Gladys Marie Smith, better known as Mary Pickford (1892-1979), was one Hollywood's first female megastars, a Canadian actress which would be known as "America's Sweetheart." Throughout her life, she starred in 52 films, ending her acting career in 1933, after the arrival of sound, to which she could not adapt. She was also called "The Girl with the Curls," which allowed her to play children, even in her twenties. Her power and popularity in the industry was also a key in her being one of the founders of United Artists, together with actor/comedian Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks (her popular actor and husband), and director D.W. Griffith. She was also one of the original founders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. "Mary Pickford Rags and Riches Collection" is an awesome collection that comprises three of Pickford's best films, and one of her movie shorts. In them, you will witness the greatness of her acting and extreme charisma in the high quality images of the Blu-ray. This is one remarkable and historically important collection that brings America's Sweetheart back to life, thanks to the gigantic effort from the folks at Milestone Film and Video."Mary Pickford Rags and Riches Collection" includes three Blu-ray discs. The first one presents "The Poor Little Rich Girl" (1917), which opens with "In the house of everything, except the love she longed for, dwelt Gwendolyn, the poor little rich girl." These words perfectly describe, in the shortest way, what the film is about, in which Pickford plays Gwendolyn, daughter of a wealthy businessman and a mother that is too busy socializing to pay attention to her. She desperately wants to experience the world outside their big house, and finds ways to do just that, only to be punished for being a free little poor girl, telling her dad, "I had lots and lots to tell you, daddy. I'm so lonely, I..." This is a heartbreaking story with lots of funny moments. Disc Two includes "The Hoodlum" (1919), featuring Pickford as Amy Burke, a spoiled, rich girl who inherited her grandfather's "tyrannical temper as well as his money." Her father, on the other hand, is an intellectual, described as a "sociological writer," who lives in a poor immigrant neighborhood, doing research and writing a book. Her grandfather goes for a vacation to Europe and invites her to come along, but she chooses to stay with her father. Little did she know about the big change in lifestyle that she was going to experience. Here, Pickford shines with her natural ability for slapstick comedy my favorite of the three films. This disc also features "Ramona," a 17 min short done in 1917, starring Pickford. In Disc three, on the other hand, we have "Sparrows" (1926), perhaps the most serious and dramatic film of the collection, which opens with, "The Devil's share in the world's creation was a certain southern swampland a masterpiece of horror." In this film, Pickford stars as Molly, the oldest of a group of children which have been stolen from their parents and/or been allowed to be cared of by a man named Grimes. Sadly, the children parents' don't know that Grimes is a mean-spirited, abusive old man who treats the kids as slaves and starve them to death, if possible, stealing the money that the parents send for their children's welfare. Grimes, his wife, and his wife's son have the perfect criminal operation running, at times "shoving" the kids that they didn't like in the swamp. So, as you can imagine, is up to Molly to find a way out from their misery. This movie has a dose of Christianity and hilarious moments created by Pickford, who, once again, proves why he was so talented.
Each film in this collection has an introduction for kids, in which Pickford, as well as B&W silent movies are introduced to them in a very smart way. In addition, there are commentaries by film historians; home movies on Pickfair, Pickford and Fairbanks' home, featuring Charlie Chaplin and others; outtakes; trailers; and much more. This is one truly wonderful collection that makes a great Christmas present for all family, in which all will enjoy and perhaps discover the talents of one of the best actresses of cinema's silent era. Great job, Milestone, for your hard work in releasing this collection! (USA, The Poor Little Rich Girl, 1917, 75 min, B&W or tinted; The Hoodlum, 1919, 92 min, B&W or tinted; Sparrows, 1926, 90 min, B&W or tinted) Reviewed on December 10, 2012 by Eric Gonzales for Milestone Film and Video Blu-ray
"The Poor Little Rich Girl" is the first film in which Mary Pickford plays a little girl over the course of an entire film, and it remains one of her best. It also marks the first time she works with screenwriter Frances Marion, who would become Pickford's closest collaborator over the next several years. "The Poor Little Rich Girl" is a remarkable evocation of childhood, capturing the wonder, the terror, and the ludic abandon of being a child more successfully than any film of its era.
