Simply Perfect

Am i the only one who thinks........Average?

Absolutely Fantastic

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

This was produced just a year after those famous words - the first words in the first talking picture. What is amazing is how creative it was with sound - techniques that rarely appeared in theatre and some that were entirely new.First there is the overlaying of the sound of the prisoners "choir" over sound and pictures inside the governors house cutting with continuity to pictures of the prisoners singing - all in sync. And, entirely novel the sound of the governors voice as he looks in the mirror - we are hearing the voices in his head. The sound of drums in sync with the guarding soldier's walk.It was not until after WW2 that magnetic tape recording - with multitracks was available. I can only guess that this film was all done with gramophone discs. I was for a while a videotape editor in the earliest days so appreciate how revolutionary and sophisticated was the use of sound just one year after it started. Had radio pioneered this or was it entirely the work of the new talkie movies? Seen on Talking Pictures TV - yet another overlooked historic film with exceptional qualities.

Talkies were still a very new idea when this film was made, and this was star Ronald Coleman's second film with sound. Surprisingly perhaps the film isn't particularly archaic in the way it is made; the camerawork, the lighting, the direction etc all bear comparison with later films. Of particular interest is the soundtrack; for a 'new idea at the time' the soundtrack is surprisingly good, for example you hear the taunting voices echoing in the warden's mind in one scene. The plot and acting are of their time, of course; one only needs to (say) listen to popular music of the time to see how certain cultural ideas have changed, but the language of cinematography it seems remains more constant.Interestingly this film was originally also released in a silent version; presumably many cinemas were not then sound equipped and it wasn't yet certain whether this 'new sound thing' would just be a fad or not.For something that should be completely anachronistic, a museum piece even, this is a surprising watchable film.

Copyright 1 December 1929 by Samuel Goldwyn. Released through United Artists. New York opening at the Selwyn: 3 November 1929. 10 reels. 93 minutes.1944 re-issue title: CONDEMNED TO DEVIL'S ISLAND.SYNOPSIS: A convict falls in love with the warden's wife.NOTES: Ronald Colman was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor, losing to George Arliss in "Disraeli".COMMENT: For his second talkie, Ronald Colman enjoys a considerable change of pace from "Bulldog Drummond". This time, he's not so romantic. He's dirty, disheveled, sweaty, sardonic, impulsive, self- deprecating, selfish, uncaring, even despairing. What a great performance! In fact he plays here with more animation than in many of his later roles, including Clive of India. Unfortunately, his realistic study of a brazen thief is slightly undermined by Ann Harding's overly theatrical posturing and Dudley Digges' overly theatrical delivery of his dialogue. Fortunately, Louis Wolheim is on hand to support Colman at crucial moments, though his part (after a splendid introduction) does turn out to be a bit disappointingly small.Despite its vintage (way back in 1929) and some unconvincing dramatics, as said, from Harding and Digges, "Condemned" seems not the least bit dated. Whilst other directors were moving over-cautiously into sound, or trying vainly to transplant outmoded silent techniques, Wesley Ruggles and two others, Tay Garnett and William K. Howard, managed to grasp all the essentials of sound cinema straight away. In fact, Condemned rates easily as Ruggles' best film. Look at the wonderful climax with Ann Harding moving diagonally out of the frame, or the tossing ship-board camera at the opening, or the fantastic pan into the silhouettes of the prisoners, or the fast tracking shot with Digges as he delivers his introductory speech to the new inmates. True, once the action settles down and the triangle romance rears its not unexpected head, the picture does become more static and dialogue-bound, but even these scenes are leavened by a marvelously realistic use of sound effects and other cinematic devices.The camera-work too is a constant delight. True, we are blinded by soft focus light every time the lens picks up Miss Harding, but some appealing, typical-Toland, atmospheric effects enliven the prison scenes.Also to be commended are the superlative sets designed by the masterful William Cameron Menzies.Present prints have been astutely shortened by nine or ten minutes, to make the thrills come faster. There are no lapses in continuity.

Ronald Colman's second talkie feature film was Condemned and for that and Bulldog Drummond he received his first Oscar nomination. He lost in that second Oscar sweepstakes for Best Actor to Warner Baxter for In Old Arizona. Nevertheless Condemned holds up very well in this story set in the infamous French Devil's Island penal colony.In the story Colman's a convict and since it's Ronald Colman he's going to have a bit of polish more than the others there like fellow new inmate Louis Wolheim. The warden's wife Ann Harding is unhappily married to warden Dudley Digges who insists that she get herself a house servant from the group. Colman is a bit less threatening so he's chosen.The inevitable happens as Colman is better company than her lout of a husband. That's when they planned to escape.Dudley Digges who also doubled as dialogue director for this new fangled talking picture said that stage trained actors like both Colman and Ann Harding were a pleasure to work with. Both grasped that a bit more subtlety in technique had to be used. Both also emoted well when that was called for.According to Citadel Film series book on Ronald Colman, Colman said how grateful he was that sound came along and what a boon it was to him and other players like William Powell who was both staged trained and a good friend of Colman's. Powell also did well in his talkie debut in one of the Philo Vance films he made. The depiction of Devil's Island was outstanding. Condemned still holds up well for today's audience.