100 Years at the Movies (1994 TV Short)
10/10
A Total Delight
11 March 2015
CAREFULLY ASSEMBLED, AND without any visible signs of favouritism toward any period or genre, this one reeler does its best in evoking the steady evolution of the motion picture from humble beginnings in peep show novelty, to the Nickelodeon days, the Silents, the Talkie Era, the Great Depression, World War II and right up through the post-studio system and the advent of the shopping center multiplex.

SANS ANY NARRATION, be it flowery and self-congratulatory or not, the 9 minutes of pure cinematic heaven flows by much like a beautiful dream. We aren't sure just how many micro-clips of archival scenes from how many other a film are included and quite frankly, we don't even care to guess.

SERVING AS SORT of an audio catalyst in melting all into a single, coherent screen montage, we have a section of the soundtrack of the score for CITIZEN KANE, by Bernard Hermann. The musical quotation used is from the scene where we see a very happy, young 9 year old enjoying his playing in the snow in Colorado. It is repeated several times and is well used in its function in blending it all together.

WE'VE LONG BELIEVED that Hollywood oft takes itself far too seriously and tends to exaggerate its own importance as an art form. This ever so brief 9 minutes of shear cinematic pleasure does more than all of the awards shows, red carpet events and gossip could ever hope to accomplish! AS FOR THE rating for this, both Schultz and I say maximum stars allowed!
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