The Jazz Singer (1927)

016110 / G / US / 1927 / Crosland, Alan / / music

Jazz Singer, The / Jazzlaulaja. PC: Warner Bros. EX: Jack Warner. D: Alan Crosland. Based on the play by Samson Raphaelson and his short story ”Day of Atonement”. Music performed by the Vitaphone Orchestra. CAST: Al Jolson (Jakob Rabinowitz / Jack Robin), Eugenie Besserer (Mammy - Sara Rabinowitz), Warner Oland (Cantor Rabinowitz), May McAvoy (Mary Dale), Cantor Josef Rosenblatt. 89’. 1,2. Originally a silent film with sound on disc. The Israeli Film Archive print screened had sound on film. Pordenone, Cinema Verdi, Saturday 18 October 1997. *** 70th Anniversary Celebration. Bad direction, bad acting, and bad camerawork. Even Al Jolson does not help. Pop dinosaurs don’t project in films even now in the age of Madonna, and that curse started with Jolson: charisma magnetic to a huge live audience does not transfer automatically to a great film performance. I don’t even like Jolson’s songs, although I’d love to see a feature-length concert documentary of him. He is perhaps even after Elvis and The Beatles the most legendary performer of the century. To sum up, here is a rare instance where a magnificent screenplay shines through a clumsy mise-en-scene. The story is strong and simple. It is the story of popular culture: the reconciliation of the sacred and the profane. ”In show business we have our own religion, too”. The calling of show business can also be holy. Jack says that performing is now more important to him than anything else. The Jazz Singer is one of the most blatant Oedipal stories of the screen. Challenging his father, disowned by him, but never forgotten by mother, Jakob / Jack wanders through the world searching for his soul. Jakie’s first song is dedicated to ”Mother Divine”. ”He is not my boy anymore. He belongs to the whole world now”, says the mother crying in the audience. The father falls on his deathbed, and on Yom Kippur, The Day of Atonement, Jack takes his place singing the ”Kol Nidre”. The father’s ghost blesses the son and vanishes. The scene is one of the most electrifying in film history. Musically, it’s Jolson’s best in the film. The other religious performances are great, as well, especially that of Cantor Josef Rosenblatt.

A Corner In Wheat (1997 screening of a 35 mm print from Münchner Filmmuseum)

D. W. Griffith: A Corner in Wheat (US 1909). The wheat king (Frank Powell) is found crushed under his wheat just when he has achieved total control of the world market.

/ / US / 1909 / Griffith, D. W. / / drama

Corner In Wheat, A. PC: Biograph. D: D. W. Griffith. CAST: James Kirkwood, Linda Arvidson, Frank Powell. 292 m /15 fps/ 17’. Münchner Filmmuseum print. Grand piano: Donald Sosin. Le Giornate Muto (GCM), Pordenone, Cinema Verdi, on Saturday, 18 October 1997. **** The title means wheat monopoly. As I knew previously only a 16 mm paper print transfer of the film, the discovery was startling. Firstly, in contrast to the clumsy and pedestrian Griffiths of only a year earlier. Secondly, in comparison to any modern filmmaking. The laconic force, the immediacy, the boldness of the idea. Lastly, there is the theme of exploitation: the power of the grain speculators versus the suffering of the have-nots.

...

Russell Merritt (GCM 1997): "A Corner in Wheat, shot mid-November 1909, occupies a pivotal role in Griffith's career at Biograph, and more generally, in early motion picture history. It is fair to say that film audiences had never seen anything quite like it: a movie that brought principles of parallel editing to new levels of abstraction, stretched narrative form as never before, and above all, used the power of moving images to express outrage over an ongoing social injustice." -RM

Pabst wieder sehen

/ / DE / 1997 / Pabst, G.W. / / documentary

Pabst wieder sehen / Revoir Pabst. PC: ZDF. D: Wolfgang Jacobsen, Martin Koerber, René Perraudin. ARTE Betacam PAL big screen projection 60’. Deutsche Fassung. Pordenone, Ridotto del Verdi, Saturday 18 October 1997. **** A first rate documentary on the elusive and erratic genius. Lots of exciting new footage from recently discovered materials and the latest restorations of Münchner Filmmuseum.

Julius Pinschewer’s Commercials Part II: Kupferberg Gold Champagne

/ / DE / 1912-1922 / Pinschewer, Julius / commercial

Brilliant prints from Bundesarchiv Berlin. 18 fps. Pordenone, Cinema Verdi, Friday, 17 October 1997.
Pierrot auf dem Eise! (1920)
Marionetten (1922)
Schmuggler-Jagd (1920)
Feindlichen Brüder, Die (1920)
Faun und Mädchen. Ein Schattenspiel von Julius Pinschewer (1920)
Ahnenbild, Das (1920)
Colombinchen (1920)
Tanz der Flaschen II (1912)
Sekt-Zauber (1920) DP: Guido Seeber.

