THE DOCKS OF NEW YORK (1928)

Country: U.S.A.

Genre(s): Drama / Romance

Director: Josef von Sternberg

Cast: George Bancroft / Betty Compson / Olga Baclanova

Plot

After tough guy Bill rescues despondent May from a suicide-by-drowning, the pair get married on a whim.  The next day, Bill has second thoughts.

What I Liked

“The Docks of New York” puts to celluloid all the vivacity and seediness of New York nightlife in the early part of the twentieth century.  Doubtless part of the appeal of the film in its day was its scandalous representations of drunkards and loose women.  The men are violent ruffians, the women wild and ribald.  The film may be silent, but one can still somehow hear the noise and even smell the smells of old New York.

George Bancroft turns in a relaxed, confident performance as big and brawny Bill, the ship’s stoker who takes control of a bar as soon as he sets foot inside of it.  Betty Compson displays an alluring combination of sassy bawdiness and feminine fragility that, aided by some wonderfully thin dresses, make her about the sexiest woman I’ve yet to see in a silent film.

What I Didn’t Like

Despite the potential inferred by its setting, the movie is disappointingly lacking in real drama or suspense.  It tells a quaint little love story, but not one that moves an audience, at least not a modern one.  Outside of its atmosphere, “The Docks of New York” is just dull.

Most Memorable Scene

A lot of this movie takes place in a bar.  As mentioned earlier, this scene is full of the roughness of the New York underworld.  The antics inside the bar are fun and violent, thus it’s the most entertaining moment of a film lacking in entertainment.

My Rating: 3 out of 5