Lonesome (1928)
Two lonely New York City wage workers, a telephone operator and a factory hand, meet by chance at Coney Island on a holiday weekend and fall for each other, then lose one another in the amusement-park crowds before a last-minute twist reveals they've been neighbors all along.
Lonesome arrived right at the crossroads of silent and sound cinema, released with a synchronized score, sound effects, and a few grafted-on dialogue scenes; director Paul Fejős’s expressive camerawork and Coney Island location shooting have since won it recognition as one of the era’s most unjustly overlooked films.
Background
Lonesome was directed by Paul Fejos, a Hungarian filmmaker working in Hollywood at Universal. It was released in 1928 with a synchronized score, sound effects and a few dialogue sequences added to an otherwise silent film. Barbara Kent and Glenn Tryon play the two lonely New York workers at its center. The film was shot on location at Coney Island, and its expressive camerawork and location photography have earned it recognition as one of the late silent era’s more overlooked works.
What to watch for
The story follows a telephone operator and a factory hand who meet at Coney Island on a holiday weekend, then lose one another in the crowds before a twist reveals they have been neighbors all along. Watch for the amusement-park sequences, where the crowds and rides give the film its energy and draw the couple apart. The camera movement and location shooting are central to its mood, and its blend of silent technique with sound elements shows the industry in transition at a moment of rapid change. The Coney Island setting also serves as a valuable record of the resort in the late 1920s.
