The First Great Film

Rating: 9/10 (5 July 2002)

The Birth of a Nation, at a previously unheard of 3-hour length, pioneered the feature film as a cultural phenomenon in the world. Between its premiere in 1915 and the first talking picture it grossed a staggering $18 million. Given the cost of seeing a film in those days, it is perhaps no overstatement to say that, per capita, this film drew more viewers into theaters during its time than any other in all of history.
Yet many see it today as just a racist film put together by a complete bigot. Well, that is a social (not a film) criticism. The truth is that in this film D. W. Griffith  whether he actually invented the narrative elements or not  did absolutely everything it was possible to do with a camera at that time. He also managed to do this with material that was obviously very meaningful to the viewers of the day. The audience consisted largely of first and second generation descendents of what remains this nation's greatest national tragedy. Developing such material in a complex, provocative, and entertaining manner is a towering achievement that deserves to be viewed and cherished in its own right without social judgment.
Setting content aside and looking at cinematic innovation we see that The Birth of a Nation set standards by dictating its own orchestral score, by the use of parallel action, and by cross-cutting edits to heighten a sense of suspense when appropriate. It was the first film to depict night scenes. Griffith directed intimate close-ups as well as vast panoramic natural landscapes, using both intelligently to evoke specific emotional responses. As I said, it can be argued that Griffith did not invent all of these elements, but certainly no other film prior to The Birth of a Nation put them together as a singular artistic vision of this magnitude.
It is not analyzing the film very deeply to discern only its racist perspective and allow that greater weight than the absolute facts of its overwhelming popularity (in the face of significant controversy even in its time) and its technical triumphs. The Birth of a Nation is the world's first great film and it easily ranks with the best work of Chaplin and Keaton in achieving the highest quality of art in the silent picture format.