When the Clouds Roll By (1920)
Directed by Victor Fleming
Genres - Comedy |
Sub-Genres - Romantic Comedy, Satire |
Run Time - 77 min. |
Countries - United States |
MPAA Rating - NR
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Synopsis by Hal Erickson
This lively silent romantic comedy was the second film made by Douglas Fairbanks Sr. for the new United Artists company. Much of the film is a satiric broadside aimed at the then-innovational field of psychiatry. Wealthy young bachelor Fairbanks allows a pompous head-shrinker to influence his romantic pursuit of Greenwich Village artist Katherine Williams. There's action, athletics and laughs aplenty, topped by a terrific climactic flood sequence. The film's highlight is Fairbanks' therapy-induced dream, a triumph of special effects which is still capable of amazing audiences "jaded" by Spielberg and Lucas. When the Clouds Roll By comes to a hilariously ironic conclusion when the "psychiatrist" is revealed to be an escaped mental patient.
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Keywords
brainwashing, doctor/nurse, dream, experiment, flood, hurricane, love, manipulation, nightmare, power-of-suggestion, psychiatry, superstition