The Last Command
Series: 46th New York Film Festival [Sept. 26 – Oct. 12, 2008]
Director: Josef von Sternberg, Country: USA, Release: 1928, Runtime: 88

Alloy Orchestra returns to the Walter Reade Theater with the New York premiere of its newest score, accompanying a gorgeous new 35mm print of Josef von Sternberg’s 1928 silent classic The Last Command. Emil Jannings stars in the film alongside Evelyn Brent and William Powell as a decorated Russian general who is reduced to reliving the revolution that deposed him as an extra in a Hollywood film directed by a one-time opponent. “One of the most satisfactory of shadow stories,” wrote New York Times critic Mordaunt Hall in his review in 1928. “A good short story turned to excellent account in film form.”

The Academy combined Jannings’s coolly defiant performance with his turn in the previous year’s The Way of All Flesh to award him the first-ever Oscar for Best Actor. The film also earned a nomination for best original story and was added to the National Film Registry in 2006.

The admission price is $20, folks, which I know is a bit steep, especially in these dark financial times. I chose this film because it's one of the best silent films I have ever seen. However if the majority of you prefer going back to the MOMA and their $10 admission, I'll change the meetup venue.

FYI, cash only at the door, or you can order online/over the phone ($1.25 surcharge).

If we end up seeing The Last Command you won't regret it. And you'll never forget it.