I thought it’d be fun [and geeky] to point out what makes it “old” or a “silent film” (aside from the fact that it’s silent, smartass):
Obviously, there’s the scratched film from bad preservation of the original footage.
And the black and white, but more than that is the seemingly bad exposure in black and white, maybe trying to give the feeling of bad film stock.
The graininess also points towards inferior film stock. The death star is dark, apparently they needed high-speed (high ASA) film.
The speediness of the movements is indicative of (correct me if I’m wrong) how silent films were shot at lower frame rates and when they’re played back at 24 fps, the action is essentially undercranked (sped up).
The shaking of the whole frame, which I think could either be hinting to it being played back on a bad projector or that the camera used to shoot Ye Olde Star Wars was unstable, not keeping the film in one spot as it was reeling through. It’s probably the latter.
And the piano! It feels like we’re in a stuffy theater in the 1920’s and John Williams is playing up in front.
Leave a comment if I missed something. Or what could be added to complete the experience of a silent film? You all probably got better grades than I did in History of World Cinema.