Under the knock of wheels Despite the fact that the film is not fully preserved, it looks holistically as a complete story. Perhaps additional scenes would reveal the events even more fully. But in any case, the talent of Abel Hans is clearly revealed in the extant version.
The love story underlying the film is fantastic to the point of absurdity. Here we see the “suffocating” suffering of hearts, picture gestures, wringing of hands. The selfishness and emotional deafness of the heroes lead to inevitable tragedy. And that's when something amazing happens. Abel Hans with the help of expressive images transforms the heroes, showing them real humanity. The hands of a blind man clogging a nail; a close-up of a dying man with a smile on his face; a rushing dance as a symbol of continuing life.
"Wheel" at the same time shows the life of ordinary workers of the railway. Heavy, dirty, noisy. And this is especially striking against the background of the dreams of one of the heroes, in which he leads a serene courtly life of the upper world of old. The railway motif in general is the main one and permeates the whole film. Not so long ago appeared and rapidly developing mode of transport inspires both awe and anxiety. It opens up new horizons, but its power excites, gets out of control, and now a multi-ton machine at great speed brings destruction. Experiments with ragged editing and rhythm speed brilliantly, with love embodied by the author. The influence of the new avant-garde wave of French cinema, combined with the epic manner of storytelling, eventually resulted in one of the masterpieces of the 1920s.
Original