The Jazz Singer (1927)

So, here it is, just like they said it would be. America's first "talkie" film. The singular motion picture that brought in a new era of cinematic wonder. The spoken word captured on screen and shared with mass audiences. It was, and still is, a sight to be heard. Alas, the ultimate question you must ask yourself when discussing such a historic moment - like The Jazz Singer - does it still remain a pivotal film? One cannot argue that it was the film that introduced the silent era into the golden age of sound, but watching this film today - does it still carry the gumption that it once had? Watched during FILM CLUB #61, our group had a large discussion on all surrounding elements of this film - diving deep into the idea of black face, the idea that perhaps this is a "partial talkie" and the tense controversy that dominates the last half of this film. It was a bitter conversation versus those that loved the representation of this film, and those that were stressed about Al Jolson's mid-film crisis.


I happened to be one of those latter ones. The Jazz Singer is an important film, there is no need to argue that here. I know what this film represents, but from a cinematic, enjoy the movie-experience standpoint, this wasn't a great chapter. I remember Britain's first "talkie" that Hitchcock did - Blackmail that involved both character development and excitement (in the form of a who-dun-it), and with The Jazz Singer there wasn't any of this. Again, I wasn't expecting a shootout at the corral, but I did want to spend some time getting to know Jack Robin (or Jakie Rabinowitz) and his internal family struggle. Ok, ok - so this was made in the 1920s, where films were in an experimental stage, I shouldn't put it in the same playing field as today's standards. Yet, in a way - I am not. All I wanted from The Jazz Singer was more development into who Jack was. I wanted to see his struggle when he ran from his parents, I wanted to see his drive to become the best singer out there, and I wanted to see the joy/tribulation of when his family is finally reunited. This could happen within 88 minutes, but alas, it didn't. Instead, we are forced to watch a wishy-washy Mary Dale (May McAvoy) push Jolson in and out of a world that he loves. Then, we spend nearly 40 minutes and two similar arguments back to back trying to get Jack to make the honest decision. Does he do it? Is the 1920s a happy ending?


I don't think I need to answer that question for you to understand that people arrived at the movies during this era to escape, and this film is a prime example of that "escapism". Our group was mixed on this film when we watched it, there were no solid scores, as we all felt there were faults with this feature. I mainly couldn't justify having a film in which we know more about the secondary characters than we do the main ones. Jack could have been a powerful character - he could have been a staple in this genre, but the idea of a first "talkie" and his infamous ad-libbed line of "You ain't seen nothing yet" overshadowed his character. Why did we have to spend 20 years away - couldn't we as audience members follow him? One member in our group mentioned that the relevance of that era are so out of touch from today's modern climate that you can't help but be bored with this film. I somewhat agree, there were no risks taken with this film, and the final (albeit long) climax at the end will leave you more tense than relieved, but there is something still about following your dream and the desires of parents. I couldn't stand behind our main character like I could in Hitch's Blackmail because I couldn't see his strengths, sure he could sing - but did you see the way he looked at his mother?!?

Yipes.

Without going into such a long intro/overture, this film was found in my "Defining Moments in Film" book. I was very happy that I had to see a film like that in my lifetime, but alas, I don't think I would watch it again. If I were with friends and someone decided to put it on, I would sit through it - but I would not add this to my collection. Al Jolson is very scary with his eyes and baby corn teeth. FREAKY!

So, in final thoughts - The Jazz Singer gets the indecisive pink mark in my book. Good, but not great. Historic, but not challenging.