7.8/10
Senior Film Conservator

A definitive 7.8/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. Diary of a Lost Girl remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
You should definitely watch this if you want to see the best haircut in the history of movies. Louise Brooks is basically the whole show here and her face is so expressive it makes modern actors look like they are asleep.
If you hate silent movies or get annoyed by old-fashioned drama where people faint a lot, you will probably hate this. But for everyone else, it’s a trip. 🎬
There is this guy Meinert who works at the pharmacy. He is played by Fritz Rasp and he looks like a human snake. The way he creeps around the corners of the house is legitimately terrifying.
He gets Thymian pregnant and her family just tosses her out like she is literal trash. It is so mean it actually made me a bit mad while watching.
The reform school part of the movie is where things get really bizzare. The lady in charge has this giant gong that she hits while the girls are trying to eat.
The girls have to move their spoons at the exact same time. It feels like a robot factory but for sad teenagers in white dresses. 🥣
I noticed one of the girls in the background of the reform school looks like she is about to laugh during a serious moment. It’s a tiny mistake but it made me like the movie more because it feels real.
Compared to something like Thais, this feels way less like a stage play. It feels like a real life that was captured on film by accident.
Louise Brooks doesn't do that weird silent movie acting where people grab their throats and look at the ceiling. She just stares at the camera and you know exactly what she is thinking. It’s kind of spooky how good she is.
The dad is such a loser in this movie. He just lets his mistress run the whole house and he can't even look his daughter in the eye. I wanted to reach into the screen and shake him.
The movie gets a bit messy toward the end when she goes to the brothel. The pacing gets fast and then slow and then fast again for no reason. 🏃♀️
It is definitely more exciting than Rip Van Winkle because there is actually some grit to it. People are being horrible to each other constantly.
There is a scene where she is dancing in a club later on and she looks so bored even though she is supposed to be having fun. I think that was a choice. Or maybe she was just tired of filming that day.
I didn't really get why the ending happened the way it did. It felt like they wanted a happy ending but didn't quite know how to get there after all the misery.
Also, the music in the version I found was kind of annoying. It was too upbeat for a story about a girl losing everything. 🎹
The cinematography is actually really cool when they are in the dark hallways. The shadows look like they are swallowing the characters whole.
I wonder if anyone actually liked that pharmacist guy in real life. Fritz Rasp has a face that only a mother could love, and even then, she’d probably be worried.
Anyway, the soup scene is the part you will remember. The sound of that gong is burned into my brain even though it's a silent film. That is some powerful directing right there.

IMDb —
1921
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