Absolutely the worst movie.

Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

With one night in town while the ship is at port, we follow our lead stoker into a world of bars, brutes, brawls and bawdiness, where the only objective is to have a good time, all else be damned, which you get the sense has happened many times before, at many cities around the world, whenever they get a night at port. When a young woman attempts suicide by jumping into the water, our stoker dives in to save her, and thus begins a very unromantic love tale. Being who he is, this is seen only as an opportunity to bed her, and being promiscuous herself, she is only too happy to go along with it.In a strange twist that doesn't make a lot of sense, they decide to get married then and there in the bar, and lo and behold, a paster just happens to be in the vicinity, and lo and behold, he just happens to agree to the ceremony, despite being opposed to the idea, and despite their not having the license! Apparently everyone considers this a great deal of fun - well, I guess they're all drunk!The next day we are supposed to get the idea the two of them have changed their ways, and this hasty, illegal, drunken marriage was actually the best thing for them. He leaves her to get back on the ship, before suddenly deciding the stoking life is not for him anymore, and swims back to shore. In the meantime she has been arrested for the possession of clothes he stole for her, but is saved by his reappearance and admittance of guilt, and they are for sure going to live happily ever after, just as soon as he's served his stint in jail.Poor as the story is, I still highly recommend 'The Docks of New York' on account of the first 30 odd minutes, by which point the plot hasn't yet completely disintegrated, and are some of the most beautiful put to film. The fire steamed boat, the smokey bar and the misty dock create a wonderfully hazy atmosphere, seducing us into this messy world far more convincingly than the characters seduce each other. If only they had ended it then, it would have been a classic.

Josef von Sternberg's visually romantic melodrama heralded the last gasp of classic silent film expression before the arrival of sound technology set the art of movie-making back 30 years. Moving from poetic realism to dramatic fantasy, the fairy tale plot follows a cruel, amoral ship's stoker who rescues a waterfront moll from attempting suicide. In a local tavern, after one drink and one fight too many, he casually decides to marry the girl, going through the motions in a farcical bar room wedding with no intention of honoring his vows. The scenario, characters, and themes of redemption are all well grounded in the particular moral and social climate of the late 1920s, but technically the film is equal to anything made since. Had it been produced just months later, it might have been little more than another novelty item from the primitive early sound era, instead of the artistic triumph it remains today.

For me, this comes a close second to "Underworld" in Sternberg's films: the twists and turns of the melodramatic plot become ultimately a little too much for me to swallow (a twist too far?), and I found some of the camera devices simply distracting, but even so the film is more or less won by virtue of the impressive acting from all concerned. Betty Compson (who was soon to receive a well-deserved Oscar nomination for her role in the part-talkie "The Barker") stands out as the fragile, cynical girl who has "had too many good times" already but allows herself to believe in the possibility of redemption; Baclanova is memorable as the petty officer's deserted wife, while George Bancroft is a cheerful, callous but not unkindly Colossus of a stoker. The weary, sensitive features of Gustav von Seyffertitz, in a small role as the threadbare Bible-basher who ministers to this godless 'flock', also make a strong impression. The film is almost all atmosphere, but it is atmosphere well-done.

It's the fine directing and good performances that really make the film worth watching. The story is interesting enough, covering one night ashore in the life of ship stoker, Bill Roberts (George Bancroft), and the mysterious beauty he meets (Betty Compson). Bancroft is all masculinity as Roberts, a man who won't let anything or anyone stand in the way of what he wants. He meets his match, though, in Compson, who is all sex appeal as Mea, the seductive but troubled blonde with a dark past. These two are backed up with good supporting performances from the rest of the cast, the only exception being Olga Baclanova, who hams it up more than necessary. Director Josef Von Sternberg handles the ensemble cast well, giving each character importance. He also does a good job of portraying and letting us experience the seedy life they live. Nonetheless, some of the main characters aren't fleshed out enough for us to understand their actions. The film also tries too hard at times to be shocking and edgy. All in all, it's not the best film ever, but it has enough good qualities to be enjoyable.