Intolerance (1916) Reviews

This movie is long. I'll say it...it's like Titanic long, but without all the glitz and glam of Titanic. Well it did have the glitz and glam, but not in the same manner. Griffth's work is the answer to the critics who critized his most well known worth Birth of a Nation. Intolerance follows four different story lines. A modern one concerning "do-gooders" and the poor, the fall of Babylon, The St. Bartholomew's Day massacre, and the trial and crucifixtion of Jesus. All of these based somehow on the theme of intolerance for something, most notably that of religious differences. This movie is not for those who need a lot of plot to keep them interested. It's fairly straightforward. And since it's a silent silm many may be bored by it. But it's something to give a change. It's a classic that shouldn't be missed.
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The movie guide says this film is an essential for all film students, and I think those are the only people who will be able to sit through this. I love silent films but I am not a student. I could not watch this film. It held my interest for an hour and a half and by then I realized it was only half over and gave up. There are some stunning visuals but I think adding three more stories to the original modern story was just overkill. For today's audiences this film will probably seem archaic and heavy-handed. It did to me.
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