as you can feel how dirty the docks are and all the people there seem like the type you'd actually find living and working there. Bancroft delivers a very good performance in a role he has no problem playing. The toughness of the character is very believable with Bancroft in the role but he also handles the more quiet and tender moments. Compson has the harder of the two roles as her character is much darker but she has no problem making us care for her. The two don't look like the types who would be together but their performances are so good and the two act so well together that they make us believe. While the film is far from flawless it's well worth watching for the performances and directing.