Lonesome (1928)

Director:

Pál Fejös

Writers:

Mann Page (story)
Edward T. Lowe Jr. (adaptation)
(more)

Release Date:

April 1929 (Germany)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

With All the Glamor and Glitter of CONEY ISLAND That Millions Everywhere Are Always Eager To See

Plot:

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?

Plot Keywords:

Loneliness | Love | Fire | Amusement Park | Telephone Operator

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Barbara Kent	...	Mary
Glenn Tryon	...	Jim
Fay Holderness	...	Overdressed Woman on Roller Coaster
Gusztáv Pártos	...	Romantic Gentleman on Roller Coaster (as Gustav Partos)
Eddie Phillips	...	Sportive Gentleman on Bus
Andy Devine	...	Jim's Friend
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Edgar Dearing	...	Cop (uncredited)
Louise Emmons	...	Telephone Caller (uncredited)
Fred Esmelton	...	Swami (uncredited)
Jack Raymond	...	Barker (uncredited)
Churchill Ross	...	Telephone Caller (uncredited)

Directed by
Pál Fejös		(as Paul Fejos)

Writing credits
Mann Page		(story)
Edward T. Lowe Jr.		(adaptation)
Edward T. Lowe Jr.		(scenario) and
Tom Reed		(scenario)
Tom Reed		(titles)

Produced by
Carl Laemmle Jr.	....	supervising producer
Oskar Schubert-Stevens	....	supervising producer (german version)

Cinematography by
Gilbert Warrenton

Film Editing by
Frank Atkinson

Art Direction by
Charles D. Hall

Music Department
Joseph Cherniavsky	....	musical director (uncredited)

Other crew
Carl Laemmle	....	presenter

Production Companies

• Universal Pictures (as Universal Picture Corporation)

Distributors

• Universal Pictures (1928) (USA) (theatrical) (as Universal Pictures Corporation)
• Universal Films S.A. (1928) (Belgium) (theatrical)
• Jaime Puig Arosemena (1928) (Colombia) (theatrical)
• International Variety & Theatrical Agency (Agent of African Consolidated Films) (1928) (South Africa) (theatrical)
• Universal Pictures Proprietary (1928) (Australia) (theatrical)
• Universal Pictures Proprietary (1928) (New Zealand) (theatrical)
• Criterion Collection, The (2012) (USA) (DVD)

Also Known As:

"Solitude" - , USA (working title)

Runtime:

69 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White (tinted)

Aspect Ratio:

1.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System) (talking sequences) | Silent

Certification:

Portugal:17 (director's cut) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | USA:Not Rated

Filming Locations:

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

Company:

Universal Pictures

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Fejezetek a film történetéböl: Az amerikai film kezdetei (#1.3)" (1989)

Soundtrack:

Lonesome

A Masterpiece of its Time

Wonderfully-paced, great camera movements, excellent location photography. When you compare this with other films of its era, you'll see how well Lonesome was developed. Being visual, I'm always interested in camera placement and movement. While other films of its time showed static camera shots, Lonesome always wanted to keep the camera moving. The pace rarely lets up, soon after the male protagonist Jim, wakes up.

The version I refer to is the Eastman House-restored film. It's presented in a pristine, high- definition film transfer from original film stock, a nitrate print apparently from France. What a treat to watch life from the early 20th century, and the way it seems, the storyline could be presented today, in modern New York City.

This version has music and plenty of sound effects, but it's still one of the last silent films of the era. It's a fun treat, watching the facial expressions as the performers have to sell their emotions without voices. It must have been a trend-setting piece of filmmaking in its time. I only wish the pace on some of the films made today had as much entertainment packed inside.

Packed within the Eastman House print are several scenes with actual dialog between the two, and there's also a bit of color-tinted B/W to boot somewhere in the film. It's worth it for true film buffs to find the restored version. There's no heavy storyline here, just a guy finding it hard to meet a woman he finds attractive. The film really gives me another reason to smile.