Commentary
How short is too short to be a great movie? In the 1930s, Hollywood had the formula of telling a complete story in just over an hour perfected to an art. Films from the early 1930s were very fast-paced because the technology of the early talking films didn’t allow for much movement of the camera. Even as cameras began to move, 1930s movies included little footage outside of the soundstage, little background music, and very little wasted time. That allowed them to pack a lot into a short runtime, which was useful with double or triple features.
