The Love of Jeanne Ney (1927)

A young Frenchwoman (Edith Jehanne) weathers the Russian Revolution, the shooting of her father in the Crimea by Bolsheviks (among them her lover Uno Henning), and a desperate escape to Paris, where she seeks work at her eccentric uncle's detective agency. Her heart soars when her lover (he didn't actually, personally kill her father) comes to France to organize the sailors of Toulon. But he and she are soon caught up in feverish subplots involving a slimy Russian expatriate (the amazingly ratlike Fritz Rasp); a blond, blind girl pure of heart but dim of brain (Metropolis's Birgitte Helm); a missing diamond (case solved in a manner that must be seen to be disbelieved); and the same diamond going missing again--after a memorably grotesque murder.

No, the plot of The Love of Jeanne Ney doesn't bear scrutiny, but that only frees you to scrutinize G.W. Pabst's images instead. The director planned every shot with great particularity, composing the film on the principle of constant motion--of the actors and the action, but also the camera, which nervously seeks out visible clues to the characters' inner states (a previous Pabst film had been titled Secrets of a Soul). Pabst was fundamentally a realist, unlike his rivals Fritz Lang and F.W. Murnau; consequently, his movies don't look nearly as "Germanic" as theirs--and except for his legendary collaborations with Louise Brooks, Pandora's Box (1929) and Diary of a Lost Girl (1929), they haven't been seen much. Jeanne Ney marks a good opportunity to start reversing this neglect. --Richard T. Jameson Amazon.com

Excellent Pabst

First, the important stuff..
sound and image are very good, although the restoration could have been better.
Still, a most satisfying visual and audio experience. I will enjoy watching this movie once a year along with other Pabst movies. I found the pace of the narrative most brisk and it nicely carries you along through the quality sets and visuals. I especially enjoyed the quick, succinct, and suspenseful, train compartment conclusion. I highly recommend this for the libary of all those who enjoy classic silent cinema that has very good visual and audio quality. July 14, 2007

A beautiful and stylish German silent film

While not one of German director G.W. Pabst's most famous silent films today, "The Love of Jeanne Ney" might well be one of his finest in many respects such as cinematic styles and characters, and the excellent picture quality on this DVD, together with a fitting orchestral score, enhance this film even more. It is essentially a beautiful love story set in a tumultuous time; first in Russia after the Revolution where French girl, Jeanne Ney, is caught up in the Bolshevik take-over, and then in Paris where her uncle is murdered and her lover framed for the crime. The story is interesting and often unpredictable, but I was even more impressed by the characters and the way Pabst brought out the best in them, often with some evocative and poignant scenes. Although Jeanne is the key figure, it is in fact the villain who steals the show, in my opinion, and who better than Fritz Rasp to play the part, with his exquisite talent for depicting the most despicable characters, and with a face you just want to slap. (He effectively played a similar despised character in a later G.W. Pabst film, "Diary of a Lost Girl" starring Louise Brooks) Another impressive role is by Brigitte Helm, who played Maria in the famous silent classic, "Metropolis", and in this film quite brilliantly portrays Jeanne's blind cousin who falls prey to the villainous Fritz Rasp character. There are quite a few stark and memorable scenes in this film, thanks to Pabst's discerning eye and sense for subtle yet effective and sophisticated drama, making "The Love of Jeanne Ney" a particularly satisfying viewing experience.
August 31, 2006

Sophisticated and glorious love story

"The Love of Jeanne Ney" is a glorious complex love and suspense story that has murder, politics, one loved one responsible for the death of another, and a hateful scoundrel. Jeanne Ney is the daughter of a man stationed in Russia immediately prior to the Bolshevik revolution. Before he can effect their return to Paris, her young lover and a comrade confront him over a list of Bolshevik leaders and her Father is killed in a gunfight. There are many great characters, from the conman who sold the worthless set of names to her Father, to the kindly official who tries to ease her pain after her Father's death, and on to her mercenary uncle and blind cousin in Paris. The cinematography is gorgeous and inventive, the street scenes are magnificently detailed, and the screenplay by Ilya Ehrenberg is outstanding. August 16, 2001

Pabst's Masterpiece

The laserdisc version released by Image as part of the "Golden Age of German Cinema" box set was excellent, given the age of the film. I assume that this will be the same release. The new score by Timothy Brock performed by the Olympia Chamber Orchestra is also excellent. His scores for Faust, Sunrise, Nanook of the North and The Last Laugh are also worth checking out. Most of them are available on CD here at Amazon.

Now if they would only release Pabst's other masterpieces

on DVD (Pandora's Box, Diary of a Lost Girl)!! April 23, 2001

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