Will Day IV – Points de vue sur le monde

Cecil M. Hepworth: Panorama of the Paris Exhibition nº 3 (GB 1900). My screenshot from: / view movie at: YouTube: 1900 – Panorama of the Paris Exhibition nº 3.

The Prince of Wales on the Deck of the ”Britannia” on the Riviera. GB 1897.

John Tester Queen Victoria’s State Visit to Ireland. GB 1900
Panoramic View on the Thames. GB 1900. Cecil Hepworth
Panoramic View of the Paris Exhibition. GB 1900. Cecil Hepworth
London Prepared to Make the Coronation of Edward VII a Wonderful Spectacle. GB 1901
Edward VII’s Delhi Durbar. GB 1902.
Memorial to Indian Prince at Bexhill. GB 1910. Gaumont Graphic
St. Martin-De-Ré. A Convoy of Convicts Departs For a French Penal Settlement. GB 1912. Pathé War The War of the Five Nations. GB 1912. Pathé’s Animated Gazette
State Visit of Their Majesties to Berlin for the Wedding of the Kaiser’s Daughter. GB 1910. Gaumont Graphic
French Train Disaster at Melun. GB 1913. Gaumont Graphic
London Wants a Dreadnought. The Great Demonstration in Trafalgar Square. GB 1913. Gaumont Graphic
A Trip to the White Sea Fisheries. GB 1909. Rosie Films. D: Joe Rosenthal

Der weisse Teufel / The White Devil

Alexandre Volkoff: Der weisse Teufel (1930). Ivan Mosjoukine as Hadzhi Murat.

Alexandre Volkoff: Der weisse Teufel (1930). Hadzhi Murat (Ivan Mosjoukine) and his son (Kenneth Rive). Quelle: Murnau-Stiftung, DIF, © Horst von Harbou - Deutsche Kinemathek.

Alexandre Volkoff: Der weisse Teufel (1930). Hadzhi Murat (Ivan Mosjoukine). Quelle: Murnau-Stiftung, DIF, © Horst von Harbou - Deutsche Kinemathek

016331 / G / DE / 1929 / Volkoff, Alexandre / drama

Weisse Teufel, Der / The White Devil / Valkoinen paholainen.
    PC: Ufa. P: Noé Bloch, Gregor Rabinovich.
    D: Alexandre Volkoff. Based on the story Hadzhi Murat by Leo Tolstoy. DP: Curt Courant, Nikolai Toporkoff. M performed by Ufaton-Orchester.
    C: Ivan Mozzhuhin (Hadzhi Murat), Betty Amann (Saira), Lil Dagover (Nelidova). B&w silent with music track. Sonorized SDK print 96’.
    In the presence of Kenneth Rive, who plays Hadzhi Murat’s son.
    Pordenone, Cinema Verdi, Friday 17 October 1997.

**** Another forgotten masterpiece from the last years of the silent era. Marvellous production has great dramatic force and an excellent performance by the great Mozzhuhin… in his best role? I have seen some 10-15 of his films, from his early Russian farces to Casanova, from Father Sergius to Michael Strogoff, and this beats them all. This is also one of the best Tolstoy film adaptations.

Abwege / The Devious Path (Munich print GCM 1997)

G. W. Pabst: Abwege / The Devious Path (DE 1928) with Gustav Diessl (Rechtsanwalt Dr. Thomas Beck) and Brigitte Helm (Irene Beck).

015431 / 16 / DE / 1928 / Pabst, G. W. / / drama

Abwege / Harhateillä / Hett blod / Crisis / Desire / Crise / Crisi. PC: Erda-Film. D: G. W. Pabst. DP: Theodor Sparkuhl. CAST: Brigitte Helm, Gustav Diessl, Hertha von Walther. Silent b&w. Münchner Filmmuseum print /20 fps/ 96’. Pordenone, Cinema Verdi, Friday 17 October 1997. *** A discovery: a forgotten Pabst film that was 25 years ahead of its time, charting the same areas of alienated relationships as Rossellini and Antonioni in the 1950s. Brigitte Helm ”in her best performance”? Maybe.

There It Is

/ / US / 1928 / Bowers, Charles R. / comedy

There It Is. PC: Educational Pictures. D: Charles R. Bowers. CAST: Charles R. Bowers. GEH print /22 fps/ 20’. Pordenone, Cinema Verdi, Friday 17 October 1997. **** Weird comedy featuring Scotland Yard and Daffydil Sanitarium.

