Wings (1928)

The one and only silent film to ever win Best Picture...

Starring: Clara Bow, Charles Rogers, Richard Arlen and Gary Cooper
--The only semi-noteworthy name I found was Bow. I recognized the name from 1920's pop culture, but I'm sure most people would skip over it just like I skipped over the other two guys, who, for all I know, could have been the best things since sliced bread. Cooper only actually appears in about 4 minutes of the movie, but since he was a big name later on, I suppose he was added to the credits years later for that extra little oomph.

Quick Synopsis: The movie takes place during WWI. Two men go off to battle hating each other, then bond over their shared experience. They become the best of friends, despite the fact that they are both in love with the same woman. Meanwhile, Bow's character is left behind to quietly weep for one of the men, whom she is not-so-secretly in love with. The end of the movie brings about the tragic death of one of our heroes, but also brings the triumph of love for two of the characters.

My Viewing Experience:

First of all, I need to mention again that this was a SILENT FILM. Two hours and eighteen minutes of grainy black-and-white picture, orchestra music, and miming is a lot to handle. Not gonna lie, I may have hit the fast forward button a time or two. However, one can see how this was an admirable film in its time.

While the special effects were nothing to say, George Lucas, they were impressive when you think about the fact that they were done 90 years ago. The planes actually look like they are flying through the air, not suspended by strings with a wind machine blowing them around. I have to imagine that the budget for this movie was pretty extensive, given the amount of flaming objects that descended during aerial fights. The only thing that amused me in regards to special effects were the crashes. Apparently, my notions about plane crashes were all wrong. You see, I used to be under the assumption that planes burst into a thousand pieces, scattering debris and (gasp) bodies for miles upon impact. But no, no, no. That is all wrong. What actually happens is the plane spirals to the ground, where, upon impact, the nose crunches a little and tips over gently. If you're really unlucky, you snap a wing. The pilot can, in fact, walk away from a dog fight completely unscathed. I now feel more comfortable flying circa 1928 then I do riding a bicycle down a hill. Thank goodness Director William A. Wellman cleared that one up for me.

To me, silent movies, whether tear-jerkers or comedies, all leave me wanting to giggle a little bit. It's probably do to with the over-dramatic acting that actors have to use to compensate for the lack of vocals. For this reason, I found the climactic scene where one of the character dies, to be mildly humorous. I know that sounds terrible, because I really did like the guy, but it was just a little too much bromance for me, personally. It looked like I was watching a scene out of Brokeback Mountain. But, I guess when one man unknowingly shoots down his best friend, some dramatic cheek pressing and neck carressing is in order.

Overall, I would say this movie probably deserved the award it received. Although, I have to admit that I have not seen any of its competitors to offer evidence to the contrary.

I should add that I now own this classic film, because no where in the world has it available to rent. Thank goodness for Amazon.