After his great commercial success with The Big Parade (1925), writer/director King Vidor had sufficient clout with MGM to make The Crowd. The story likely didn't please studio executives. The film exposes the foolish ambitions of a nondescript American man, in brutally realistic fashion.
The Crowd is a grim drama despite many moments of comic relief. It also takes a dim view towards a society already driven by capitalistic and materialistic goals. Surprisingly, it made a profit at the box office, during an era when many 'feel good' big budget silent films were unsuccessful (e.g. Buster Keaton's The General and The Cameraman).
John Sims (James Murray) is an average guy in all respects, one of the crowd. He's one of a million of harried office clerks in New York City. But he believes that he will really amount to something. On a blind date, he meets Mary (Eleanor Boardman). After a quick romance, they are wed, with the inspiration for John's proposal being an advertisement.
John remains optimistic about his future. He has two children, (Freddie Burke Frederick and Alice Mildred Puter). However, John comes to realize that his job has no future. Not only will he never be rich, he will never be distinguished from the crowd. Meanwhile, his hedonistic friend and co-worker Bert (Bert Roach) is advancing up the company ladder. John quarrels repeatedly with his faithful wife. A family tragedy and meddling, humorless in-laws further trouble his life.
Vidor cast his own wife as Mary, the female lead. Accustomed to playing glamorous women, her character here is often disheveled and without makeup. (She's still beautiful though. Looks a bit like Myrna Loy.)
For the key leading role of John, Vidor surprised everyone by choosing an unknown, James Murray. Murray was a career extra, but he had the look and personality that Vidor was searching for. Murray's career subsequently had some parallels to that of his screen character. He never got another plum role. He eventually became an alcoholic derelict. Vidor's follow-up to The Crowd was Our Daily Bread (1934). Murray was considered for the role, but he refused it. He drowned in 1935.
The Crowd broke several Hollywood taboos in its efforts at realism. A toilet was shown for the first time, even figuring into the story. The film begins with John's birth, with the doctor cutting the umbilical cord and spanking the newborn (the baby is oversized and clean, however). There are many unpleasant quarrels between husband and wife, without the clever 'witty' dialogue that is commonplace. These arguments amount to John's failures as a breadwinner, with tensions rising as his dreams of career glory dissolve.
There is one moment of melodrama, however. After a particularly bitter row, with the marriage in doubt, Mary is devastated. There is a very lengthy take of her emotional suffering. This is quickly alleviated by a turn of domestic fortunes. One feels that Vidor wanted the film to be a tragedy. Seven different endings were considered, with Vidor lacking the power of final decision. One particularly happy (and preposterous) ending had John and Mary living in a mansion after receiving a financial windfall. The actual ending is more bittersweet and open. The family is temporarily happy, but severe problems still remain.
The Crowd has been compared to Sunrise (1927), with its landmark use of cinematography. The street scenes of New York City are even more impressive than similar scenes in Sunrise. The Crowd also has a magnificent shot up the side of a massive skyscraper, and into one of the many windows. Inside the window is a large office, filled with paper shuffling clerks bound to their desks. The camera finally closes in on one of the clerks, which is John Sims. His nameplate also has the number 137, making it even more clear that he is just an anonymous part of the crowd. (78/100)
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