Falling Waters Of Yosemite (1939)

Year Published: 1939

Creator: A/V Geeks 16mm Films

Description: "Falling Waters of Yosemite (silent)" is a beautiful, approximately 15-minute vintage silent nature film that takes viewers on a lyrical tour of Yosemite Valley's famous waterfalls entirely through black-and-white cinematography and ornate intertitles. The film opens with a poetic proclamation that "nowhere else on earth can there be found such a glorious array of waterfalls in so concentrated an area," and then introduces each waterfall by name with descriptive cards. The first subject is Cascade Fall, described as "unseen, unappreciated by the great majority, though possessing much beauty," and shown in close-up with water tumbling over dark, mossy rocks. The film then moves to Yosemite Falls — "as seen from Glacier Point, in three 'steps' it drops the astounding distance of 2400 feet" — presenting both sweeping wide shots of the granite cliffs with slender threads of water dropping from enormous heights and intimate close-ups of the churning mist and rock at the base. Secondary intertitles narrate the experience poetically, noting how "Yosemite Creek nears the valley's rim" and how "with a wild leap the waters of the upper fall plunge 1430 feet to the rocks below," while other cards describe the lower fall "hiding in its own mist." Throughout, the cinematography alternates between majestic wide-angle valley panoramas — tall pines framing vertical granite walls, blue skies with clouds, distant mountain silhouettes — and thrilling extreme close-ups of white water crashing over boulders, roaring plunge pools, and fine mist clouds billowing upward. A broad, powerful waterfall (likely Vernal Fall) is shown in a particularly stunning composition surrounded by conifers. In the final section the film shifts to a winter tableau, with snow-laden pine branches and a tranquil, ice-rimmed river, before closing with a beautifully worded final intertitle — "a snowflake, a rivulet, a mountain stream, a torrent — then the peace and quiet of the wide, gentle river as it flows to the sea" — followed by a breathtaking last shot of the calm Merced River reflecting the sky, with the unmistakable form of Half Dome rising in the background.

Online Copy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3AKUXT2_wJ4

Metadata Source:YouTube