Silents Are Golden: Exploring Douglas Fairbanks Films – Where To Begin?

Exploring Douglas Fairbanks Films–Where To Begin?

Although he was a major celebrity of the silent era–and we’re talking “Major” with a capital “M”–Douglas Fairbanks tends to be more overlooked than his contemporaries Charlie Chaplin and Mary Pickford. If you’re curious enough to comb through the filmography of this energetic, all-American star (and you should!) you might be surprised by how much there is to choose from, especially circa 1915 to 1920.

Wondering where to begin? Everyone will find something unique about Doug to appreciate, of course, but here’s a few of my own suggestions.

…..

7. Manhattan Madness (1916)

Doug was a stage star before bounding into the movies, bringing his ready grin and enthusiasm for physical stunts to the big screen. 1916 was his second year of being in films, and he’d been paying close attention to what his audiences enjoyed and what they didn’t. The farce Manhattan Madness (1916) was probably the first “ideal” Fairbanks feature. Doug plays a rich young New Yorker who’s been living on a Nevada ranch. Upon a return trip to the city he declares that urban life is a bore compared to the wild west. His friends bet him $5000 that he’ll soon experience a thrill, and then plot to trick him with a fake kidnapping.

The East vs. West plot–very relevant in that evolving era–and the many stunts atop city buses, rooftops and bucking horses make this not only a memorable Fairbanks film but a harbinger of exciting things to come.

…..

6. His Picture in the Papers (1916)

This light comedy holds a particular charm for me, not only because of the charismatic Doug himself, but because of the abundance of period details. Every silent film has them, obviously, but some are blessed with more than others, from unique clothing to busy set decorations to shots taken in real city streets. For instance, in a scene where Doug ends up in jail his cell is covered in graffiti–which includes a cartoon of Kaiser Wilhelm (remember, this came out in 1916!).

Doug plays the son of a wealthy manufacturer of vegetarian food products. He wants to marry Christine Cadwalader, the daughter of an equally wealthy family friend, but he’s accused by his father of being lazy–too lazy to even “get his picture in the paper” to help promote the family products. Realizing that he might be cut off from the family fortune–losing Christine in the process–he decides to do whatever it takes to get himself in the papers. Naturally this is much easier said than done…!

…..

5. When the Clouds Roll By (1919)

By 1919 Doug had gotten his film formula down pat: always revolve the plots around their star, add in plenty of light comedy and have opportunities for those signature athletic stunts. When the Clouds Roll By has a doleful-sounding plot, but don’t be fooled–it handles dark material with a surprisingly light touch. Doug is a superstitious young man who is unaware that the psychiatrist he’s seeing is deranged. In the name of “scientific experimentation,” the psychiatrist decides to drive Doug crazy to the point of suicide. However, he doesn’t count on Doug meeting his dream girl.

With surreal special effects such as a sequence where Doug walks on the ceiling decades earlier than Fred Astaire in Royal Wedding, and an exciting climax with a floating house that may have inspired scenes in Buster Keaton’s Sherlock Jr, When the Clouds Roll By is a 1910s gem. It’s certainly worthy of any Fairbanks marathon.

…..

4. The Mark of Zorro (1920)

Not long after marrying fellow superstar Mary Pickford, Doug embarked on a new type of film project that would marry his signature formula with costume adventure. His true goal was to play D’Artagnan in The Three Musketeers, but he wasn’t sure if a “Fairbanks period piece” was what audiences would accept. As a test, he decided to make The Mark of Zorro. It was a smashing success, and he happily moved on with his D’Artagnan dream.

The swashbuckling, the secret lair, the hero’s double identity, the excitement, the romance–it was a perfect mix, and Doug’s masked Zorro became a huge influence not only on adventure films in general but even on the superhero genre–especially Batman and Superman comics.

…..

3. Robin Hood (1922)

Once you’ve been introduced to Swashbuckling Doug it’s almost hard to decide what to watch next, but I’d go with the ambitious and well-regarded Robin Hood. Beautifully filmed and full of charm and romance, it also features the largest physical set built at that time–even bigger than the mighty Babylonian hall in Intolerance (1916). Hundreds of workers labored on the giant castle and Nottingham village, Doug having insisted that the picture “be made lavishly or not made at all.” The resulting spectacle was an immense achievement and an immense hit with both audiences and critics alike. 

…..

2. The Black Pirate (1926)

At the time this feature was in production, Technicolor had been used sparingly in cinema, being expensive and usually reserved for a few sequences in “prestige” pictures. Even after being used for a full feature in 1922, Anna May Wong’s The Toll of the Sea, manufacturers had a hard time convincing filmmakers to invest in it. Douglas Fairbanks, however, knew Technicolor would work perfectly for his latest swashbuckler.

Another big-budget adventure, The Black Pirate had every pirate trope a heart could desire along with sophisticated costuming, full-sized ship sets, and a beautiful color palette inspired by Rembrandt paintings. Doug himself is in magnificent form, as is his physique, confidently displayed by the tattered costumes.

…..

1. The Thief of Bagdad (1924)

Lastly, this is a feature I’d recommend not just as an excellent Fairbanks film, but as an excellent silent film in general. Based on the Arabian Nights tales, it leaned into the 1920s’ fascination with the Far East and featured stunning, ethereal art direction that is practically unrivalled even today.

As Ahmed, a trickster thief who falls for a princess and goes on a quest to win her hand, Doug is a joyful, bounding sprite–with a dash of stylization in his gestures to add to the fairytale atmosphere. The film as a whole, with its dreamy special effects and Art Nouveau-style beauty, is a masterful fantasy and is certainly one of the finest examples of silent era escapism.

An important source for this post was Tracey Goessel’s book The First King of Hollywood: The Life of Douglas Fairbanks, the most well-researched (and extremely readable) biography on the star to date. I recommend it just as highly as the above Fairbanks films!

…

–Lea Stans for Classic Movie Hub

You can read all of Lea’s Silents are Golden articles here.

Lea Stans is a born-and-raised Minnesotan with a degree in English and an obsessive interest in the silent film era (which she largely blames on Buster Keaton). In addition to blogging about her passion at her site Silent-ology, she is a columnist for the Silent Film Quarterly and has also written for The Keaton Chronicle.

–