The Wind (1928)

Watching Silent Films

When Letty Mason (Lillian Gish), an impoverished young woman from Virginia, relocates to West Texas, she finds herself unsettled by the ever-present wind and sand. Arriving at her new home at the ranch of her cousin (Edward Earle) she receives a surprisingly cold welcome from his wife (Dorothy Cumming). With tension in the family building and unwanted attention from a trio of suitors, including neighbor Lige Hightower (Lars Hanson), Letty grows increasingly disturbed as time shifts on.

An unwanted marriage, an unwanted lover, and a liable cause for hysteria, Swedish director Victor Sjöström (Seastrom) takes Dorothy Scarborough's 1925 novel of the same title to rattling heights. You know the subtleties of what is coming, even if it’s not explicitly recognized.

Though the film differs from the novel halfway through, this stunning silent is a visual treat which will stay with you even when the wind has finally calmed down.

Some films on our "watch" list included,

Lily: Daddy (2019), featuring Ron Rifkin and Dylan Sprouse, Dir. by Christian Coppola.

Adam: Theater of Blood (1973), featuring Vincent Price and Diana Rigg, Dir. by Douglas Hickox; and The Floating Weeds (1959), Dir. by Yasujiro Ozu.

YiFeng: The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923), featuring Lon Chaney, Dir. by Wallace Worsley.

Our show notes include two unique articles depicting The Wind's legacy:

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.3402/jac.v1i0.4641#aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cudGFuZGZvbmxpbmUuY29tL2RvaS9wZGYvMTAuMzQwMi9qYWMudjFpMC40NjQxP25lZWRBY2Nlc3M9dHJ1ZUBAQDA=

https://moviessilently.com/2014/04/29/silent-movie-myth-5-the-wind-ended-wrong-and-is-too-windy/

Hosted by YiFeng, Adam, and Lily.

Originally recorded on November 17, 2020.