The Last Warning
Director: Paul Leni
Screenplay: Edmund Hartmann
Minutes: 62
Year: 1938
Score: 6.21
Release: Flicker Alley
The Last Warning plays exactly like you might expect a silent film version of an episode of Scooby Doo. This is not necessarily a bad thing.
From FlickerAlley.com:
Universal Pictures and Flicker Alley present Universal Pictures’ new 4K restoration of the 1929 silent classic, The Last Warning, accompanied by a newly recorded score from Arthur Barrow. Adapted from Thomas F. Fallon’s 1922 Broadway play of the same name, The Last Warning is based on the story The House of Fear by Wadsworth Camp and centers on an unsolved murder that occurs during a live Broadway performance. When the victim’s body goes missing, the death remains unsolved and the theater is condemned. That is, until years later when a suspicious new “producer” arrives to restage the play with the original cast and crew. As one of the last silents Universal produced, The Last Warning was later released as a “part-talkie” with roughly sixty feet of sound scenes added.
The Last Warning was Paul Leni’s final film before his untimely death, and a prime showcase for Universal’s 1920s leading lady, Laura La Plante. A visual artist at the peak of his career, Leni’s camera never stops shifting, offering cutaways and trick shots involving nervous could-be culprits, a highly suspicious sleuth, and cast members who suddenly disappear in the darkened theater. The result is a cinematic funhouse that restlessly cross-examines the suspense of the story’s stage play against the “real” murder mystery saga, all unfolding amid the outstanding production design of Charles D. Hall.
Part of Universal’s ongoing silent restoration initiative, The Last Warning honors the studio’s rich film history that has spanned more than a century. Universal’s team of restoration experts conducted a worldwide search for The Last Warning’s available elements, ultimately working with materials from the Cinémathèque française, and the Packard Humanities Institute Collection in the UCLA Film & Television Archive. NBCUniversal’s restoration team was able to stabilize and deflicker the film as well as repair scratches, warps, and dirt. The 4K digital restoration was completed by NBCUniversal StudioPost.
While there are a few moments of tension, and a handful of near horror, it is still a humorous shtick film. One thing that you will definitely see are some very early visual effects like those that you can see in William Castle films.
The films is pretty interesting very well performed, but I am afraid it will quickly be forgotten like many similar films of its ilk seem to be. There wasn’t anything that could force it to weasel its way deep into my psyche like some of the more popular silent films have been able to build their own memory palaces in which I find myself getting lost.
It is possible that my opinion would have been different if I had watched the film in 1929. Surrounded by the films of its era with more classically crafted horror tropes it is possible that The Last Warning could have played on those experiences, but that I don’t know.
It looks incredible, which is typical of the Flicker Alley released and you could do a whole lot worse with your money.
Special Features:
- Paul Leni and The Last Warning – A visual essay by film historian and author, John Soister on Leni’s final film.
- “Of Gods and Monsters” – An essay excerpt from the book of the same name by historian John Soister.
- “Notes On the New Score” – A short essay by composer Arthur Barrow on his new score for The Last Warning.
- Rare Image Gallery – A slide show presentation of vintage marketing materials and production stills.
Director: 6 – Cinematography: 9 – Edit: 10 – Parity: 3 – Main performance: 6 – Else performance: 4 – Score: 6 – Sound: NA – Story: 5 – Script: 6 – Effects: 10 – Design: 9 – Costumes: 8 – Keeps interest: 5 – Lasting: 5