Wings, or My Own Private Clara Bow

I kicked off the Best Picture Death Race yesterday with Wings. (No, not that Wings. And not that one either.) It's the only silent film to have won a Best Picture Oscar, and with the exception of Steamboat Willie, it's also the only silent film I've ever actually seen. And I kind of loved it, in a MST3K kind of way.

There's not so much a plot here as propaganda: Our Boys are going to War! They are Doing the Right Thing! Let's all Learn some Important Lessons! But once you accept that fact, and spend some time settling into the genre, it's easy to appreciate the little things. Little things like the school of acting that tells the audience a character is dead when he simply falls down, as if he's lost his balance all of a sudden. There's also the most uncomfortably bromantic relationship I've ever seen on film, and a scene written by someone who clearly did not understand the effects of alcohol on the human body. (If champagne has ever given you vivid hallucinations, I want to hear your story.)

And then there is my new favorite actress, Clara Bow.

Backstory: My college roommate was a perky, expressive lady named Katie. She got involved in student theater, and later, in improv comedy. And when she stepped on stage, she transformed into the modern day Clara Bow. They even look alike. I just didn't know it at the time.

Katie and I live in different states now, and we're both pretty busy these days; I miss her bubbly spirit. But it's nice to know that I can get a fake friendship fix just by scanning Clara Bow clips on YouTube. (And if you happen to be in Atlanta, you can catch the real thing on stage!)

Posted in: BestPicDeathRace