The Crowd (1928)

The life of a man and woman together in a large, impersonal metropolis through their hopes, struggles and downfalls.

Director:

King Vidor

Writers:

King Vidor (screenplay), John V.A. Weaver (screenplay),

Stars:

Eleanor Boardman, James Murray, Bert Roach

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 1 win.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Eleanor Boardman	...	Mary
James Murray	...	John
Bert Roach	...	Bert
Estelle Clark	...	Jane
Daniel G. Tomlinson	...	Jim
Dell Henderson	...	Dick
Lucy Beaumont	...	Mary's Mother
Freddie Burke Frederick	...	Junior
Alice Mildred Puter	...	Daughter

Storyline

Born on the fourth of July, 1900, the future holds unlimited potential for newborn John Sims. But dreams soon fade with the death of his father when John is but a lad. Like many before him, John sets out to make his mark in New York City, but ends up a faceless worker (#137) in a large office of a large business. Still he is happy with his fate and soon meets a young woman named Mary on a blind double date. Things take their course and they soon marry and live in a small apartment. Soon John is bickering with Mary and finds that he has no love for the in-laws. When the marriage looks like a bust, he finds that Mary is with child and he stays. After 5 years, he has a son and a daughter and the same dead end job. When tragedy strikes, John must find the conviction to continue or lose what little he has left.

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Plot Keywords:

new york city | 1900s | tragedy | date | fourth of july | 

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Release Date:

3 March 1928 (USA)

Also Known As:

One of the Mob

Filming Locations:

Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min 98 min

Sound Mix:

Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

King Vidor filmed many scenes in New York City streets using real crowds instead of extras, real buses and trains, and even real traffic cops. In one scene, a police officer is looking toward the camera, admonishing someone to "move along". In fact, he was actually addressing Vidor and his disguised film crew. Vidor cleverly incorporated it into the scene.

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Quotes

John 'Johnny' Sims: Look at that crowd! The poor slobs... all in the same rut!

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Connections

Featured in New York at the Movies (2002)

User Reviews

A silent film that makes sound unnecessary

This is the film I use in my Film History and Technique course to demonstrate to students accustomed to sound and color that these are not necessary for drawing an audience into the screen to share in the joys and sorrows of strongly drawn characters and scenarios, and in some instances may be a distraction. The class reaction is always positive. This ranks with Sunrise and The Last Laugh: filled with sentiment but managing to avoid sentimentality. King Vidor always gives us finely drawn human drama, but I regard this as his masterpiece. He shows us how humans like ourselves, seemingly crushed in the maelstrom of city life can endure both disappointment and tragic loss, to go on because it is necessary to do so. The performances are fine, but it is the hand of the director and the work of the cameraman that carry us along for two hours. The final scene, the first time I saw it, left me somewhere between relief and tears; and after four or five viewings that reaction is still there; it takes me a few minutes to shake off the spell.