IMDb > The Crowd (1928)

The Crowd (1928) More at IMDbPro »


Overview

User Rating:
7.9/10   2,689 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 2% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
King Vidor
Writers:
King Vidor (screenplay) &
John V.A. Weaver (screenplay) ...
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Contact:
View company contact information for The Crowd on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
18 February 1928 (USA) more
Genre:
Drama | Romance more
Plot:
The life of a man and woman together in a large, impersonal metropolis through their hopes, struggles and downfalls. full summary | add synopsis
Awards:
Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 1 win more
User Comments:
Fascinating, compelling, depressing more (40 total)

Cast

  (Complete credited cast)
Eleanor Boardman ... Mary

James Murray ... John 'Johnny' Sims
Bert Roach ... Bert
Estelle Clark ... Jane
Daniel G. Tomlinson ... Jim
Dell Henderson ... Dick
Lucy Beaumont ... Mary's Mother
Freddie Burke Frederick ... 'Junior' (John Sims Jr.)
Alice Mildred Puter ... Daughter
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
One of the Mob (USA) (working title)
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Runtime:
104 min
Country:
USA
Aspect Ratio:
1.33 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Silent
Certification:
Portugal:17 (director's cut)

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
King Vidor filmed many scenes in New York City streets using real crowds instead of extras, real buses and trains, and even real traffic cops. In one scene, a police officer is looking toward the camera, admonishing someone to "move along". In fact, he was actually addressing Vidor and his disguised film crew. Vidor cleverly incorporated it into the scene. more
Quotes:
Title Card: We do not know how big the crowd is, and what opposition it is... until we get out of step with it. more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Edge of Outside (2006) more

FAQ

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14 out of 14 people found the following comment useful.
Fascinating, compelling, depressing, 10 July 1999
Author: Jaime N. Christley (j_christley@hotmail.com) from NAS Whidbey Island

Like most of the silent tragedies I've seen (and there haven't been many), "The Crowd" was hard to like. That didn't stop it from being a finely directed and acted drama. Like any film from any era that avoids the traps of trend-conscious filmmaking, "The Crowd" was built to last. When you make a movie with a good, solid story and inspire the cast to give brilliant performances, it's difficult to go wrong.

It's not a fun movie -- most of the time we're spent watching James Murray shoot himself in the foot, scene after scene. He's a really pathetic creature, but the director, King Vidor, portrays him and his story without passing judgment.

Worth the price of admission alone, Vidor's eye for detail in old New York City. In a justly famous montage and tracking shot near the beginning, he shows us Gotham so well, and in such great detail, that hardly a director since has been able to match him. His nomination of Best Director at the first Academy Awards was completely deserved (and his loss to Frank Borzage for the creaky "7th Heaven" was, arguably, the first of Oscar's major blunders.)

It's a bleak world view, that's for sure, but it keeps your attention and fills your eye.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for The Crowd (1928)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Release date tjoyce14150
Ending richardnixon38
The Crowd to be released by Warner in 2006 Pvt_Joker
An unhappy ending??? zoolzool
It is coming on TCM on Jan. 6, 2009 at 5 A.M. EST! wtl471629
Music from the VHS version. heberald26
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