Stella Dallas (1925) on DVD

[Ann Harding]

I stumbled on the information by accident. The recently released DVD of Stella Dallas (1937, K. Vidor) includes the 1925 Stella Dallas directed by Henry King. On the box, it says 'vintage featurette' (!) Apparently the film is without a score. Still, worth getting as it's the first official release of this Henry King silent.

[rudyfan]

AIYEEE! Ordering now! THANK YOU, better no score than the lousy score on the grey market editions. This is SUCH A GREAT FILM

[Gagman 66]

Christine,

I can always add my own score. Can't believe they would put this out with no music though. Hope it's a beautiful print. Had heard nothing about this previously. Thanks much for bringing it up.

[Brooksie]

Hoooray!!!!! Given how far superior to the talking version the silent is (yes, even with Stanwyck), it's quite shocking that they've snuck it out like this. A really wonderful film.

[Gagman 66]

On the downside, I was hoping for a TCM Premiere. That isn't likely, if they haven't added a ny score. What are they going to replace those copies previously ordered with a upgraded version that has one?

[buskeat]

On the downside, I was hoping for a TCM Premiere. That isn't likely, if they haven't added a ny score. What are they going to replace those copies previously ordered with a upgraded version that has one?

A score - especially the orchestral kind that TCM prefers - is extremely expensive and time-consuming, and I'm also guessing that it's pretty low on the Warner Bros. priority list for a score since they don't actually own the film, they're merely licensing it from Samuel Goldwyn. In fact, I have to imagine it would be Samuel Goldwyn that would have to foot the bill for a new score, so that probably makes it even more complicated.

Better to include the film with no score than not at all. The Criterion Collection made a similar decision posting score-less Ozu silents on Hulu.

[bobfells]

My Amazon order arrived today and I quickly checked it out. Here is the review I posted on Amazon - four out of five stars:

The 1937 sound remake of STELLA DALLAS is a fine movie with top credentials beginning with star Barbara Stanwyck and director King Vidor. Produced by Samuel Goldwyn's boutique film studio, everything about this production is first class. The image quality is clean with no dust or speckling, and the soundtrack is clear and crisp. Given the bargain price we have nothing to complain about although we are rapidly becoming spoiled by vintage films released on Blu-ray. You'll never mistake this edition of STELLA DALLAS with a Blu-ray version (none so far) but this DVD is good enough on its own terms.

There is one bonus feature that really persuaded me to buy this DVD: the 1925 original silent version starring Ronald Colman, Alice Joyce, Belle Bennett, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Lois Moran, and Jean Hersholt. There is no musical accompaniment with this silent - a cardinal sin when showing silent films - but more disappointing is the 16mm soft image quality of the print. We know that 35mm prints exist and since this DVD is an official studio release from Goldwyn (via Warners) there is really no excuse for this sloppy, blah-looking bonus. The usual culprit is that nobody on the production end really cared enough to do this right - I suspect that Sam Goldwyn is spinning in his grave with the shoddy treatment his own company has given the DVD release of an important silent film classic.

[Gagman 66]

Good thing I didn't order yet. The Sunrise Silents release probably looks just as good or better. I'll add my own score to that one of these days. I was shaky on the idea of it's getting a topnotch transfer from 35 millimeter. Not convinced it would happen. Still very disappointing. Now what about THE BELLE OF BROADWAY?

[entredeuxguerres]

There is no musical accompaniment with this silent - a cardinal sin when showing silent films - but more disappointing is the 16mm soft image quality of the print.

A mortal sin. Especially since the Sunrise ed. provided a decent synthesizer score; not great, but better than nothing. If Sunrise's source was 16mm, it derived from a very good tinted print; actually, I'm so inured to watching worse prints of early talkies (and NO blurays), that this one seemed pretty good.

[Gagman 66]

Well, I may still get this, but it's not a big priority now. I just bought my sister a Birthday present that was nearly a hundred bucks. Her Birthday is Christmas Eve. I had to put off getting the INTOLERANCE Blu-ray too, which I still don't have yet. I bought a copy of PRINCE ACHMED again. I lost the one that I bought years ago. Couldn't find it anyplace. Just got my order of 8 films from Deep Discount Video today.

[didi-5]

How disappointing - a silent film without a score + a substandard print is doing a disservice to classics of the past. So as I haven't seen the 1925 Stella Dallas, am I better off getting this or seeking out a grey market copy to get better picture quality ...?

[entredeuxguerres]

How disappointing - a silent film without a score + a substandard print is doing a disservice to classics of the past. So as I haven't seen the 1925 Stella Dallas, am I better off getting this or seeking out a grey market copy to get better picture quality ...?

Plenty of silent releases have slap-dash, needle-drop scores; these are bad enough. But providing no score at all is an insult to the viewer. Would you reward such an insult by buying this product? Get the Sunrise--it's "around."

[bobfells]

The Youtube post is the Sunrise Silents version:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50qVPumG ... F7SAk2Uf47" target="_blank

[azjazzman]

The Youtube post is the Sunrise Silents version:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50qVPumG ... F7SAk2Uf47" target="_blank" target="_blank

Strictly in terms of picture quality, how does the new WB Stella Dallas DVD compare to the Sunrise Silents disc?

