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7.2/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 7.2/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. The Far Paradise remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
If you’re the kind of person who needs explosions or fast talking to stay awake, you should probably skip The Far Paradise right now. But if you’ve got a soft spot for those old-school silent melodramas where people stare intensely at each other for five minutes, it’s actually a pretty good time. 🍿
I watched this on a rainy afternoon and it felt like finding an old, slightly blurry postcard in the back of a drawer. It’s from 1928, so you have to go in knowing the acting is going to be a bit much by today's standards.
The movie kicks off with Cherry Carson, played by Marie Lorraine, who is honestly the main reason to even watch this. She has these massive, expressive eyes that seem to take up half her face when she’s sad or in love.
She meets this guy James on a train trip, and they have one of those classic movie romances where they barely speak (obviously) but decide they’re soulmates within about ten miles of track. It’s cute, if a little unrealistic, but that’s just how movies worked back then.
The problem is James is the son of her father's biggest enemy. It’s a total Romeo and Juliet vibe but with more suits and less stabbing, mostly just a lot of angry businessmen looking at ledgers.
I noticed there’s this one scene where Cherry is leaning against a tree, and the way the light hits the film makes everything look all glowy and soft. It’s a really pretty shot, even with the scratches on the print I saw.
Her dad is such a grump, though. He spends most of the movie looking like he just smelled something bad, usually whenever James is mentioned.
The guy playing James, Paul Longuet, is fine, I guess. He mostly just looks handsome and stands around waiting for Cherry to do something dramatic.
Sometimes the title cards—the text on screen—last way too long. I found myself reading the sentence three times before the movie actually cut back to the actors. It’s like the editor thought we were all very slow readers in 1928.
There’s a weirdly specific moment where they’re at a party and you can see a guy in the background who looks like he’s just so bored to be there. I wonder if he was just an extra who didn't think anyone would notice him ninety years later.
It reminded me a bit of the energy in The Strong Man, though that one is way funnier. This one is strictly for the people who want to feel some big emotions while sitting in the dark.
The whole thing about the "Far Paradise" title feels a bit dramatic, but I guess it refers to the life they want away from their feuding families. It’s a bit cheesy, sure, but it’s the good kind of cheese.
I did find myself drifting off during some of the business talk scenes. Nobody watches a silent movie to see guys in three-piece suits argue about money through text boxes.
It’s definitely better than some other stuff from that era, like Clara Cleans Her Teeth, which is just... well, it’s about teeth. This at least has a heart and some actual stakes.
There is a scene near the end where Cherry has to make a choice, and the camera just stays on her face for a long time. It’s actually quite moving, and you can see why she was a star back in the day.
I also liked the old Australian scenery. It’s wild to see what the countryside looked like before it was all covered in highways and fast-food places.
The ending comes on pretty fast. One minute they’re miserable and the next, well, things wrap up in a way that feels a little too convenient, but I wasn't complaining. I was ready for a happy ending.
If you've seen Jazz Mad, you'll know that these 1920s films love their family drama, and this fits right into that mold. It’s not a masterpiece that will change your life, but it’s a solid bit of history.
Don't expect it to be fast. Just let it wash over you like a weird, black-and-white dream. 📽️
Also, the music in the version I saw was a bit repetitive. It was just the same piano loop over and over, which started to get on my nerves around the one-hour mark.
Still, for a movie that's almost a century old, it’s held up surprisingly well. It makes you realize that people have been falling for the "wrong" person since forever.
I’d say give it a watch if you’re into the history of Australian film or just want to see some really great 1920s fashion. Cherry’s hats alone are worth the price of admission, if you could still buy tickets for this.
IMDb 6
1924
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