I'm not talking about the revival of those old silent films, like the Paramount's always-enjoyable Silent Movie Mondays, or the other exhibitions that pop up about town. I'm talking about a new breed of silent film being enjoyed by people across the country, as they fly across the country.
I don't know anyone who is willing to fork over the $4 or $5 for airline movie headphones. What's the point? The movie's just going to be another crappy Hollywood "comedy" or "romance," bland enough not to offend anybody. I much prefer staring out the window rather than looking at that little TV hanging in the aisle, and if I want a story I'll read a book.
At least, that's what I used to think; but on my latest trip to New York for the Mystery Men junket (more on that next week), I found myself not only watching the Steve Martin-Goldie Hawn remake of The Out-of-Towners (without headphones, of course), but truly enjoying it. Mark my words: Steve Martin is the greatest silent film comedian working today. From his exaggerated facial expressions to the eloquence of his body language, everything is geared to make you laugh just by watching.
As a silent film, The Out-of-Towners is really very funny, and works in the same way the old silent comedies do--by focusing more on gags than story. I had no problem following the plot and I don't think I missed one joke, and I fully believe that the addition of dialogue would've made the whole thing redundant and stupid (which is exactly how most critics who saw the film with sound described it). If some enterprising soul could get the rights to all of Steve Martin's movies, drop the soundtracks, and commission scores, I'm sure he or she would make a killing by touring their newly-silenced masterworks from city to city.
Until then, people will continue to adjust to the idea of silent films, simply by being too cheap to pay for headphones on airplanes.
