Platicsco Good story, Not enough for a whole film

Majorthebys Charming and brutal

Contentar Best movie of this year hands down!

Helllins It is both painfully honest and laugh-out-loud funny at the same time.

statesofunrest I liked the acting, the cinematography, you could tell the director knew what he was doing. I just didn't like the story, too many clichés, no twist was unpredictable, If someone gave you just the premise (boy marries girl in the city and move to the country to help his father on the farm) you could probably guess every major plot point of the entire film. Maybe the things in this movie weren't as well-known tropes like they are now, but it kind of made me dislike the movie just seeing how overdone everything in the movie was. Would have given it a higher score otherwise, the story just brought it down.

tomgillespie2002 F.W. Murnau's penultimate film, City Girl was made just a year before his tragic death. It tells the rather simple story of a waitress named Kate (Mary Duncan) who, tired of her hectic schedule and overbearing boss, dreams of a simpler life. In steps farmer's son Lem (Charles Farrell) who is in the city in order to sell his father's product. The two fall in love, and Kate agrees to move to the country with Lem to live the farmer's life. Only after arriving, she realises that a farmer's life isn't as peaceful as she imagined, and she has to face Lem's irate father.Made as the silent era was sadly coming to an end, it was originally made as a hybrid, with long silent moments with the odd audible piece of dialogue. Apparently audiences could not take to its style and it bombed financially, but it has been recently re-discovered and restored in its complete silent form. And thank God it was, as although it comes nowhere near to the dizzying heights of Sunrise, the influential brilliance of Nosferatu, and the biting social commentary of The Last Laugh, it's a fine example of Murnau's ability as a filmmaker.It cleverly juxtaposes the naivety of the two leads who both sample a very different life, only to discover that it is every bit as stressful and brutal as their former lives. It's hardly groundbreaking, but Murnau handles the film with such a poetic elegance and intimacy rarely captured by other filmmakers. It makes it all the more tragic that most of his earlier films are now lost, including a version of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, and also that Murnau lost his life a year later after making his final film Tabu, to which he didn't make the premiere. www.the-wrath-of-blog.blogspot.com

headly66 For it's time I'm sure The City Girl was a bawdy piece of film work what with all the sexual advances and threats of rape posed by the hired hands. I'm not sure it has lost that quality as I found the hitting of women and the lechery of the men to be quite unsettling in it's reality. The film is simple, so simple it could have been written out on a couple pieces of paper, the dialog is good, the acting fair and the lighting and music exceptional. Heavy makeup on the actors especially Charles Farrell is a bit distracting and takes away from the modernness of the images. Even though this film is from 1930 you can easily relate to the times and characters. It is an enjoyable film and a time machine back to a simpler era but the story is too predictable and a bit contrived.

wes-connors Minnesota country boy Charles Farrell (as Lem) goes to Chicago, to sell the family's wheat harvest. In the hectic city, he meets pretty coffee shop waitress Mary Duncan (as Kate), who longs for the simple life. The attractive pair fall blissfully in love. After marrying Ms. Duncan, Mr. Farrell takes her home to live with his country family. But, father David Torrence (as Tustine) distrusts the "City Girl", and is angry with his son for selling his wheat at an inferior price. A stern patriarch, Mr. Torrence drives a wedge between the happy couple. To make matters worse, Duncan becomes prey for some arriving reapers… This is another stunner from director F.W. Murnau ("Sunrise"), who would so tragically die in a car accident (after only one more film). "City Girl" was produced by Mr. Murnau as a "silent" ("Our Daily Bread"); but, Fox Films recalled the movie, and turned it into a "talkie". At the time, Farrell's name was rising to the upper reaches of "Box Office" star lists, but, truth be told, only Charlie Chaplin and Greta Garbo still had the power to draw audiences to a silent movie (and, even that was fading). With re-shoots, a partially talking "City Girl" was seen briefly, and forgotten.The unearthed full length silent version was, thankfully, preserved. It is a near-perfect film. Farrell, who many felt deserves some "Best Actor" recognition fro his role in "7th Heaven", outdoes himself. Murnau, photographer Ernest Palmer, set director Harry Oliver are also award-worthy. Although she looks too startlingly glamorous in the country portions, Duncan is hot in the city. No wonder leering Richard Alexander (as Mac) couldn't keep his hands off her. The entire cast performs splendidly, right down to David Rollins giving Duncan lift at work.Sequences to re-play (if not the whole movie): Farrell walking the crowded city streets, Duncan in her apartment (where she blows the city dust off her suffocating plant), the couple's ecstatic run through his father's wheat fields, the arrival of grinning Guinn Williams and the reapers, and their harvesting scenes. Murnau's direction of the horse-driven wagons is especially spectacular. The lighting is brilliant throughout.********* City Girl (2/16/30) F.W. Murnau ~ Charles Farrell, Mary Duncan, David Torrence, Richard Alexander