The River (1928) :
Brief Review -
Borzage's silent era Romance is unusually seductive, despite the common theories of true love. Aside from all of Borzage's known talkie films, the three silent films I remember or call my favourites are "7th Heaven" (1927), "Street Angel" (1928), and "Lucky Star" (1929), all of which starred the legendary Janet Gaynor. So this is the first silent film by Frank Borzage I saw that didn't have Gaynor. Well, it doesn't matter if I'm looking at a filmography from the director's perspective, but I would have loved to see Janet Gaynor portraying Rosalee in "The River". Wait, would it be too much to ask of Janet? I mean, she would have agreed to do those sexually appealing scenes? No, I guess. So it's better that Mary Duncan did it, someone whom I loved seeing in FW Murnau's "City Girl" (1930). The River is a typical romantic drama. By typical, I mean for its time, not today, but it's a very unusual film for its time. One of the major reasons is the seductive features of the lead pair. Their expressions (no dialogues, of course) make it more appealing because you feel the hype and intensity there. The River is about a young man working at a logging camp beside a turbulent river. When it closes for the winter, he opts to stay for the experience. He meets a woman who was the girlfriend of the boss of the outfit, recently locked up for murder. This worldly lady and the innocent boy find a powerful attraction, but is it that simple for them? You are free to find out the answers in this predictable drama, or you can predict them even before they appear on screen. Nevertheless, it still makes for a good watch. Charles Farrell and Mary Duncan's seductive chemistry makes that sure, while Borzage goes on telling common theories without any big blunders. Overall, there's nothing much to say, but it's a real good watch if you really care about the sex appeal of the early cinema.
RATING - 7/10*
By - #samthebestest.
