“This hectic modern life”

From Abel Gance’s 1923 film La roue (The Wheel ). Elie (Gabriel de Gravone) speaks, or rather, an intertitle card speaks for him:

“Rails, wheels, smoke — how gloomy it all is! This hectic modern life is so exasperating!”

The Wheel is about four and a half hours long. We have about two hours to go. It’s an amazing film. Neither Filmstruck nor Netflix can help, but a library might have it.

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August 11: Elaine found the film on YouTube, truly silent, without a musical score: part 1, part 2.