100 Performances (1): 1910s/1920s

Okay - here's the deal: I've decided to throw together a list of the 100 best movie performances, choosing 10 from each decade. Quite the undertaking, right? I know. I'll start with a combined list of performances from the 1910s/1920s, and then lead arduously up to the present over the next several months.

10.) Gosta Ekman as "Faust" in Faust (1926): Although this interpretation of "Faust" is wonderful, with breathtaking imagery and some fantastic special effects, it is Ekman's portrayal of the battered alchemist that makes it a classic. He manages to play Faust as both the embittered old man and the desperate young man with equal gravity. It's hard to root for a character who sells his soul, but this sympathetic performance will cause you to do just that.

9.) (?) as "The Nurse" in The Battleship Potemkin (1925): This propagandist tale of mutiny and civil unrest is still particularly potent due to its human qualities. The infamous "Odessa Steps" sequence, in which Russian Imperial soldiers fire upon a crowd of civilians in a detached, mechanized fashion, is brilliant. One of the many casualties is a kindly nurse, played with gaze-averting perfection by (?). The role is brief, but powerfully affecting. Her horrific demise (so brutal I won't show it on this blog) will stain your sensibilities, her expression forever frozen in your soul. (I currently can't find the actress's name. Help, anyone?) 

8.) Harold Lloyd as "The Boy" in Safety Last! (1923): Many of the silent era's best performances are hysterically funny, and Lloyd's starring role in Safety Last! is one of them. From fantastic falls to tickling trips, this is a physical comedy treasure. The film's most memorable sequence follows "The Boy" climb up the side of a skyscraper. It's a nail-biting scene, particularly knowing that Lloyd performed all of his own stunts, and most of them without the comfort of a safety net. Wow - safety last, indeed.   

7.) Gustav Frohlich as "Freder" in Metropolis (1927): It's safe to say that if director Fritz Lang had improperly cast the pivotal role of "Freder" in his science-fiction masterpiece Metropolis, it may not have endured in our hearts and imaginations 85 years later. Yet here we are, part of a culture that still celebrates this film, and joins Frohlich's Freder on his exquisite journey of self and societal discovery.

6.) George O'Brien as "The Man" in Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans (1927): A powerhouse performance related through exaggerated realism, O'Brien's "The Man" never ceases to shock, to incite, or to captivate. Watching this character succumb to the lowest depths of human evil, and then try to climb back to altruism, is a revelation.

5.) Buster Keaton as "Johnnie Gray" in The General (1926): I can't get enough of this movie, and Keaton's hilarious buffoon "Johnnie Gray" is the main reason. Playing an out-of-luck underdog who just wants his sweetheart's approval (all it takes is enlisting in the confederate army!), his sympathetic awkwardness is one of the best comic performances ever.

4.) Lillian Gish as "Lucy Burrows" in Broken Blossoms (1919): Sweetness and gentility radiate from her every movement and gesture, humming through the silence like rain on a tin roof. It's impossible not to feel brokenhearted with a portrayal as stunning, as touching, as this one. Gish would have many excellent performances in her career, notably her authoritative turn in The Night of the Hunter (1955), which pitted her against a menacing Robert Mitchum. However, if you're looking for an incredible silent performance, one that still manages to speak volumes, check out Broken Blossoms.    

3.) Lon Chaney as "Erik, The Phantom" in The Phantom of the Opera (1925): Known as "The Man of 1000 Faces," Lon Chaney was one of silent cinema's most versatile stars. Although known for many great roles (his Quasimodo in 1923's The Hunchback of Notre Dame is fantastic), it's debatable that his turn as "The Phantom" (oddly named "Erik" in the credits) is his best. It's a rare performance - one that shocks and disgusts, yet cries out for humanity. I love it.

2.) Max Schrek as "Count Orlok" in Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror (1922): Holy crap, is this a great performance. Any role as iconic as this one, that still manages to be eerie and cold and haunting after 90 years, deserves a slot this high on my list. Schrek's vampire is one of the creepiest portrayals the silver screen has to offer, and will chill you to the marrow.

1.) Charlie Chaplin as "The Tramp" in The Gold Rush (1925): Certainly an enduring character from an undeniable genius, Chaplin's "Tramp" is easily my favorite film performance of the 1910s/20s. What makes it so great is simple - he's unimaginably funny, and also totally realistic. It's a thoroughly convincing performance, with each second he's on screen providing a commanding comic presence. If you've never seen a Chaplin movie, then this is a terrific place to start. While Chaplin went on to make much better films, this performance may be his very best.