Reviews of silent film releases on home video.
Copyright © 1999-2024 by Carl Bennett
and the Silent Era Company.
All Rights Reserved. |
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The Big Idea
(1924)
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This Roach short comedy, directed by George Jeske, stars Snub Pollard and Blanche Mehaffey, with Glenn Tryon, Billy Engle and George Rowe.
Inventor Pollard cleans up the town. How many inventor comedies were there in silent film? Probably too many!
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 Unknown Video
2006 DVD edition
The Silent Comedy Mafia, Volume 1 (1918-1928), color-tinted black & white, 105 minutes total, not rated, including The Big Idea (1924), color-tinted black & white, 11 minutes, not rated.
Unknown Video, no catalog number, unknown UPC number.
One single-sided, single-layered, Region 0 NTSC DVD-R disc; 1.33:1 aspect ratio picture in full-frame 4:3 (720 x 480 pixels) interlaced scan image encoded in SDR MPEG-2 format at 5.2 Mbps average video bit rate (capable of progressive scan upscaling to 60 fps); Dolby Digital (AC3) 2.0 stereo sound encoded at 192 Kbps audio bit rate; English language intertitles, no subtitles; no chapter stops (within the film); standard DVD keepcase; $18.95.
Release date: 26 April 2006.
Country of origin: USA
Ratings (1-10): video: 6 / audio: 8 / additional content: 7 / overall: 7.
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This DVD-R edition has been mastered from a very-good 16mm reduction print from Blackhawk Films.
We are quite pleased with the piano accompaniment by Frederick Hodges as it is well-performed, well-recorded and always an appropriate complement to the film’s action.
The disc is supplemented with clips from Ben Turpin films and newsreels (9 minutes), and a stills gallery (37 images).
We enthusiastically recommend this above-average small-company video collection. A fun disc!
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UNKNOWN VIDEO has discontinued business and this Region 0 NTSC DVD-R edition is . . .
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 Alpha Video
2010 DVD edition
Snub Pollard Showtime (1919-1942), black & white, 58 minutes total, not rated, including The Big Idea (1924), black & white, 12 minutes, not rated.
Alpha Home Entertainment, distributed by Oldies.com,
ALP 6466D, UPC 0-89218-64669-9.
One single-sided, single-layered, Region 0 NTSC DVD-R disc; 1.33:1 aspect ratio picture in full-frame 4:3 (720 x 480 pixels) interlaced scan image encoded in SDR MPEG-2 format at 6.8 Mbps average video bit rate (capable of progressive scan upscaling to 60 fps); Dolby Digital (AC3) 2.0 mono sound encoded at 384 Kbps audio bit rate; English language intertitles, no subtitles; no chapter stops (within the film); standard DVD keepcase; $6.98 (raised to $8.98).
Release date: 30 November 2010.
Country of origin: USA
Ratings (1-10): video: 3 / audio: 3 / additional content: 0 / overall: 3.
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This DVD-R edition has been mastered from a good 8mm reduction print from Blackhawk Films, which is coarse in its picture details and tightly cropped.
The film is accompanied by a soundtrack compiled from preexisting vintage jazz music recordings.
We wouldn’t recommend this below-average disc but the film is at least watchable.
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USA: Click the logomark to purchase this Region 0 NTSC DVD-R edition from Amazon.com. Your purchase supports Silent Era.
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Canada: Click the logomark to purchase this Region 0 NTSC DVD-R edition from Amazon.ca. Your purchase supports Silent Era.
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This
Region 0 NTSC DVD-R edition is available directly from . . .
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Other SHORT COMEDY FILMS of the silent era available on home video.
Other silent era BEN TURPIN films available on home video.
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