Silent Serials

[mwalls]

I just finished watching The House of Mystery put out by Flicker Alley. I have watched Serials before. For the most part enjoyable. Things like The Lady in Grey, Beatrice Fairfax, Patria, and even Attack of the Purple Monster. I will often watch them at my desk at lunch while eating whatever I had brought in that day. The duration of each "episode" is just about right, and is a nice break during the middle part of the workday.

However, now that I have watched The House of Mystery, I see that Serials can be raised to an entirely new level. Lots of serials are intended for kids. Lots of action, fights, cliff hangers, etc. And that is okay. But The House of Mystery has me wondering if there are other serials out there of the same adult quality that it was. Frankly, I had never heard of it until Flicker Alley put it out and several members on here commented on its quality.

Does anyone know of some serials that are of the same kind of quality of The House of Mystery?

Matthew

[boblipton]

Les Vampires, of course.

Bob

[mwalls]

Les Vampires, of course.

Bob

That sounds like a good suggestion. Thanks Bob.

The Kino version?

Any other serials by chance?

[Mike Gebert]

I have seen other American serials, mostly at Cinesation (RIP), and though they weren't the superhero kind that became common in the 30s and 40s, they tended to be fairly routine old dark house mystery type things which didn't become any better by having a lot more time to run through the same hidden identity machinations.

House of Mystery is pretty much sui generis, at least in terms of what's available in the U.S.; while Feuillade is his own thing, also unique.

[mwalls]

I have seen other American serials, mostly at Cinesation (RIP), and though they weren't the superhero kind that became common in the 30s and 40s, they tended to be fairly routine old dark house mystery type things which didn't become any better by having a lot more time to run through the same hidden identity machinations.

House of Mystery is pretty much sui generis, at least in terms of what's available in the U.S.; while Feuillade is his own thing, also unique.

I just looked up Feuillade and saw that he did Les Vampires, which Bob recommended. He also did Fantomas. Is that also a good Serial?

[boblipton]

Yes, it is. I am not expert in serials. After flourishing for a few years as an alternative to features, they settled down into routine fare, as Mike puts it, and by the time of talkies, were Saturday-morning kiddie fare. This is not to say that some don't have a deserved reputation for excellence, but the occasional flash of wit or excellence had a hard time standing out in fifteen reels over fourteen weeks. Occasionally you might have the Green Archer, in which James Horne mocked the conventions of the form, but by the 1920s, the feature had won, so for the same thrills you got things like Doctor Mabuse.

I await the firestorm of opprobrium from the Serial Squadron.

Bob

[linquist]

Right off the top of my head would be Mysteries Of Myra, which was pretty bizarre for 1916. It was produced by the Whartons of Ithaca and William Randolph Hearst's International Film was involved in distribution and PR. I've only watched a little online but it relied on a lot of themes that would become standard in the horror genre. A website is selling the 15 chapter serial on DVD if you are interested. Just search Mysteries Of Myra. It should be one of your first entries.

[mwalls]

I found Les Vampires and Fantomas (both Kino Blu Ray products) on Amazon, and I put them in the queue. I also found Mysteries of Myra at Serial Squadron.

Thanks for the advice!

Matthew

[NotSoSilent]

Judex (Flicker Alley) is another one you should check out. I don't own the DVD but enjoyed watching the episodes when TCM ran them a few years ago. I am not sure if it is "adult" enough, but I enjoyed it.

[silentfilm]

I know that I am echoing what Bob said, but the serials had a problem in that there was so much screen time to fill that they quickly resorted to fights and chases rather than complex story and character development. Having said that, I love the silent serials of the teens. They are fascinating because there are so many female protagonists that save themselves, rather than being saved by the hero. I wish that more chapters of The Hazards of Helen existed (although it is a series, not a cliff-hanger serial).

I think the French went down a different path, and their serials are more like modern TV miniseries, where a complex story is told in successive episodes.

[drednm]

I very much enjoyed Beatrice Fairfax, which was a little different in that the episodes don't end in cliffhangers, so each episode is basically a self-contained story. Also the Beatrice character, as played by Grace Darling, is not really a derring-do gal in the manner of Pearl White's heroines. So reporter Jimmy Barton (Harry Fox) actually does most of the rescues.

Just bought a 10-part version of 1918 serial The House of Hate, starring White and Antonio Moreno.

[Ann Harding]

I think the French went down a different path, and their serials are more like modern TV miniseries, where a complex story is told in successive episodes.

In 1919, René Navarre (Fantômas) created a new film company: La société des Cinéromans which was designed to produce film in episodes rather than pure serials with cliffhangers. By 1922, the newspaper mogul Jean Sapène took over the company while publishing simultaneously the stories in episodes in his newspapers. He produced a lot "serials" such as Vidocq (1922), Rouletabille chez les bohémiens (1922), Le Juif errant (1926), Fanfan-la-tulipe (1925) and Belphégor (1926). La Maison du mystère (1922) however was produced by Albatros. They specialized in feature films and never produced another serial. There is no doubt in my mind, they wanted to cash in with the fad for serial created by Gaumont (Les Vampires, Fantômas, etc) and Les Cinéromans.

[wich2]

>serials had a problem in that there was so much screen time to fill that they quickly resorted to fights and chases rather than complex story and character development<

With respect Bruce - wouldn't that "we need to fill more screen time" requirement suggest the need for MORE story and character moments in addition to the action sequences, not less?

By which I mean, I don't think it was the length that lead producers in the US to lean towards chases and fights, but rather the feeling that that was what the audiences wanted.

-Craig

[entredeuxguerres]

...By which I mean, I don't think it was the length that lead producers in the US to lean towards chases and fights, but rather the feeling that that was what the audiences wanted.

-Craig

No appeal to the lowest common denominator of taste has ever failed.

[Marr&Colton]

FYI, since this is closely related, over on the Exchange dept, I have the rare out of print 1960s book by Kalton Lahue on silent serials: BOUND & GAGGED for sale:

viewtopic.php?f=15&t=21825" target="_blank

[ClayKing]

"Distressed Damsels and Masked Marauders" by Ed Hulse focuses on Pathe, the pre-eminent silent serial producer and distributor. This isn't a picture or coffee table book, but a comprehensive, well-researched history of Pathe's serials. It includes some already mentioned as well as the famous ones such as Perils of Pauline and Exploits of Elaine and the not-so-famous chapter plays. Hulse has seen many of the serials covered in the book but readily acknowledges those that he hasn't. The book also covers the star players in those chapter plays and the rising and falling fortunes of Pathe. A forthcoming second volume focuses on the silent serials of Universal.

[drednm]

House of Hate (1918) stars Pearl White and Antonio Moreno. Ten episodes of 16 (?) survive. Pearl is the illegitimate daughter of a rich man who is murdered, but she is the sole beneficiary named in his will. The mansion is sealed off so the killer is in the house. There may have been a war subplot now missing. Music track is distracting and loud.

[silentfilm]

The Film Threat website reviews Judex (1916).