At The Villa Rose

/ / GB / 1920 / Elvey, Maurice / / crime

At The Villa Rose. PC: Stoll Film. D: Maurice Elvey. Based on the novel by A.E.W. Mason. CAST: Manora Thew, Langhorne Burton, Norman Page. 1877 m /18 fps/ 91’. Silent, tinted + toned by Harold Brown. NFTVA print presented by Clyde Jeavons. Piano by Edward von Past. Pordenone, Cinema Verdi, Thursday, 16 October, 1997. ** Dull detective mystery.

High Treason

016464 / 16 / GB / 1929 / Elvey, Maurice / / science fiction

High Treason / Sodan uhka vuonna 1940. PC: Gaumont British. D: Maurice Elvey. CAST: Jameson Thomas, Benita Hume, Basil Gill. 2056 m /24 fps/ 75’. Silent version. NFTVA. Piano by Neil Brand. Pordenone, Cinema Verdi, Thursday 16 October 1997. * Utterly boring.

Nathan der Weise / Nathan the Wise (1922)

Manfred Noa : Nathan der Weise / Nathan the Wise (DE 1922) starring (right) Werner Krauss.

/ / DE / 1922 / Noa, Manfred / / historical drama
Nathan der Weise / Die Erstürmung Jerusalems. PC: Filmhaus Bavaria. D: Manfred Noa. Based on the play (1779) by Lessing. CAST: Werner Krauss (Nathan), Carl de Vogt, Max Schreck. 

    2675 m /18 fps/ 128 min
    Unreleased in Finland.

    Münchner Filmmuseum / Gosfilmofond. 

    Pordenone, Cinema Verdi, Thursday 16 October 1997. 

*** Epic adaptation of Lessing’s play made during the Golden Era of German cinema presents exciting mass scenes and a striking mise-en-scène based on symmetry and graphic forms, including masks and vignettes. The film is faithful to the concept of the play - the tragedy of the ”Holy War” of Jerusalem. The staging of the tale of the three rings is impressive. Each of the sons (symbolising Judaism, Christianity and Islam) is given ”the only true ring” by the father. ”He who has the true ring will be revealed by his love of humanity”. It is a tale no less relevant today than when it was written. The film’s release in Munich led to the earliest anti-semitic riots of the Nazi Party.

Will Day III - Le Cinéma des origines

/ / GB / 1890 / Friese-Greene, William / non-fiction
Hyde Park, London. Vertical 65mm transferred to 35mm. 1’.
King’s Road, Chelsea, London. 60mm transferred to 35mm. 1’.
Stereoscopic Film: Hyde Park. 155mm transferred to 35mm. 1’. The greatest treasures of the Will Day collection: the Friese-Greene fragments probably represent ”the world’s first films on celluloid, the first perforated films, and the first films shot on outside locations” (DR). They look beautiful today transferred to the standard film format.
/ / FR / 1896 / Demenÿ, Georges / non-fiction PC: Gaumont-Demenÿ, Comptoir Générale de Photographie. 58mm transferred to 35mm.
Station Ménilmontant, chemin de fer de ceinture
Dancing Girl No. 2
Débarcadère du bateau à vapeur Wilhelm Tell
Dispute espagnole / / US / 1897 / Mutoscope and Biograph / non-fiction PC: Mutoscope and Biograph Company. 68mm transferred to 35mm
[Halle au vin, No 1]
[Halle au vin, No 2]
[Cachette, La] / / GB / 1898 / Biokam camera / / non-fiction Short movies filmed on Biokam camera. 17,5mm transferred to 35mm.
Bain de mer No 1
Bain de mer No 2
Rival Clothiers, The / / GB / 1903 / Jumeaux & Davidson / non-fiction
Trichrome Experimental Film. Colour system by Benjamin Jumeaux and William Norman Lascelles Davidson. / / GB / 1912 / Friese-Greene, William / non-fiction
Posters On Hoarding. Colour system by William Friese-Greene, produced by Lascelles Davidson. / / GB / 1896 / Paul, Robert William / non-fiction
Engineer’s Shop At Nelson Dock
Westminster
Blackfriars Bridge / / GB / 1896 / Collings, Esme / / non-fiction
Children Paddling / / GB / 1899 / Bennett-Stanford, John / non-fiction
Troops Passing Over Mooder River / / GB / 1899 / Hepworth, Cecil / non-fiction
Arrival of Train-Load of Visitors at Henley Station

Will Day II - Comiques et dramas

Devil In the Studio, The. GB 1901. PC: Paul’s Animatograph Works. 2’. Mephistopheles does tricks in an artist’s studio.
How To Stop a Motor Car. GB 1902. PC: Hepworth Manufacturing. 3’. A wild trick film.
Village Fire Brigade, The. GB 1907. PC: Williamson Kinematograph. 6’
That Fatal Sneeze. GB 1907. PC: Hepworth Manufacturing. 5’. Apocalyptic sneezes.
Why Girls Leave Home. US 1908. PC: Edison. 7’. A parody of melodrama histrionics.
If We Only Knew. US 1913. PC: Biograph. D: Anthony Sullivan. CAST: Blanche Sweet, Henry B. Walthall, Harry Carey. 13’. Visually beautiful short in the Griffith style. Interesting to see Carey’s signature gesture here.

