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Reviews of silent film releases on DVD home video.
Copyright © 1999-2008 by Carl Bennett. All Rights Reserved.
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Shadows
(1922)
on
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In Shadows (1922), Lon Chaney portrays another of the character roles that dubbed him The Man of a Thousand Faces, a Chinese laundry worker who is caught in a tangle of extortion and small-town prejudice.
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 2000 Image Entertainment edition
Shadows (1922), black & white, 68 minutes, not rated, with Outside the Law (1920), black & white, 75 minutes, not rated.
Image Entertainment, ID5838DSDVD, UPC 0-14381-58382-3.
Windowboxed 4:3 NTSC, one single-sided, dual-layered DVD disc, Region 1, ? Mbps average video bit rate, ? kbps audio bit rate, Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo sound, English language intertitles, no foreign language subtitles, 15 chapter stops, snapper case, $24.99.
DVD release date: 27 June 2000.
Country of origin: USA
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 Our first look at this Image DVD edition reveals what we assume is the same video transfer, produced by David Shepard, that was released on laserdisc and VHS videotape in the 1990s.
Normally, the Shepard editions are fine examples of silent era films brought to home video. And with this windowboxed presentation apparently being mastered from at least a fine-grain 16mm reduction print if not a 35mm print, we recommend this Image edition until a better one come along.
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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 2003 Alpha Video edition
Shadows (1922), black & white, 70 minutes, not rated.
Alpha Video, ALP 4101D, UPC 0-89218-41019-1.
Full-frame 4:3 NTSC, one single-sided, single-layered DVD disc, Region 0, ? Mbps average video bit rate, 192 kbps audio bit rate, Dolby Digital 2.0 mono sound, English language intertitles, no foreign language subtitles, chapter stops, keep case, $6.98.
DVD release date: 21 January 2003.
Country of origin: USA
Ratings (1-10): video: 5 / audio: 4 / additional content: 0 / overall: 5.
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 This budget edition is watchable, with a good transfer of a very-good (what appears to be) 16mm reduction print that is compromised by a number of splices, dust, speckling, and some contrastiness, but is not a bad disc for the moderate cost.
The film is accompanied by a canned orchestral music track.
After looking at both of these noted editions, we would recommended the Image edition noted above over this watchable but not ideal disc.
USA: Click the logomark at right to purchase
a Region 0 NTSC DVD of this edition from Amazon.com. |
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Canada: Click the logomark at right to purchase
a Region 0 NTSC DVD of this edition from Amazon.ca. |
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2003 Miracle Pictures edition
Shadows (1922), black & white, 90 minutes, not rated.
Miracle Pictures, unknown catalog number, unknown UPC number.
Full-frame 4:3 NTSC, one single-sided?, single-layered DVD disc, Region 0, ? Mbps average video bit rate, ? kbps audio bit rate, no audio content, English language intertitles, no foreign language subtitles, chapter stops, keep case, unknown suggested retail price.
DVD release date: 2003.
Country of origin: USA
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| A Silent Era reader brought this edition to our attention. Considering the home video company, we have to assume that the film has been transferred from a 16mm reduction print. There is no musical accompaniment for this presentation. Other discs from this company are extremely cheaply made and don’t play in some older DVD players. |
Other Lon Chaney films available on DVD home video:
The Ace of Hearts (1921)
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923)
Laugh, Clown, Laugh (1928)
The Light in the Dark [The Light of Faith] (1922)
Nomads of the North (1920)
Oliver Twist (1922)
Outside the Law (1920)
The Penalty (1920)
The Phantom of the Opera (1925)
The Scarlet Car (1917)
The Shock (1923)
The Unknown (1927)
Victory (1919)
The Wicked Darling (1919)
About Lon Chaney:
Documentary: Lon Chaney: A Thousand Faces (2000)
Book: The Films of Lon Chaney by Michael F. Blake
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| Read an interview with Chaney historian Michael F. Blake on The Digital Bits website |
