JohnHowardReid Metro's Trail of '98 (available on a superb Warner Archive DVD - I repeat, Warner Archive! Don't ask me what an M-G-M movie is doing on a Warner Archive DVD, but presumably Metro sold the movie to Warners for a remake) is a great run for the money. The story and characters are much the same - as are the locations - of many other similar movies. Despite its name cast, including alluring Dolores Del Rio, competent Ralph Forbes as the hero, Karl Dane, Tully Marshall and Harry Carey (a superb villain), the story, the background and the locations were publicized by M-G-M, rather than the cast. In fact, it was Robert W. Service's name alone that the studio featured on many posters. Coming right at the tail end of the silent period (it was issued with a sound track of music and effects), the superbly made, bitingly atmospheric and thrillingly enacted Trail of '98 with its impressive cast, stunning locations and hard-hittingly sardonic story (perhaps its get-rich-at-all-costs theme was too uncomfortably close to home for stock market jittery 1929 audiences) failed to recover its huge production costs. Although director Clarence Brown managed to retrieve his reputation with Anna Christie (1930), he was never again entrusted with a budget of comparable size, although he went half-close with Anna Karenina (1935), The Rains Came (1939) and The Yearling (1946) - although part of the latter's expenses of course were racked up by Victor Fleming in Metro's failed 1941 attempt to film the Marjorie Rawlings' novel.

Antonius Block This silent movie from 1928 is an epic drama centered on the real-life Klondike gold rush of 1897-98, with portions of it real (e.g. the treacherous ascent up the Chilkoot Pass), and others making up the story of the fictional characters. Among the prospectors are a couple who meet and fall in love, played by Dolores del Rio and Ralph Forbes. Their chief nemesis is a schemer played by Harry Carey, who always seems a step ahead of everyone else. There are several other prospectors who provide humor (usually quite dated) as well as the pathos of their situation, enduring one hardship after another.The movie is drawn out and styled as an epic, 'big' film. I found it somewhat tedious in big patches of the first half, but it grew on me. Director Clarence Brown ('A Free Soul' and 'National Velvet' among four other Oscar nominations) includes some decent special effects in scenes such as an avalanche and a man being lit on fire, and heightens emotional tension with slow zooms into the actors' faces. In a scene that made me smile, Carey sits down to a steak dinner and has plates of beans brought in around it, so that he can eat a 'real meal' in front of them, having lived on beans for six months. Despite the cuteness and simple dialog in the film, there are moments of real grit, including betrayal, an implied rape, and scenes on the rapids which actually killed four stuntmen. There are parts which definitely stand up close to 90 years later, and it's worth sticking with.

anches-725-976306 This is one of my favourite films of the late silent era.It has a mixture of drama, suspense,action and comedy to satisfy most tastes. The comedy is provided by Karl Dane, as a Scandinavian saphead who falls for about every con that comes his way. The hero and heroine suit each other well. The villain is about as bad as you could want and the fight scene with the hero is one of the most realistic I have ever seen.There are some pretty good special effects and some strong supporting characters. The way in which people come to accept the fate of their companions tells us how harsh conditions must have been and how hard those prospectors had to become to survive. Add to this a theme song, background music and sound effects....what more could you ask for?

franzgehl Gold is surely what made people most dream of during all civilizations. This is proved again very completely in this film where we discover very different characters who only have one aim : Klondike.We particularly follow the story of a young girl, played by the beautiful Dolores Del Rio. Clarence Brown alternates dramatic scenes and very funny ones which appeal to you the memory of Gold rush by Charlie Chaplin. It's very to rare to watch such a film nowadays, so don't hesitate if you have the occasion.