I'm sure there are a million more eloquent ways of saying this, but I've chosen to go with my gut reaction: Lost films kind of freak me out. Try as I might, I just cannot wrap my head around the idea of recorded footage going completely missing. "Backing things up" is second nature to anyone raised in the Digital Age, and maybe it's in small part because of films like The Patriot. But before I delve too much deeper into this, let's step back in time...
By 1930 silent films had gone the way of the dodo. "Talkies" were all the rage, and silent movies were no longer a sound financial investment. Furthermore, they were actually starting to cost studios money in the form of storage space. The decision seemed simple (and innocent) enough: throw out the silent movies that nobody wants to watch anymore and make room for newer sound features. No thought was given to preserving film history because films weren't viewed as being valuable beyond their theatrical run. Though many silent films were also lost due to the extremely flammable nature of the nitrate film used extensively throughout the era, the main culprit was intentional destruction.
Though an estimated 80 percent of American films from 1894 to 1930 are considered lost, there are some lucky exceptions. Popular stars, like Charlie Chaplin and Mary Pickford*, saw their films reissued many times, meaning copies resurfaced even if the originals were destroyed. Which is why the concept of something ever being completely lost is so difficult for me to understand. With the rise of television, home movies, and the internet, there are potentially infinite copies of all media currently available. Even if a film's original and backup are lost, millions of people could step forward with a DVD.
While the concept of lost films in general is haunting, The Patriot's lost status is even more troubling. This was a popular film, and a well reviewed one at that. It was nominated for five Academy Awards in 1929, and was the last silent film ever nominated for Best Picture. It is also the only Best Picture nominee for which there is no complete copy. How this happens, at a time when film was first being honored as a legitimate art form, is unfathomable.
So people, please check your attics and basements. Your great-great grandfather may have loved Emil Jannings' portrayal of Czar Paul I so much that he bought a copy. Crazier things have happened.
*According to Pickford's Wikipedia page, audiences were outraged when she cut her trademark long curls, and her career began to wane shortly after. Somebody should have warned Keri Russell.
Also, Pickford was Canadian. Apparently the Great White North's invasion of American media goes back further than I thought.
No comments:
Post a Comment