Those of us who go back to the days of 16mm film collecting are used to supplying our own musical scores to silent films, so the fact that the Stella Dallas on the WB disc is mute is not all that big an issue to me.

I actually enjoy creating my own scores. If the expense of commissioning a new score is what is preventing Warner's from releasing more silent films on Warner Archive DVDs, I say give 'em to us silent!

[bobfells]

The Youtube post is the Sunrise Silents version:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50qVPumG ... F7SAk2Uf47" target="_blank" target="_blank" target="_blank

Strictly in terms of picture quality, how does the new WB Stella Dallas DVD compare to the Sunrise Silents disc?

Those of us who go back to the days of 16mm film collecting are used to supplying our own musical scores to silent films, so the fact that the Stella Dallas on the WB disc is mute is not all that big an issue to me.

I actually enjoy creating my own scores. If the expense of commissioning a new score is what is preventing Warner's from releasing more silent films on Warner Archive DVDs, I say give 'em to us silent!

Same with me az. I'm an old 16mm collector and I have lots of mute prints. Doesn't bother me a bit. Comparing the Youtube Sunrise Silents to the DVD "bonus" is tough - they both look like 16mm but watching them on my laptop I'd give the edge to the Sunrise Silents edition. Its tinting definitely helps.

[drednm]

I thought the Sunrise disk was quite good and don't remember there being a problem with picture quality.

[didi-5]

Thanks all - I've just taken a look at the YouTube video of the Sunrise version. That does seem like the one to get.

[azjazzman]

Thanks all - I've just taken a look at the YouTube video of the Sunrise version. That does seem like the one to get.

The difficulty is that Sunrise Silents is out of business and Stella Dallas obviously is out of print. Don't know if there are used copies out there.

[entredeuxguerres]

Those of us who go back to the days of 16mm film collecting are used to supplying our own musical scores to silent films, so the fact that the Stella Dallas on the WB disc is mute is not all that big an issue to me.

I actually enjoy creating my own scores. If the expense of commissioning a new score is what is preventing Warner's from releasing more silent films on Warner Archive DVDs, I say give 'em to us silent!

Hear that Ben & Rodney, Davis, Israel, Carli, etc.? "Mute" is a BIG issue with me.

The Sunrise ed. is widely available on the entrepreneurial (so-called grey) market.

[Ann Harding]

Really disappointed to hear about the poor quality of the print... I wished I hadn't ordered it. I saw the 1925 Stella Dallas on a big screen at the Cinémathèque française about 5 years ago. The print came from MoMA. I remember it as being a little soft but OK.

[entredeuxguerres]

Really disappointed to hear about the poor quality of the print... I wished I hadn't ordered it. I saw the 1925 Stella Dallas on a big screen at the Cinémathèque française about 5 years ago. The print came from MoMA. I remember it as being a little soft but OK.

To refresh my memory, watched Sunrise ed. (a copy of it, actually) last night; both score & print quality better than I remembered. Only really noticeable "soft" parts were some outdoor scenes--most obviously, the opening scene, which looked like it had been taken from a different print & spliced in.

Though I very much like everyone in this picture, watching it really isn't an enjoyable experience, due to the acute despair so convincingly depicted, & some scenes, like Lois Moran fleeing in shame when her friends make fun of her "freak" of a mother (and she was a freak), make me cringe. What can you do when a kind, well-meaning, but utterly blind, person persists in making a fool of themselves?

[drednm]

Yes but the "freak" completely redeems herself in the finale. The daughter's rite of passage (her wedding) is also Stella's rite of passage as she stands there in her plain wet clothes, apparently now finished with frills and motherhood.

[entredeuxguerres]

Yes but the "freak" completely redeems herself in the finale. The daughter's rite of passage (her wedding) is also Stella's rite of passage as she stands there in her plain wet clothes, apparently now finished with frills and motherhood.

The sacrifice of giving up her daughter was repaid, but has she gained self-awareness--the gift to "see ourselves as ithers see us"? Maybe, but no clear evidence was presented. The "plain" dress I interpret as evidence merely of destitution.

[drednm]

It was implied. Her term of motherhood is completely over, having previously pawned off the daughter on Mrs. Hooha and married her off to the rich kid. She's sacrificed the daughter, her motherhood, her marriage, her frills and fripperies. As I remember it, it's the only time Stella cries, a sure sign of getting in touch with her inner self.

[Ann Harding]

Just received my copy. I checked the bonus ("Vintage featurette" as it says on the box ). Well, the print looks like a vintage video transfer from analogical time. Still it's slightly better than the previous Sunrise Silent DVD-R.



It's shameful of Warner to treat this Goldwyn feature like a vulgar cheap featurette...

[Gaucho]

Thanks for posting the captures, Ann.
This is better than the Sunrise Silents version (I never got that)?

[Ann Harding]

Here are a few captures of the Sunrise DVD-R. The film is shown at 24fps, much too fast. It's got tinting unlike the new DVD.

[Gaucho]

Thanks Ann--
The sunrise version looks better than I expected.