Wings: A Year of Firsts

Wings. The first film to win Best Picture. The fact is, it didn't actually win Best Picture. At least it didn't in 1927. It wasn't until the 2nd Annual Academy Awards did Wings actually receive the title of Best Picture. I guess the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science were still trying to get their act together in year one, so the official title of Best Picture for Wings was really given out retroactively. It's all in the details, y'all.

But really, this was a year of firsts. Notable "firsts" for the movie:
1. First film to receive the Academy Award for Best Picture
2. First (and only) silent film to receive the Academy Award for Best Picture
3. First film to show male and female nudity
4. First film with a guy on guy kiss (and we all thought Brokeback Mountain was a big deal)

I must say, I was guilty of huffing and puffing to a few movie buff friends about this movie, for a few reasons.
1. It cost me $30 to buy this movie. I now, for now other reason than I am committed to finish what I start, own a VHS of a silent film. Special thanks to my friends at Amazon.
2. It's a silent film. (no need for explanation)

It wasn't until I finished the film did I realize how good this film really was. It's a love and war story. And a good one at that.  Mary Preston (played by the talented Clara Bow) is in love with her best friend Jack Powell (Charles 'Buddy' Rogers).  But Jack is in love with Sylvia (the swanky lady from "the city.") And so is David Armstrong (Richard Arlen).  David knows that Sylvia loves him, not Jack. David and Jack go off to war and inevitably, as it would play out in any other movie, they become best friends. Mary continues to chase after Jack. She even enlists in the service as an ambulance driver to get closer to Jack. (Some may call this stalking, I just think Mary was keeping a close watch on Jack!) Jack and David finally have their chance in the air as "real pilots." Then Jack shoots down David's plane. Clearly, a mistake. And Jack feels pretty bad about. The war ends, and people get together. This is where I'll stop with the narrative summary, as I don't want to spoil it for those of you who would like to borrow my VHS copy of this film.

In 1927, this movie cost $2,000,000.
According to my handy inflation website, that's the equivalent of
$24,401,016.95 in 2010. That's a lot of dang money, y'all. But money well spent. The cinematography was far above average. The special effects (there's a lot...it's a war movie, remember!) were great. Honestly, I never once thought to myself "this is good for 1927." I only thought, "this is good."

So there. A love story. A war story. A lot of showing. A lot less telling. As an improv teacher, it was great to watch. Sometimes improvisers fall into the "talking heads" syndrome, and watching this silent film might help me help some of those folks (including myself) who are big fans of the spoken word on stage.  I think this movie was way ahead of it's time as far as plot, character development, special effects, and overall entertainment value. It just took me finishing the movie to realize it.

Rating:

3 out of 5 Stars