Review of Borderline

Saw this silent film for the first time on early morning AMC. Found it intriguing, but very confusing. The pace was glacial, and it was impossible to tell what was going on because there were few inter-titles. I was reminded simultaneously of the complexity of German opera and of some of Leni Riefenstahl's more self-indulgent moments in her earlier films. The camera would linger interminably over a face or arm or tree, with no clue as to what it all meant. Paul Robson was in his prime, but even he could not salvage the incoherent plot and slow pace.