Underground (1928)

A porter (Brian Aherne) and an electrician (Cyril McLaglen) both fall in love with a shop girl (Elissa Landi) that they meet in the London underground station. When the shop girl shows a clear preference for the porter, the electrician involves the seamstress (Norah Baring) hopelessly in love with him in his plan to sabotage the relationship with eventual tragic results. Directed by Anthony Asquith (PYGMALION) in only his second film, this is a lovely romantic drama with basically only four characters although there are very minor characters through out, they're of not much importance. It's also a reminder of how visually arresting and fluid silent cinema was at this time before going stagnant in the very early stages of sound films. Much of the imagery is fresh and contemporary which elevates what might have been a simple romantic triangle gone wrong into a cinematic experience. The restored transfer I saw had a wonderful orchestral underscore by Neil Brand.