Casanova (1927)
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | Casanova |
| Original title | Casanova |
| Country of production | France |
| original language | French |
| Publishing year | 1927 |
| length | approx. 133 minutes |
| Rod | |
| Director | Alexander Wolkoff |
| script |
Norbert Falk Alexander Wolkoff Iwan Mosjukin |
| production |
Gregor Rabinowitsch Noé Bloch for Ciné Alliance, Paris |
| music | Georges Delerue (new setting in 1989) |
| camera |
Léonce-Henri Burel Fedote Bourgassoff Nikolai Toporkoff |
| occupation | |
| |
Casanova is a French costume and set film from 1927 with Iwan Mosjukin in the title role . The splendid strip is also a prime example of Russian exile production in Western Europe.
action
The film traces the most important stages in the life of the legendary Venetian lover, free of historical factual accuracy. Like a picture sheet, Casanova's love affairs and encounters with women are captured in magnificent scenes. The working stations described are Venice, Austria, St. Petersburg and finally Venice again.
In the lagoon city, Casanova quickly turns the man's world against him because of his erotic lotter life, because he regularly teases husbands' wives. In addition, he is also accused of sorcery. To get rid of this annoying philanderer, the duped, including Lord Stanhope, the Supreme Court of the city republic, bombard the Council of Ten with petitions until an arrest warrant is finally issued against Casanova. At this hour the bon vivant is giving a farewell party in honor of the dancer Corticelli, who wants to leave for Russia tomorrow. The Russian officer Orloff, who deeply admires the barely clothed dancer, on a secret mission in Venice, throws the beautiful one rose after the other, which Casanova intercepts in a provocative manner with the tip of his sword. Thereupon the Russian challenged the Venetian to a degenduell, in which Orloff is slightly wounded. After that the honor is done and you get along again. The Corticelli promises her admirer Orloff to meet her in St. Petersburg.
Then Casanova thinks of having fun with the Lady Stanhope, who is devoted to him. The meeting point is a bridge. There, however, an envoy from the Council of Ten is already waiting for him with an arrest warrant. Casanova knocks the emissary down, jumps into the canal and swims to the English lady's domicile. This persuades him to flee Venice and gives Casanova, in recognition of the love services rendered, a Moorish boy as a servant on the way. His first travel destination on the way east is Austria. There Casanova met the Grand Duke of Beirut in an inn, with Therese, disguised as a man, with him. Once the Grand Duke had bought them from her mother. Casanova falls in love with the pretty young girl, frees Therese from the tyrant's hand, and they both flee. But the Muslim's men are faster, catching up with both of them, and Therese again falls into the clutches of the Grand Duke. Casanova remains tied up. When he has freed himself again, Casanova stops a passing carriage and asks that he be taken away.
On board is the tailor Dupont, who is to present the Russian Tsarina Katharina with the latest Parisian fashion. At the Russian border, Casanova meets Comtesse Maria Mari, whom he follows on the way to Russia, not without having stolen the tailor's passport and luggage the night before. At the Russian court of the tsars, Casanova is introduced as the French couturier Monsieur Dupont. In Katharina's entourage is Count Orloff, who recognizes Casanova immediately but does not betray him. Orloff, by the way also Katharina's lover, has other things to do at the moment, trying to persuade the tsarina to finally overthrow her despotic and insane husband, tsar Peter, from the throne and transport him to the afterlife. It finally comes to a coup, as a result of which Peter remains strangled in the dungeon. In the meantime, Casanova and Maria Mari have met again and immediately start to bang about. They are surprised by the jealous Tsarina, who angrily orders Maria Mari and her husband to be expelled from Russia. Casanova, however, is arrested and is supposed to be transferred to Peterhof Palace .
As luck would have it, the carriage with Casanova crosses the one with Maria Mari and her husband, so that Casanova can change carriages in a moment of general confusion without Maria's husband or Casanova's guards noticing. Instead, Casanova's Moorish boy is now being driven to Peterhof. The Tsarina immediately gives orders to chase Casanova and recapture him. But again Casanova can escape; Hiding in a farmer's wagon, he crosses the Russian state border. Then finally he returns to Venice. There they meet again with both Therese and Maria Mari. But the eternal lover is not certain here either. His countess's angry husband chases his men down on him, as does the Grand Duke, who wants to lock Therese into a monastery. Casanova kills the Arab despot in a duel and now finally frees Therese. Since the Venetian arrest warrant from the past is still valid and a suspected murder has now been added, Casanova ends up in the lead chambers of the city, awaiting his death sentence. But Therese turns out to be grateful and smuggles a saw into his dungeon. Casanova managed to escape again, and this time a sailor drove him towards new (erotic) adventures.
