My take: Apparently, the sound of the wind can drive you insane, and the lead actress in this movie does a damn fine job showing that.

The Wind is the seventh movie in Studies in Terror, and it is not strictly a horror film. It is the story of Letty, a young woman from Virginia who moves to Texas to live with on her cousin’s ranch. On the train ride there, she encounters a man who informs her that the strong winds in this area do not stop and frequently drive woman insane. Letty stares in horror out the window at the strong gale beating dust against the pane.

Gish in The Wind

Lillian Gish in The Wind.

In Texas, Letty lives with her cousin for only a short time because his wife is jealous of her. She is forced to pick a suitor, and she moves into his home where the wind seems to creep through the walls and shake the home.

This story is all about the wind and how it drives and mirrors Letty’s behavior. Letty is played by silent film star Lilian Gish, who produced the film. It is evident how much Ms. Gish cared about this role. She does a phenomenal job displaying complex emotions without needing to verbalize them.

They filmed the movie in the Mohave desert, and used 8 airplanes with propellers to simulate the strong winds necessary for the story. Lilian Gish stated that it was her most uncomfortable film experience with the devastating heat and gusting sand.

the wind poster

Movie poster for The Wind.

This really is the silent film-era at its best, and it is sad that this film came at the end of that era. The Wind was released right after the first talkies hit theaters, which is unfortunate. I wonder what epic silent stories have been lost as a result of sound in motion picture.

I would recommend this movie to people who like psychological terror, western dramas and classic films. It is not an easy film to get ahold of though. I had to order a Spanish version of the DVD from Amazon. Spanish DVDs will not play on a standard American DVD player. Fortunately, VLC media player will play just about anything and it started right up when I popped the DVD into my computer. The intertitles were all in English too and only slightly blocked by the Spanish subtitles at the bottom of the screen.

Here is a trailer I found on youtube that can give you a good sense of the film: