The Last Moment
Encyclopedia
The Last Moment is a silent
experimental film
conceived and directed by Paul Fejos
. The film starred Otto Matieson
and Georgia Hale
.
The Last Moment focused on a man who drowns himself in lake. As he is dying, he recalls the crucial moments of his life and the incidents that led to his final, fatal decision. His unhappy childhood, his tumultuous decision to leave home and stowaway on an ocean freighter, his unsuccessful attempts to become an actor, and his two tumultuous attempts at married life flash are relived. The film ends with the man walking towards the lake and wading deeper and deeper into its waters until he is no longer visible from the shore.
Fejos made The Last Moment on a budget of US$13,000. The film told its story without intertitles, which was very unusual for a silent film, and its use of double- and triple-exposures and expressionistic editing gave it an avant-garde
style that was not common for commercial releases of that period. Charlie Chaplin
saw the film in a private screening and arranged for it to be theatrically released by United Artists
.
The Last Moment received supportive reviews. Welford Beaton, writing in the Film Spectator, announced: “Introducing to you Mr. Paul Fejos, Genius.” Beaton added Fejos’ film was “one of the most outstanding works of cinematic art that was ever brought to the screen.” Mourdant Hall, writing in The New York Times
, stated the film displayed “a wonderful aptitude for true cinematic ideas” and “an enviable fund of imagination.”
No print of The Last Moment is known to exist in any archive or private collection, and it is considered a lost film
.
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
experimental film
Experimental film
Experimental film or experimental cinema is a type of cinema. Experimental film is an artistic practice relieving both of visual arts and cinema. Its origins can be found in European avant-garde movements of the twenties. Experimental cinema has built its history through the texts of theoreticians...
conceived and directed by Paul Fejos
Paul Fejos
Paul Fejos was a film director in America.Fejos was born in Budapest, Hungary as Pál Fejös. He emigrated to the United States in 1924 and became a naturalized citizen in 1930...
. The film starred Otto Matieson
Otto Matieson
Otto Matieson was a Danish actor of the silent era. He appeared in 45 films between 1920 and 1931.He was born in Copenhagen, Denmark and died in Safford, Arizona.-Selected filmography:...
and Georgia Hale
Georgia Hale
Georgia Hale was an actress of the silent movie era.-Career:Georgia Theodora Hale was Miss Chicago 1922 and competed in the Miss America Pageant...
.
The Last Moment focused on a man who drowns himself in lake. As he is dying, he recalls the crucial moments of his life and the incidents that led to his final, fatal decision. His unhappy childhood, his tumultuous decision to leave home and stowaway on an ocean freighter, his unsuccessful attempts to become an actor, and his two tumultuous attempts at married life flash are relived. The film ends with the man walking towards the lake and wading deeper and deeper into its waters until he is no longer visible from the shore.
Fejos made The Last Moment on a budget of US$13,000. The film told its story without intertitles, which was very unusual for a silent film, and its use of double- and triple-exposures and expressionistic editing gave it an avant-garde
Avant-garde
Avant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....
style that was not common for commercial releases of that period. Charlie Chaplin
Charlie Chaplin
Sir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin, KBE was an English comic actor, film director and composer best known for his work during the silent film era. He became the most famous film star in the world before the end of World War I...
saw the film in a private screening and arranged for it to be theatrically released by United Artists
United Artists
United Artists Corporation is an American film studio. The original studio of that name was founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charles Chaplin, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks....
.
The Last Moment received supportive reviews. Welford Beaton, writing in the Film Spectator, announced: “Introducing to you Mr. Paul Fejos, Genius.” Beaton added Fejos’ film was “one of the most outstanding works of cinematic art that was ever brought to the screen.” Mourdant Hall, writing in The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, stated the film displayed “a wonderful aptitude for true cinematic ideas” and “an enviable fund of imagination.”
No print of The Last Moment is known to exist in any archive or private collection, and it is considered a lost film
Lost film
A lost film is a feature film or short film that is no longer known to exist in studio archives, private collections or public archives such as the Library of Congress, where at least one copy of all American films are deposited and catalogued for copyright reasons...
.