Gaumont Coffret Collection 120 Ans, Vol. 1: Le Muet - 1895-1929
Category: DVD, film, French cinema
Product description
This comprises 20 DVDs (Region 2) and a 268 page book. The total runtime is 46 hours.
The first in a series of handsome DVD box sets produced by Gaumont to celebrate 120 years of film production, this collection spans the silent era (1895-1929).
It comprises 20 discs tidily arranged in eleven separate wallets, with over 200 films (mostly shorts) from some of the great pioneers of French cinema - Alice Guy, Léonce Perret, Marcel L'Herbier, Raymond Bernard, Jacques Feyder, Louis Feuillade, Émile Cohl, Jean Durand, and many others.
In addition, there are features on several of these great auteurs, including a 52 minute documentary on the life and work of Alice Guy. There is a bonus CD which supplies music to accompany several of the films.
The collection comes with a 268 page book, illustrated with numerous colour and black-and-white photographs, offering profiles on many of the directors and films included in the package. The book and wallets housing the DVDs are comfortably housed in a sturdy and attractive box which protects against dust and damage. Many of the films have been recently restored and the picture quality is mostly exceptional for films of this era.
Product review
A surprisingly varied mix of films (some from directors who, bizarrely, had
no connection with Gaumont), all in remarkably good condition, makes this
a must-have collection for any enthusiast of silent French cinema.
The lack of English subtitles and music for most of the films is a disappointment,
but the quality and sheer variety of the films (most of which have never
been available on VHS or DVD before) more than makes up for this.
Arguably the star of the collection is Marcel L'Herbier's two early features L'Homme du large and El Dorado (both masterpieces of film impressionism), but equally of interest are three lavish period features by Raymond Bernard: Le Miracle des loups, Le Joueur d'échecs and Tarakanova.
A curiosity piece is Jean Renoir's rarely seen but visually stunning Le Bled, an essential precursor to some of his later great works Other gems to discover are Léonce Perret's L'Enfant de Paris and Le Mystère des roches de Kador, Louis Feuillade's poignant melodrama La Tare and over sixty short films from Alice Guy, cinema's first woman film director.
This is by far the best volume in Gaumont's 120 Ans Collection - a lovingly put together treasure trove of films from the dawn of cinema.
Arguably the star of the collection is Marcel L'Herbier's two early features L'Homme du large and El Dorado (both masterpieces of film impressionism), but equally of interest are three lavish period features by Raymond Bernard: Le Miracle des loups, Le Joueur d'échecs and Tarakanova.
A curiosity piece is Jean Renoir's rarely seen but visually stunning Le Bled, an essential precursor to some of his later great works Other gems to discover are Léonce Perret's L'Enfant de Paris and Le Mystère des roches de Kador, Louis Feuillade's poignant melodrama La Tare and over sixty short films from Alice Guy, cinema's first woman film director.
This is by far the best volume in Gaumont's 120 Ans Collection - a lovingly put together treasure trove of films from the dawn of cinema.
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