Sensation Seekers Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Sensation Seekers Blu-ray Movie Review

Sensation Seekers is a delightful and charming silent era production from the creative mind of auteur female writer-director Lois Weber. Presented by Carl Laemmle, Sensation Seekers is based on the story “Egypt” (by Ernest Pascal). Sensation Seekers stars Billie Dove, Raymond Bloomer, Huntley Gordon, and Peggy Montgomery. Fans of classic silent era films with a strong artistic voice and creative penchant will appreciate the filmmaking.

Luena ‘Egypt’ Hagen (Billie Dove) is a spirited young woman with big dreams and a sense of adventure – and Egypt has an unyielding sense of desire. Egypt wants to escape from her small-town roots and live a life on her own terms (not on the terms of anyone else in her community). A community minister, Reverend Lodge (Raymond Bloomer), attempts to stop Egypt from her “wild ways” and keep her in check. Yet Egypt continues to long for more than the small town or the local minister can offer her. As the small-town tale unfolds, a masquerade ball and a shipwreck ensue – and entertaining moments of spectacle follow.

Billie Dove delivers a wonderful performance in the central role. Dove is a terrific actress and she has a lot of fun with her role. Dove delves in to her part and has a lot of fun with the storyline. This is a fun early silent era performance by Dove and the performance helps to carry the filmmaking forward in style. The results are terrific and there is plenty to celebrate about the filmmaking.

The cinematography by Benjamin H. Kline (Troopers Three, Deadline for Murder) serves the filmmaking well. The cinematography is in lush black and white and the evocative style of the cinematography is compelling throughout the production. There is a lot to appreciate about the cinematographic style. Everything clicks well with the production.

Edited by Maurice Pivar (Frankenstein, Dracula) and Thomas Pratt (Shadows on the Stairs, She Loved a Fireman), Sensation Seekers is a well cut film. The pace and rhythm of the filmmaking are excellent. Joyous editing and a great sense of vitality throughout the filmmaking helps the silent production impress in spades.

Under the art direction of Charles D. Hall (Frankenstein, The Bride of Frankenstein), Sensation Seekers is a well-mounted production with a lot of terrific artistic elements. The art direction is on full display as the film explores the masquerade ball and the shipwreck sequence. Both of these sequences require plenty of skill from the art director. Hall delivers a wonderful effort for the production.

The score composed by Arthur Barrow (Torrent, Saviors of the Forest) is a delightful and upbeat score for the silent era film. Barrow delivers a wonderfully engaging score for Sensation Seekers. Fans of classic films all understand how vital the score is to the storytelling. Without a good score, you can’t have a worthwhile presentation of a silent classic. The scoe by Barrow exudes confidence and skill and is a integral part of the experience here.

Directed by Lois Weber (White Heat, A Chapter in Her Life), using her own screenplay, Sensation Seekers is a terrific example of the brilliance of silent-era filmmaking and the charm inherent in the early silent classics. There is a lot to appreciate about the filmmaking and the sense of rhythm on display from filmmaker Weber. As an early era auteur working in a system overwhelmed by men, Weber was certainly a pioneer female voice and a great director. Sensation Seekers is an under-seen gem.

Sensation Seekers Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Arriving on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber, Sensation Seekers is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high definition in the original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.33:1 full frame. The presentation is from a brand new 2K restoration completed by Universal Pictures. The 2K restoration looks quite lovely. Remarkably crisp, clear, and detailed, the scan looks far better than one would expect given the condition of the original materials was likely in poor shape. The print looks clean overall despite occasional examples of minor wear to the print. A solid restoration effort by Universal.

Sensation Seekers Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release is presented in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. The lossless music soundtrack sounds crisp and dynamic. The wonderful score is beautifully reproduced and highlighted by the high-quality audio encoding. The track is simply enjoyable from beginning to end and with no issues to report. The presentation is top-notch.

Sensation Seekers Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Audio Commentary by Shelley Stamp (author of Lois Weber in Early Hollywood)

Sensation Seekers Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Sensation Seekers is a wonderful silent-era gem. The under-seen silent era classic is a wonderful showcase for the creative talent of writer-director Lois Weber (White Heat). Weber was a true pioneer, working within the studio system as an actress, writer, and director. Weber made a great film and the 2K restoration by Universal Pictures is excellent as well. The Blu-ray release from Kino Lorber also provides a fantastic lossless audio soundtrack. Highly recommended.