The Musketeers of Pig Alley
A tender young woman and her musician husband attempt to eke out a living in the slums of New York City, but find themselves caught in the crossfires of gang violence.
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⭐ Featured Review
"A pioneering short by filmmaking giant D.W. Griffith, "The Musketeers of Pig Alley" is a decent flick featuring one of the first depictions of gangsters onscreen and one of the early uses of follow focus. A series of events portray the life of the poor in all its rough messiness: death, arguments, gang wars, fistfights, shootouts, date rapes, crowded and dirty streets, shabby lodgings, etc.. Elmer Booth personified the image of the gangster of early film with his cocky and self-assured jauntiness setting the stage for future tough guys like James Cagney and Edward G. Robinson. Lillia..."
💡 Did You Know?
Most likely the first film to ever use follow-focus. D.W. Griffith convinced his most trusted cameraman, G.W. Bitzer, to fade out the background when the three gangsters walk towards the alley in the opening scene. During this era a cameraman was judged on how sharp and clear his picture was, so Griffith had to take him to an art museum and show him how the background was out of focus and the characters were in focus to convince him to do the effect on the shot. The focusing method is still used.
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📖 Synopsis
A tender young woman and her musician husband attempt to eke out a living in the slums of New York City, but find themselves caught in the crossfires of gang violence.