Weary River
US (1929): Drama/Silent (w. sound effects, music and talking sequences)
In the rush to bring sound to the silver screen, Warner Bros./First National led the pack. Because audible speech was considered a novel (and not essential) ingredient, many films were released as part-talkies, with a mixture of synchronized dialogue and silent-style intertitles. This blending of sound and silence was not disconcerting to viewers of 1929. In fact, a reviewer in Variety actually welcomed the silent passages of the 1929 film Weary River. "Director Frank Lloyd proves, too, that the 50-50 method of sandwiching talk between periods of silent relaxation is the best way of circumventing the nervous exhaustion which some of the all-talkers have occasioned."
Weary River is loosely based upon the experiences of Harry Snodgrass, who became a popular vaudeville pianist after one of his performances was broadcast from a Missouri prison. In the fictionalized adaptation, Richard Barthelmess stars as Jerry Larrabee, a high-rolling Prohibition-era gangster who savors the speakeasy nightlife with his blond moll Alice (Betty Compson). After being arrested and imprisoned, Larrabee is lectured by the paternal warden (character actor William Holden, not related to the William Holden), who warns him that this may be his only chance for moral regeneration. Larrabee heeds the warden's advice and adopts a new hobby, music, which proves to be his salvation. When Alice comes to visit Larrabee, the warden delivers a similar plea, and she sacrifices her love for the convict in order to help him adhere to the path of righteousness. Upon his release from prison, Larrabee embarks on a musical career, but cannot shake the stigma of being an ex-con, and soon rejoins his criminal confreres. One night, Larrabee, his nemesis (Louis Natheaux) and the warden converge on a small café, where a midnight gun battle settles the ultimate fate of the "Master of Melody."
When it came time for Barthelmess to sing the title song of Weary River (not once but four times in the course of the film), the Vitaphone technicians performed a bit of audio-visual sleight-of-hand. While Barthelmess moves his lips, the voice we hear is that of Johnny Murray. A Photoplay article of July 1929 reported that Murray had also been retained to provide Barthelmess's voice in the future, in the event that he starred in any other musicals. Singin' in the Rain, perhaps? (Turner Classic Movies)
1 shared nomination
· Director 1928-29: Frank Lloyd co-nomination with Drag. (Lloyd received the Award for The Divine Lady.)