In "The Hoodlum," Pickford plays a girl several years older than Gwendolyn and decidedly more tomboyish. Amy Burke is similar to many of Pickford's other high-spirited characters like Tess of the Storm Country, and, "The Hoodlum," like many of her other films, presents the disparities between the lives of the rich and those of the poor. I had never seen this film before viewing this DVD, but I was definitely pleased to see it at last as it is one of Pickford's finer efforts.
"Sparrows" is commonly cited as Pickford's masterwork, and in terms of the overall aesthetic quality of the production it very well may be. It definitely is a must-see for any fan of Pickford or silent film in general. In this film, Pickford plays a mother of sorts; in fact, her character is called "Mama Molly" by the children of the baby farm. (Indeed, the three films of this collection neatly represent three different ages in the life of a woman: girlhood, adolescence, and finally motherhood.) The supporting cast is wonderful as well, and all of the children deliver very realistic performances. "Sparrows" is a beautifully acted and directed film and represents silent film at its peak.
There are some bonus features to the set, including two very informative audio commentaries for "The Poor Little Rich Girl" and "Sparrows," the D.W. Griffith-directed short "Ramona," some home videos of Pickford and Pickfair, and three "kid-friendly" introductions to the films (with the sort of embarrassingly bad acting you would expect). While I appreciate the wish to impart Pickford's legacy to the next generation, it's hard to see how these intros wouldn't turn off any young viewers.
Another reviewer states that the films display in "pseudo-widescreen," and while I really am no expert, I think that what Hugh Munro Neely says in the comments to that review is actually correct. As he states there, the films appear slightly wider than the traditional 4x3 aspect ratio because more of the original negative is included. I don't see why cropping the negative to adhere to rigid 4x3 would be better. I have played the DVDs on a 4x3 and 16x9 TV screen, and while there is windowboxing on the 4x3 TV, it is not as severe as others make it seem. The films all display correctly on my 16x9 TV, slightly wider than traditional 4x3 as more image is included. I for one applaud Mr. Neely's decision to include all of the image on the negative.
I am so glad that Milestone Films is continuing to release Mary Pickford's films on DVD, as they do a wonderful job. I doubt Criterion could present the films any better, and all three films look beautiful in this set. I can't wait for future releases! (Maybe "Dorothy Vernon of Haddon Hall"?)This collection is beautifully restored and the optional introductions are extremely valuable if you wish to introduce a young person to this era of film making.I was extremely disappointed upon receiving this collection. These movies, all obviously from the pre-widescreen era, have been either formatted or encoded to display in a pseudo-widescreen format (meaning that they aren't 4:3, and display on my widescreen television not quite to either outer edge of the screen). I can only assume, based on this format, that some information has been lost top and bottom, as these movies were released in a 4:3 format.
I wrote to Milestone and they responded by telling me that the authoring was done to accomodate the needless "kid friendly" introductions. This makes little sense, as every other classic movie release is formatted such that the display quickly changes from widescreen for the FBI warning and/or menu, to a correctly formatted movie. There is no reason they couldn't have done that here.
Given that Milestone simultaneously released their Charley Chase collection formatted correctly, I can't understand why they put this Mary Pickford collection onto the market with this major error.
This is no reflection on the films themselves.....just on Milestone's release of the films. Also, this comment applies to the DVD ONLY! I do not have, and cannot comment on the Blu-Ray release of this collection.
As much as I hated to have to do so, I sent this one back for a refund. Maybe someday some studio will release these films correctly. I'll try again then.While I am always happy to see any collection of silent films, I'm a little disappointed here. Flicker Alley put together a great collection of films by Douglas Fairbanks. Kino did the same with his features. Where are all the Pickford films? This collection is only a starting point. Buy if you are curious, these are great films. All others will agree we need more attention to this great lady of the silent film.
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