Tabu (1931)

Tabu (F.W. Murnau, 1931)

The final film of the German master F. W. Murnau, Tabu is a tale of love and dedication of two lovers. Co-written with Robert J. Flaherty, the film was supposed to be an entire collaboration between the two directors. However, after directing the opening sequence Flaherty was relegated to writing and later would be selling his part of Tabu to Murnau for 25 000$. It blends the documentary approach of Flaherty’s masterpieces and the plotted love stories of Murnau’s classic vision of storytelling. Added to all this, Murnau died of a car accident a few days before the premiere of the film.

Those are the gossips around the film but as a whole, Tabu is the last masterpiece of the director who offered such landmarks as Nosferatu, The Last Laugh, Faust, and Sunrise. Mastering again montage, storytelling, and the silent film medium, Murnau demonstrates a lesson of filmmaking. With almost no cards between scenes, and a few indications by the few letters, the plot is clearly told by the construction of images and the smart editing.

Murnau’s story is quite simple and very Germanic in its approach. This is a timeless plot of impossible romance and the rigidity of destiny decided by the Gods. This is the kind of tale that the Grimm brothers could have written and it is easy to relate to. Indeed timeless and also universal to have lovers facing the fate and having to transgress laws and rules to be together.

I can honestly state that I am a fan of Murnau’s films and I have seen Nosferatu at least a dozen times. His grammar, his themes, and his influence is vast and huge. It was a pleasure to watch all his films on the list. Of all his directing credits Tabu might be in the ones I esteem the most. Along the aforementioned Nosferatu, Faust, and Sunrise we are in the major leagues. No wonder, Andrew Sarris in his American Cinema, ranked Murnau as one of the Pantheon directors alongside John Ford, Robert J. Flaherty, D.W. Griffith, Jean Renoir, and many other pioneers of the Art that is Cinema.
Tabu being the final film from a director that left us too soon proves that he still had gas in the tank and lots of films. However, History has proven that great Silent film directors could have a hard time with their passage to talkies. Look at D.W. Griffith who struggled to get work once sound was introduced to motion pictures. Since, Murnau was more at his ease with silent film this could have tainted his recognition amongst the greats.

Dracula (1931)

TSPDT Greatest Films #835 Dracula (Tod Browning, 1931)


From one of the best director of Horror films, Tod Browning, the greatest horror novel of all time comes alive with the best impersonnator of the greatest vampire!

The story, if you haven't seen it or read it already, tells how the count Dracula moves from his home castle in Transylvania to London to breed on fresh blood and young victims. He seems to have a sort of taste for young women. The interpretations of this book are wide and some are very personal or extravagant. My view on it is that the count Dracula is the tempation, evil, well the devil himself. He represents the beast that wants to fornicate with the young women and spoiled them. They seem to fall under his charm when they discover the charm of the flesh (love). The fangs that penetrate the necks of his victims are the symbolization of the phallic penetrating the victims.

The problem for some people with this theory is that Dracula has male victims too. Well, how choking evil was it to have homo-erotic symbols in the time Dracula was written or even in 1931? Dracula symbolizes the immorality of the joys of flesh and the dark side of every human being: if you get Dracula's bite everyone can get his urges to feed on "blood"!

Tod Browning's adaptation is well executed and maintains the core of Bram Stocker's story but compared to Nosferatu (Murnau 1922, Herzog 1978) Horror of Dracula (Terrence Fisher, 1958) and even Coppola's cheesy Bram Stocker's Dracula it handles the road only because of the prensence of Bela Lugosi. For most, he is Dracula and even him thought he was him for a while in his life... But comparion is good the determine which movie is better than the other. However, on every level, especially Karl Freund's photography, Tod Browning's Dracula is a must see!


A review by Michaël Parent

Rich and Strange

Rich and Strange aka East of Shanghai (Alfred Hitchcock, 1931)

The films of the thrities all have a light and happy feeling to them, especially the films of Ernst Lubitsch. Alfred Hitchcock's Rich and Strange feels like an attempt to make a Lubitsch film with Hitchcock themes.

But, he doesn't have the touch of Lubitsch it feels more like a film Hitchcock had to do to form his particular style and mise en forme. The double theme is exploited here as the two couples that embarks appart on the cruise. The couples are mixed all along the movie.

This is far from a central major work of Alfred Hitchcock but for the man's enthusiasts it's an interesting movie to understand his way through his first masterpieces like The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934) and The 39 Steps (1935).

P.S.: Please note that this film is under East of Shanghai on IMdB, Rich and Strange is the original UK title.


A Review by Michaël Parent