Production notes
The shooting of the turbulent and action-packed film, which was mainly financed with German money, took place in Venice in the first months of 1927 and ended in March of the same year. The French premiere was in Paris in June 1927, the mass start on September 13, 1927. At the beginning of June, the film is said to have celebrated its world premiere in London. The German premiere took place in the autumn of the same year; In Vienna, where there was already a show for interested parties in April 1927, Casanova went into the mass start almost at the same time, on November 4th of the same year.
As the Österreichische Film-Zeitung wrote in its edition of March 19, 1927, “[this] colossal work (…) has the largest equipment that has ever been used for a film in Europe.” In addition, colored splendor scenes were photographed for individual film passages . In order to secure international sales, the two Russian exile film producers Gregor Rabinowitsch and Noé Bloch based in Paris signed an international cast, to which Jenny Jugo and Rudolf Klein-Rogge were brought in from Germany . The famous soprano Maria Ivogün also made a small appearance. The script collective was joined by star author Norbert Falk , who is also employed in German film and who has already had a lot of experience in costume film (including the splendid Lubitsch productions Madame Dubarry , Anna Boleyn , The Woman of the Pharaoh ).
Ivan Lochakoff designed the film structures in collaboration with producer Bloch. Anatole Litvak , later a star director in France and Hollywood, assisted director Wolkoff. Even Boris Bilinski , who created the extensive costumes, was an escaped from the revolution-torn Russia artist. A total of around a dozen Russian exiles were involved in this elaborate film.
The scenes in Venice with the journeys of magnificently decorated gondolas through the canals form the optical highlight of the monumental work, which lasts over two hours. Some of these late scenes are hand-colored.
Extraordinarily unusual for this time, one could also see briefly naked women's breasts several times.
After the war, the long-forgotten film was restored in 1989 and first broadcast on TV on November 13, 1997 on ARTE .
Reviews
The Österreichische Film-Zeitung discussed Casanova in detail in its June 11, 1927 edition: “When the recordings of“ Casanova ”were made, the French and Italian newspapers carried column-long reports for weeks. The splendor of the interiors and the monumentality of the buildings were described in detail. Picture after picture appeared, from which one could casually get an idea of the magnificence of this film, and particular attention was given to the exterior shots that took place in Venice, for which a tremendous apparatus had been called up. Now that we finally had the opportunity to see “Casanova”, we must fully express our admiration for the extraordinary work that has been done and realize that our expectations have actually been exceeded by far. This film is a great success in every respect, perfected in terms of scenery and performance, and in the grandeur of its presentation it is really unique and can hardly be surpassed. "
In the April 30, 1929 issue of the New York Times , Mordaunt Hall summed up the film, which was severely shortened in the USA: “Although some of the episodes are humorously extravagant, the producers have caught the spirit of that eighteenth century Italian poet and adventure. (...) Ivan Mosjoukine is in his element in the rôle of Casanova. He gives to the part of the philanderer a sense of humor and a remarkable conceit concerning his physical appearance and his dexterity with the sword. Diana Karenne is charming as Maria and Suzanne Bianchetti does well as Catherine. Other rôles are suitably cast and capably impersonated. "
In Oskar Kalbus ' Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst (Vom Becoming German Film Art) it says: “Alexander Wolkoff brought this adventurer back to life in his Casanova film (1927) with Iwan Mosjoukin, not as part of a historical film, but as a costume film in which the imagination describes Casanova played freely and funny. It also made everything enchanting, easy and fun. Iwan Mosjoukin is a brilliant performer in a big way, alternately passionate and reserved, cheerful and serious. He lives Casanova, so that one can no longer imagine the hero with other features than his own. "
The lexicon of international films wrote: “An eye-catching silent film, with overwhelming crowd scenes, staged in detailed backdrops. A colossal work that wants to revive the zeitgeist of the 18th century. The partially colored film was restored in 1989 at the instigation of the Cinémathèque Française. "
Web links
- Casanova in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Casanova at filmportal.de
Individual evidence
- ↑ in collaboration with the German Deulig Europe production, without this co-producing
- ↑ cf. Österreichische Film-Zeitung of March 19, 1927, page 40
- ↑ Illustrated Film-Kurier No. 729
- ^ ÖFZ v. March 19, 1927
- ↑ "Casanova". In: Österreichische Film-Zeitung , June 11, 1927, p. 35 (online at ANNO ).
- ^ Casanova in New York Times
- ↑ Translation: “Although some of the episodes are exhilaratingly extravagant, the producers have captured the spirit of the 18th century Italian poet and adventurer. (...) Ivan Mosjoukine is in his element with the role of Casanova. He adds a good dose of humor to his philanderer and appears amazingly conceited about his physical appearance and the way he handles the sword. Diana Karenne shows charm as Maria, and Suzanne Bianchetti does her role as Katharina well too. The other roles have been cast appropriately and are played in an able manner. "
- ^ Oskar Kalbus: On the becoming of German film art. 1st part: The silent film. Berlin 1935. p. 62
- ↑ Casanova. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed March 2, 2017 .