Silent Era Home Page > Home Video > Cruel, Cruel Love
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SILENT ERA FILMS ON HOME VIDEO
Reviews of silent film releases on home video.
Copyright © 1999-2009 by Carl Bennett.
All Rights Reserved.
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Cruel, Cruel Love
(1914) |
Produced in the first year of his film career, this Keystone comedy features a familiar (though a non-Tramp) Charles Chaplin character attempting to woo a well-to-do young woman (Minta Durfee). When he is innocently caught in the arms of the maid, she calls off their courtship. When the gardener, the maid’s sweetheart, explains the circumstances leading to the offending situation to his employer, she resolves to forgive Charlie.
Meanwhile, Charlie has returned to his apartment and drinks what he believes is poison, and is tormented by visions of his destiny in the netherworld. When the gardener arrives with an apologetic note from Minta, Charlie is doubly distressed at the approach of his impending death.
Charlie calls the doctor and the gardener runs to fetch Minta, with all soon racing to Charlie’s side. When it is divulged that Charlie has only consumed a glass of water, he rains retribution on those laughing at his foible and is reunited with Minta. — Carl Bennett
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 1999 Madacy Entertainment edition
Cruel, Cruel Love (1914), black & white, 9 minutes, not rated,
with A Film Johnnie (1914), black & white, 7 minutes, not rated, His New Profession (1914) [rereleased as The Good-for-Nothing], black & white, 14 minutes, not rated, Tango Tangles (1914) [rereleased as Charlie’s Recreation], black & white, 13 minutes, not rated, Work (1915), black & white, 27 minutes, not rated, and Triple Trouble (1918), black & white, 24 minutes, not rated.
Madacy Entertainment Group, DVD9 9103, UPC 0-56775-03619-5.
Full-frame 4:3 NTSC, one double-sided, single-layered DVD disc, Region 1, 3 Mbps average video bit rate, 448 kbps audio bit rate, Dolby Digital 2.0 mono sound, English language intertitles, no foreign language subtitles, 2 chapter stops, keep case, $11.98.
DVD release date: 2 March 1999.
Country of origin: USA
Ratings (1-10): video: 3 / audio: 4 / additional content: 1 / overall: 3.
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 This edition of Cruel, Cruel Love (1914) has been transferred at a slightly faster than natural speed rate from a highly-spotted, grayed-out, but otherwise good 16mm reduction print. A freeze frame will reveal exactly how coarsely this edition has been video encoded. The intertitles in the source print are not the Keystone originals.
While it is not an ideal edition of the film, it is at least watchable until a better edition is released on home video.
USA: Click the logomark at right to purchase
a Region 1 NTSC DVD of this edition from Amazon.com. |
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Canada: Click the logomark at right to purchase
a Region 1 NTSC DVD of this edition from Amazon.ca. |
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 1999 Madacy Entertainment edition
Cruel, Cruel Love (1914), black & white, 9 minutes, not rated,
with A Film Johnnie (1914), black & white, 7 minutes, not rated, His New Profession (1914) [rereleased as The Good-for-Nothing], black & white, 14 minutes, not rated, Tango Tangles (1914) [rereleased as Charlie’s Recreation], black & white, 13 minutes, not rated, Work (1915), black & white, 27 minutes, not rated, and Triple Trouble (1918), black & white, 24 minutes, not rated.
Madacy Entertainment Group, unknown catalog number, unknown UPC number.
Full-frame 4:3 NTSC, two single-sided, single-layered DVD discs, Region 1, ? Mbps average video bit rate, ? kbps audio bit rate, Dolby Digital 2.0 mono sound, English language intertitles, no foreign language subtitles, 2 chapter stops, keep case, unknown suggested retail price.
DVD release date: 1999.
Country of origin: USA
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A repackaging of the same Madacy DVD program reviewed above was also issued under a different title and on two discs, with a slipcase wraparound, as Chaplin: Hollywood Classics. No doubt, just as rough.
USA: Click the logomark at right to purchase
a Region 1 NTSC DVD of this edition from Amazon.com. |
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Canada: Click the logomark at right to purchase
a Region 1 NTSC DVD of this edition from Amazon.ca. |
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 1998 Madacy Entertainment edition
Cruel, Cruel Love (1914), black & white, 9 minutes, not rated,
with A Film Johnnie (1914), black & white, 7 minutes, not rated, His New Profession (1914) [rereleased as The Good-for-Nothing], black & white, 14 minutes, not rated, Tango Tangles (1914) [rereleased as Charlie’s Recreation], black & white, 13 minutes, not rated, Work (1915), black & white, 27 minutes, not rated, Triple Trouble (1918), black & white, 24 minutes, not rated, and other Chaplin short films.
Madacy Entertainment Group, unknown catalog number, unknown UPC number.
Full-frame 4:3 NTSC, five single-sided, single-layered DVD discs, Region 1, ? Mbps average video bit rate, ? kbps audio bit rate, Dolby Digital 2.0 mono sound, English language intertitles, no foreign language subtitles, 2 chapter stops, keep case, unknown suggested retail price.
DVD release date: 1998.
Country of origin: USA
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Yet another Madacy repackaging, this a box set, of the content reviewed above. Have they no shame in their repackaging attempts to deceive the consumer?
USA: Click the logomark at right to purchase
a Region 1 NTSC DVD of this edition from Amazon.com. |
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Canada: Click the logomark at right to purchase
a Region 1 NTSC DVD of this edition from Amazon.ca. |
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Other silent era CHARLES CHAPLIN films available on home video.
Other KEYSTONE comedy films available on home video.
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| Charles Chaplin filmography in The Progressive Silent Film List |
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