Michael Mann claims that this film, rather than the novel it was based on, was the central influence on his version of the "The Last of the Mohicans" (1992).
Filmed in 1920 and directed by Clarence Brown and Maurice Tourneur, this silent film is admittedly very dated. There's no sound, the images are at times washed out (due to poor restoration work?) and the portrayal of the Native American Indians quite racist.
But on a purely visual level, this film is extraordinary, especially the action sequences, which are all virtually replicated by Mann in his remake. The epic showdowns on the mountain cliffs, the waterfalls, the suicidal leaps, the columns of troops being ambushed in the forest, the battles at the fort, those muscular action poses struck by the Indians...they're all here and one can see why Mann cites this film as a favourite. It's an incredibly visual film, packed with action and bodice ripping romance.
7.5/10 - I can't see this film appealing to modern audiences. Me, I like it for its raw violence, its huge sets and for the comparisons it offers with Mann's remake.
Filmed in 1920 and directed by Clarence Brown and Maurice Tourneur, this silent film is admittedly very dated. There's no sound, the images are at times washed out (due to poor restoration work?) and the portrayal of the Native American Indians quite racist.
But on a purely visual level, this film is extraordinary, especially the action sequences, which are all virtually replicated by Mann in his remake. The epic showdowns on the mountain cliffs, the waterfalls, the suicidal leaps, the columns of troops being ambushed in the forest, the battles at the fort, those muscular action poses struck by the Indians...they're all here and one can see why Mann cites this film as a favourite. It's an incredibly visual film, packed with action and bodice ripping romance.
7.5/10 - I can't see this film appealing to modern audiences. Me, I like it for its raw violence, its huge sets and for the comparisons it offers with Mann's remake.