Love and Boxing
Sunday July 18, 12pm, The Castro, San Francisco
An itinerant boxer "on the take" gets a taste of family life and re-sets his moral compass. Dave Roberts (James Murray) arrives in Boonton ahead of his gang to set up the con. After falling for Marjorie (Barbara Kent), a kindhearted waitress and saving a freckle-faced urchin (Jack Hanlon), he fights on-the-level, to the consternation of his associates.
Based on a story by Charles A. Logue and directed by William Wyler, The Shakedown is a hard edged story that is realized with skill and aesthetics, beautifully highlighted by startling imagery, while remaining pleasantly understated. Originally released as a silent film with a Movietone score and sound segments, it suffers unjustly as a victim from that period of transitional obscurity. While the boxing itself is technically a bit myopic, the emotion surrounding it has wonderful depth. Triumphant in its simplicity, The Shakedown is entirely satisfying as an early opus of this emerging master.
Sunday July 18, 12pm, The Castro, San Francisco
An itinerant boxer "on the take" gets a taste of family life and re-sets his moral compass. Dave Roberts (James Murray) arrives in Boonton ahead of his gang to set up the con. After falling for Marjorie (Barbara Kent), a kindhearted waitress and saving a freckle-faced urchin (Jack Hanlon), he fights on-the-level, to the consternation of his associates.
Based on a story by Charles A. Logue and directed by William Wyler, The Shakedown is a hard edged story that is realized with skill and aesthetics, beautifully highlighted by startling imagery, while remaining pleasantly understated. Originally released as a silent film with a Movietone score and sound segments, it suffers unjustly as a victim from that period of transitional obscurity. While the boxing itself is technically a bit myopic, the emotion surrounding it has wonderful depth. Triumphant in its simplicity, The Shakedown is entirely satisfying as an early opus of this emerging master.