Will Day I - Autour de Will Day (1997 Pordenone screening)

"Cinematograph (Robert Royou Beard). R. R. Beard cinematograph projector with Maltese cross mechanism, ca 1897. Operated by Will Day, ca 1930." Photo and caption from: Who's Who of Victorian Cinema. © 2025 Stephen Herbert, Luke McKernan and individual contributors.

The Evolution of the Film. GB 1924. PC: Pathé Pictorial. 11’.
Will Day shows off his collection: Le Thaumatrope, Anorthoscope, Phenakistiscope, Zootrope, Praxinoscope, Praxinoscope Theatre, The Kinora, Animatograph, Méliès Projector, Cinématographe Lumière, Matagraph 1897.

The Inventor of the Kinematography. GB 1921. PC: Gaumont Graphic. 4’. Film obituary of William Friese-Greene including funeral footage: the bouquet is in the form of a projector and screen bearing the words ”The End”.

Whitewashing the Ceiling. GB 1914. P: Will Day. D: Joe Rosenthal. 13’ excerpt. Adaptation of a famous music hall sketch by Will Evans.

Will Day Home Movies. GB 1913. 2’

Hommage à Will Day 1873-1936

”Will Day was the world’s first collector of everything pertaining to archaeology and beginnings of cinema, and also a pioneer collector of actual films” (DR). Presented by Michelle Aubert and David Robinson. The films of the Will Day collection, restored by the Archive du Film du CNC, were shown publicly for the first time in Pordenone, Cinema Verdi, 16-17 October 1997. **** = invaluable.

Agadati

/ / IL / 1997 / Agadati, Baruch / documentary

Agadati: Screen of an Artist. PC: Steven Spielberg Jewish Film Archive. D+SC: Hillel Tryster. Betacam PAL big screen projection. 37’. Pordenone, Ridotto del Verdi, Wednesday, 15 October 1997. Portrait of Baruch Agadati (1895-1976), versatile pioneer filmmaker of Israel. An exciting melange of many kinds of rare old film footage.

Enrico Caruso: Lucia Di Lammermoor

/ / FR / 1908 / Caruso, Enrico / / opera

Enrico Caruso: Lucia Di Lammermoor. P: George Mendel. Gaetano Donizetti. CAST: Enrico Caruso. Print: Lobster Film. B&w with synchronized sound. 4’. Pordenone, Cinema Verdi, Wednesday, 15 October 1997. **** "Chi mi frena in tal momento". A sensational opera discovery: the grande finale of the second act of Lucia Di Lammermoor performed by six opera singers - among them Enrico Caruso as Edgardo. The primitive recording conveys the timbre of Caruso’s voice. Its conquering power is well-known from Caruso records. Here we get to witness his noble carriage and commanding presence, as well. - Comment 2008: the synchronization has been made afterwards, but it is faithful to the original sound and image of the era.

Yvette (1928) (1997 La Cinémathèque française print)

Cavalcanti: Yvette (FR 1927).

/ / FR / 1927 / Cavalcanti / / drama

Yvette. PC: Néo-Films. P: Pierre Braunberger. D: Cavalcanti. Based on the short story by Guy de Maupassant. CAST: Catherine Hessling, Ica de Lenkeffy, Blanche Bernis. /22 fps/ ca 90’. Beautiful print from La Cinémathèque française. Pordenone, Cinema Verdi, Tuesday 14 October 1997. * Cavalcanti’s riposte to Renoir’s Nana. Print beautiful, film boring.

What a Whooper

/ / US / 1921 / Pollard, Snub / / comedy

What a Whooper. PC: Hal Roach Studios. P: Hal Roach. CAST: Harry ”Snub” Pollard. Lobster Film. /18 fps/ 13’. French titles. Pordenone, Cinema Verdi, Tuesday, 14 October 1997. **** Harry returns from the bar telling his wife he was fishing. His friend tells his spouse he was hunting. Unfortunately, the fish and the duck have traded places.

Une femme a passé

/ / FR / 1928 / Jayet, René / / drama

Femme a passé, Une. D: René Jayet. CAST: Suzanne Talba, Camille Bardou, Gilbert Perigneaux. /24 fps/ 54’. Silent, toned. Brilliant print from Lobster Film. Pordenone, Cinema Verdi, Tuesday 14 October 1997. *** A visually charming French barge story in the lines of L’Hirondelle et la Mesange and L’Atalante. Fickle woman ruins lives of men and leaves them all. Suzanne Talbe: ”tous les désirs, toute la volupté résumés dans un sourire”.