Search - Sally Of The Sawdust on DVD


Sally Of The Sawdust
Sally Of The Sawdust
Actors: W.C. Fields, Carol Dempster
Director: D.W. Griffith
Genres: Classics, Comedy, Drama
NR     2008     1hr 53min

FROM A 35mm ARCHIVE PRINT — In a fascinating departure from the austere moral drama in which he specialized, D.W. Griffith demonstrates his talent for warm-hearted comedy with SALLY OF THE SAWDUST. Fresh from the Ziegfeld F...  more »

     
2

Larger Image

Movie Details

Actors: W.C. Fields, Carol Dempster
Director: D.W. Griffith
Genres: Classics, Comedy, Drama
Sub-Genres: Silent Films, Comedy, Love & Romance
Studio: KINO INTERNATIONAL
Format: DVD - Black and White
DVD Release Date: 11/18/2008
Original Release Date: 01/01/1925
Theatrical Release Date: 01/01/1925
Release Year: 2008
Run Time: 1hr 53min
Screens: Black and White
Number of Discs: 1
SwapaDVD Credits: 1
Total Copies: 0
Members Wishing: 2
MPAA Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Languages: English
See Also:

Similar Movies

WC Fields Comedy Collection Vol 2
The Man on the Flying Trapeze / Never Give A Sucker An Even Break / You're Telling Me! / The Old Fashioned Way / Poppy
4
   NR   2007   5hr 51min
WC Fields 6 Short Films
Criterion Collection Spine #79
Directors: Arthur Ripley, Clyde Bruckman, Edwin Middleton, Leslie Pearce, Monte Brice
3
   UR   2000   1hr 55min
WC Fields Comedy Collection
The Bank Dick / My Little Chickadee / You Can't Cheat an Honest Man / It's a Gift / International House
7
   NR   2004   6hr 13min
 

Movie Reviews

A "must" for Fields fans
Robert Ashton | St. Louis, MO USA | 02/12/2000
(4 out of 5 stars)

"A sentimental comedy with an inevitable happy ending but still good fun. Carol Dempster does a convincing job as a free spirited circus girl, Sally, brought up by McGargle (Fields, of course)after the death of her parents. The silent Fields shows his physical comedy skills, which are often forgotten due the later strength of his spoken comedy. The quality of the picture is excellent - again showing for me that B & W movies gain most from DVD if the manufacturers make an effort. A good movie for anyone to watch, it is a must for the Fields fans to see the earlier stages of the character that was to become so familiar in the later films."
Original Fields at his best in the role he was born to play!
David Watts (davew@wattstrainshop.c | Indiana, USA | 10/30/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)

"Quality of the DVD; The picture quality was great, and was taken from an obviously well restored print. Sound was excellent as well, (although this is a silent movie). I have seen very good silent movies with terrible sound tracks of ill fitting music, but with this movie they used the original sheet music that was made for it, with delightful results. This is a silent movie, but if you are a Fields fan, you will not want to miss this one. The movie captures the essence of all of Fields' future movies, utilizing the formula of where he is the down trodden father with the loving and devoted daughter and they see it through with each other's help and find the golden lining of the grey clouds. You even get a peek at some of Fields' juggling. Best viewing wishes, Dave"
Introducing Professor Eustace McGargle
David Watts (davew@wattstrainshop.c | 05/05/1999
(4 out of 5 stars)

"W.C. Fields made his first real mark on the movie world with this film. In fact, this film was also the first to present Bill Fields in his "traditional" costume: gray top hat, cutaway coat, checked pants, and spats. One longs to hear that nasal drawl spouting flowery epigrams and thinly veiled insults, but Fields does an excellent job nonetheless. His pantomime background (from his years as a silent juggling act in vaudeville) provides him with a wealth of funny bits of business."Sally" is based on "Poppy," a Broadway musical that was a hit largely because of Fields. The same is true here: Carol Dempster gets top billing, but it's Bill's show all the way. He does part of his juggling act, displays a couple of Rube Goldbergish props built for other stage shows, and presents us with the initial version of his marvelous carnival/medicine show grifter, who would resurface later under such patently phony monickers as Larson E. Whipsnade and J. Cuthbert Twillie."
Thoroughly entertaining and enjoyable
Barbara (Burkowsky) Underwood | Manly, NSW Australia | 04/24/2007
(4 out of 5 stars)

"Next to "Battle of the Sexes" this charming silent film surely rates as a superb example of legendary director D.W. Griffith's versatility and skill. While probably best remembered for his serious historic and moral epics of earlier years, Griffith kept up with the times and directed a variety of other films in the mid to late 1920s, of which "Sally of the Sawdust" stands out as one of the best. With outstanding stars such as W.C. Fields perfectly cast in the colourful character of Professor McGargle, and Carol Dempster as Sally, who replaced Griffith's earlier `stock' actresses such as Mary Pickford, Lillian Gish and Mae Marsh, this film shines and is entertaining and enjoyable every single minute. Carol Dempster, who only appeared in over a dozen films and mostly under Griffith's direction, plays the part of Sally wonderfully and brings the character and whole story to life as she leaps spritely from scene to scene as the circus orphan who is devoted to her guardian and her `Pop', Professor McGargle. But unknown to her, she has living grandparents who are also unaware of her existence, which makes for considerable emotional suspense and also sentimentality as the plot unwinds. This busy story was in fact a popular stage play called "Poppy" in which W.C. Fields played the same role of Professor McGargle, and whose screen appearance in this film led to further future successful screen roles. Griffith often demonstrated his skill in building suspense and action in his films, and "Sally of the Sawdust" is no exception as Sally waits for her Pop to evade a gang of thieves and finally arrive in court to tell the stern judge - who is in fact Sally's grandfather - who her mother was so that she wouldn't be sent to a home for wayward girls. There are delightful moments of comedy as well as action and drama, all without the intensity and heaviness often characteristic of Griffith's earlier dramatic sagas. Together with very good and clear picture quality and a perfectly suited piano score based on original cue sheets, this Kino Video production is high quality all-round, and shows Griffith and his stars at their best.
"