INTRODUCTION
I’ve finalized my grades and rankings for my personal 1920s movie seasons over at Letterboxd, so I decided to write down a list of my top 20 favorite films from the era accompanied by plot descriptions provided by the social cataloging site.
20. The Cabinet Of Dr. Calagri (1920)
Francis, a young man, recalls in his memory the horrible experiences he and his fiancée Jane recently went through. Francis and his friend Alan visit The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, an exhibit where the mysterious doctor shows the somnambulist Cesare, and awakens him for some moments from his death-like sleep.
19. The Lodger: A Story Of The London Fog (1927)
A mysterious serial killer brutally murders young blond women by stalking them in the night fog. One foggy, sinister night, a young man who claims his name is Jonathan Drew arrives at the guest house run by the Bunting family and rents a room.
18. Blackmail (1929)
Frank Webber, a very busy Scotland Yard detective, seems to be more interested in his work than in Alice White, his girlfriend. Feeling herself ignored, Alice agrees to go out with an elegant and well-mannered artist who invites her to visit his fancy apartment.
17. Our Hospitality (1923)
A young man falls for a young woman on his trip home; unbeknownst to him, her family has vowed to kill every member of his.
16. The Kid (1921)
A tramp cares for a boy after he’s abandoned as a newborn by his mother. Later, the mother has a change of heart and aches to be reunited with her son.
15. Speedy (1928)
Speedy loses his job as a soda jerk, then spends the day with his girl at Coney Island. He then becomes a cab driver and delivers Babe Ruth to Yankee Stadium - where he stays to see the game. When the railroad tries to run the last horse-drawn trolley (operated by his girl’s grandfather) out of business, Speedy organizes the neighborhood old-timers to thwart their scheme.
14. Battleship Potemkin (1925)
A dramatized account of a great Russian naval mutiny and a resultant public demonstration, showing support, which brought on a police massacre.
13. 7th Heaven (1927)
A dejected Parisian sewer worker feels his prayers have been answered when he falls in love with a street waif.
12. The Big Parade (1925)
The story of an idle rich boy who joins the U.S Army’s Rainbow Division and is sent to France to fight in World War I, becomes friends with two working class men, experiences the horrors of trench warfare, and finds love with a French girl.
11. Wings (1927)
Two young men, one rich, one middle class, both in love with the same woman, become US Air Corps fighter pilots and, eventually, heroic flying aces during World War I. Devoted best friends, their mutual love of the girl eventually threatens their bond. Meanwhile, a hometown girl who’s the lovestruck lifelong next door neighbor of one of them, pines away.
10. The Adventures Of Prince Achmed (1926)
A wicked sorcerer tricks Prince Achmed into riding a magical flying horse. The heroic prince is able to subdue the magical horse, which he uses to fly off to many adventures. While travelling, he falls in love with the beautiful Princess Peri Banu, and must defeat an army of demons to win her heart.
9. Nosferatu (1922)
Vampire Count Orlok is interested in a new residence - and in his real estate agent’s young wife.
8. The Phantom Of The Opera (1925)
A grotesquely disfigured composer known as “The Phantom” haunts Paris’ opera house, where he’s secretly grooming Christine Daae to be an opera diva. Luring her to his remote underground lair, The Phantom declares his love. But Christine loves Raoul de Chagny and plans to elope with him. When The Phantom learns this, he abducts Christine.
7. The Lost World (1925)
The first film adaptation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s classic novel about a land where prehistoric creatures still roam.
6. Way Down East (1925)
A naive country girl is tricked into a sham marriage by a wealthy womanizer, then must rebuild her life despite the taint of having borne a child out of wedlock.
5. The Crowd (1928)
John, an ambitious but undisciplined New York City office worker, meets and marries Mary. They start a family, struggle to cope with marital stress, financial setbacks, and tragedy, all while lost amid the anonymous, pitiless throngs of the big city.
4. The Cameraman (1928)
A photographer takes up newsreel shooting to impress a secretary.
3. Metropolis (1927)
In a futuristic city sharply divided between the working class and the city planners, the son of the city’s mastermind falls in love with a working class prophet who predicts the coming of a savior to mediate their differences.
2. Sunrise: A Song Of Two Humans (1927)
A married farmer falls under the spell of a slatternly woman from the city, who tries to convince him to drown his wife.
1. Lonesome (1928)
Two lonely people in the big city meet and enjoy the thrills of an amusement park, only to lose each other in the crowd after spending a great day together. Will they ever see each other again?
RECAP