Son meilleur ami

One of my top picks for pre-sound westerns is the William S. Hart 1920 production, "Sand". (There is no exclamation mark after the title. The entry in the Library of Congress is wrong. "Sand" is the name of Hart's horse, who has an important role to play in the plot). Using a story by Russell A. Boggs as a kick-off, director Lambert Hillyer has fashioned a very interesting script with a well-developed plot and realistically full-blooded characters, set against rugged backgrounds with lots of fascinating details. For instance, I love the bit where hero Hart deliberately allows a really nasty bushwhacker to escape. And of course all the railroad lore had me locked in a seventh heaven. The acting is great. Bill Hart, Mary Thurman, G. Raymond Nye (and to a lesser extent, the lovely Patricia Palmer who made nearly 150 movies between 1913 and 1929) turn in engrossingly realistic performances. Production values are first class, with a special nod for Joe August's fine camera-work.

Dan Kurrie takes a job on the railroad to help out Margaret Young and her father. Villainous Joseph Garber wants to marry Margaret, and, knowing Kurrie is his rival, gets him fired. Kurrie goes to work for the Kirkwoods. Margaret mistakenly believes Kurrie is in love with Josie Kirkwood, so she consents to marry Garber, not realizing he is a crook. Garber and his gang plan to rob a payroll from a train. It's Kurrie to the rescue.

Of all the Hart films I've seen, this is probably my least favorite. It's not horrible by any means, but it just didn't capture my interest and it's probably too long. There is virtually no action until the train holdup, and by then I was getting a bit bored. As a horse lover, I can appreciate the affection shown between Kurrie and his equine pal, aka "The Boss," but it was overdone to the point of corniness. I suppose the film is worth a look, but you can find better Hart films out there.

When Chaplin, Fairbanks, Pickford and Griffith were setting up United Artists in 1919, William S. Hart almost went along with them. But Paramount offered him a brand new contract, and he stayed with them..... and found the studio sabotaging him almost from the beginning of the new contract. He wanted to get away from his standard cowboy story and came up with this railroad story. They shelved it, got him to do something more usual, and then demanded a new ending for this movie. This was not unusual for Paramount. They invented block booking, and worked their stars very hard -- in one or two cases, to death: Wallace Reid, for example.

So, what is the net result for this William S. Hart programmer? It's an excellent piece. You get a lot more close-ups of Hart than usual, as he tones down his usually broad characterizations except when he is dealing with the fact that he has lost the girl he loves. There's a lot more stillness in his acting than usual, and, if takes a good long while before his cameraman, Joe August, gets to show us some good scenery and action, well, the story of conflict between old and new, of sense and compassion, love and honorable behavior is a well told tale, like all the Hart movies I have seen.

Societal values have changed, storytelling sensibilities have shifted, film-making techniques have improved, and film-making technology has advanced, and still most silent films stand tall in their own right. Some continue to count among the greatest pictures ever made, and while not all are equal, with rare exception surviving flicks of the earliest years of cinema should at least be treasured as part of our cultural heritage. I don't think it's unfair to say that this 1920 western is not one of the most striking or essential of features, but in fairness, there's no rule that says every feature has to be a revelation. It won't change the minds of anyone who has a hard time engaging with older fare, and even devotees of the era may not find it particularly inspiring, but 'Sand' remains decent enough if you do have the chance to watch.

Less than entirely remarkable though it may be, there's still plenty to enjoy here. Chief character Dan Kurrie is quick-witted and fast on his feet, and the energy of both Kurrie and actor/producer William S. Hart is no small part of the joy that the movie boasts. His co-stars do an admirable job of complementing that spirit, and/or serving as a foil to it, as the narrative unfolds, with Patricia Palmer especially standing out as spunky Josie, and G. Raymond Nye certainly making an impression as officious Garber. We're given duly compelling flavors of crime, drama, romance, comedy, and adventure as Dan arrives in a railroad town to find some familiar faces to greet and trouble to settle. I think filmmaker Lambert Hillyer and co-writer Russell A. Boggs ably balance these varied facets, though I do detect at points that Hillyer has difficulty achieving just the right tone to help the proceedings to land. Even at that, 'Sand' want only to entertain, and I think it capably does just that.

True, the tale could also have been fleshed out more; it does feel in some measure as if we're not getting the full weight of the saga. More detail and nuance in the scene writing and overall narrative, and a more careful hand on the part of Hillyer as director, would have made the title more well-rounded, meaningful, and impactful. Be that as it may the plot is solid and increasingly absorbing, and in all other regards it's well made. Those stunts and effects that come into play are terrific; as we commonly assume of westerns, the filming locations are gorgeous, and the sets and costume design are splendid. I quite like Joseph H. August and Dwight Warren's cinematography, and even the intertitles are penned with some fine wit. No, the film may not be a major must-see, and it falls short of being perfect. If one is amenable to the style of the silent era, however, and of westerns, then there's much to appreciate in these eighty minutes. Overall I believe 'Sand' holds up quite well, even more than can be said for some of its contemporaries; don't necessarily go out of your way for it, but this is a pretty good time if you do come across it.