Lucrezia Borgia

Rating:
Summary: A historical melodrama and two shorts from Abel Gance
Review: French film pioneer Abel Gance, best known for his epic "Napoleon," brings the same sort of visual flair and sense of period detail to this historical melodrama about the infamous daughter of Pope Alexander VI. Actually, the focus is as much on the political machinations of the Borgias as it is on Lucrezia in particular. Basically Lucrezia (Edwige Feuillere) has a series of affairs and tries to avoid being married off to the political advantage of her brother Cesar (Gabriel Gabrio), while their father Rodrigo (Roger Karl) engages in decadent behavior as Pope. The film even has Niccollo Machiavelli (Aime Clariond) running around. This is not a great movie and it is certainly a less than satisfying print. Still, anything done by Gance is worth a look.

This DVD also includes two short films by Gance: "Au Secours" is about a man who accepts a wager to spend the night in a haunted house. This 1924 version of the tale might be the oldest one that has survived on film. Gance engages in some disturbing imagery along with his stylized editing. "La Folie du Docteur Tube" dates back to 1915 and is about a mad scientist who discovers a powder that will change a man's physique. The most interesting thing about this one is how Gance uses mirrors to create distorted images. This particular film is the most important one on this DVD since it was considered a major influence on the avant-garde movement and would be forth screening to a film class dealing with the creative directors of the silent period.

Rating:
Summary: A historical melodrama and two shorts from Abel Gance
Review: French film pioneer Abel Gance, best known for his epic "Napoleon," brings the same sort of visual flair and sense of period detail to this historical melodrama about the infamous daughter of Pope Alexander VI. Actually, the focus is as much on the political machinations of the Borgias as it is on Lucrezia in particular. Basically Lucrezia (Edwige Feuillere) has a series of affairs and tries to avoid being married off to the political advantage of her brother Cesar (Gabriel Gabrio), while their father Rodrigo (Roger Karl) engages in decadent behavior as Pope. The film even has Niccollo Machiavelli (Aime Clariond) running around. This is not a great movie and it is certainly a less than satisfying print. Still, anything done by Gance is worth a look.

This DVD also includes two short films by Gance: "Au Secours" is about a man who accepts a wager to spend the night in a haunted house. This 1924 version of the tale might be the oldest one that has survived on film. Gance engages in some disturbing imagery along with his stylized editing. "La Folie du Docteur Tube" dates back to 1915 and is about a mad scientist who discovers a powder that will change a man's physique. The most interesting thing about this one is how Gance uses mirrors to create distorted images. This particular film is the most important one on this DVD since it was considered a major influence on the avant-garde movement and would be forth screening to a film class dealing with the creative directors of the silent period.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting Movie from an Earlier Era
Review: I got this movie on a lark, although I tend to like early pre-censorship B+W films. The film told a story without the hang-ups of worrying about what the audience would think and considering it is from another era, I found it to be a most interesting film. I had to watch parts of it twice to catch some subtle nuances, which made the film even more enjoyable. If you like early B+W films, I highly recommend this one.