A poster promoting 'The Thief of Bagdad' (1924).
Is Thanksgiving is all about giving thanks for abundance?
If so, I can't think of a better silent film to prepare one for the upcoming holiday than 'The Thief of Bagdad' (1924), an epic adventure/fantasy starring Douglas Fairbanks Sr.
I'll accompany a 100th anniversary screening of 'Thief' on Tuesday, Nov. 26 (two days prior to Turkey Day) at the Coolidge Corner Theater in Brookline, Mass.
More about the film and screening in the press release below.
But wait—how does a film set in a mythical Bagdad (resplendent in Art Deco design accents, no less) and based on exotic tales from long ago have anything to do with Thanksgiving?
I think the key is abundance. 'The Thief of Bagdad' contains more of everything that almost any picture made up until then.
More scenery! More thrills! More intrigue! More eye-popping visuals!
More Douglas Fairbanks, who dances through the film in a performance that's more—well, Fairbanksian than ever before!
But chiefly it's an abundance of ambition that drives 'Thief' to heights never quite achieved until then.
Fairbanks, at the top of his game, was ready to put everything he knew, and everything the movies could then do, into something truly grand—a motion picture to transport audiences to another realm in the same way the film's flying carpet transports characters in the story.
It all paid off with one of the greatest fantasies produced in the silent era: a picture that captivated audiences when first released, and which still has that effect today.
And that, I think, is something to be thankful for!
So don't be a turkey! Come join us on Tuesday, Nov. 26 at the Coolidge for a 100th anniversary screening of 'The Thief of Bagdad.' Details in the press release below.
* * *
MONDAY, NOV. 11, 2024 / FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact Jeff Rapsis • (603) 236-9237 • jeffrapsis@gmail.com
Flying carpets, fire-breathing dragons, underwater palaces, and more!
Adventure/fantasy starring Douglas Fairbanks presented with live music in celebration of film's 100th anniversary
BROOKLINE, Mass.—It ranks among the first Hollywood epics to show the full potential for movies to depict entire worlds of fantasy. It was also one of the top grossing films of 1924.
It was 'The Thief of Bagdad,' a celebrated triumph for actor/director Douglas Fairbanks that stands as one of greatest achievements of cinema's silent era.
It's a film filled with images of flying carpets, exotic cities, underwater palaces, winged horses, fire-breathing dragons, and more!
See if for yourself with live music on Tuesday, Nov. 26 at 7 p.m. at the Coolidge Corner Theatre, 290 Harvard St., Brookline, Mass.
This 100th anniversary screening of 'The Thief of Bagdad' , the latest in the Coolidge's 'Sounds of Silents' series, will feature live accompaniment by Jeff Rapsis, a New Hampshire-based composer who specializes in creating music for silent films.
Tickets $23 per person general admission; students $21.
Douglas Fairbanks, star of 'The Thief of Bagdad,' was the Harrison Ford of his time—a pioneering action hero who was among the first to entertain movie audiences with thrilling adventures.
'The Thief of Bagdad' stands among his best work. A timeless fable on a grand scale, it boasts a great story, spectacular sets, and magical special effects.
A bare-chested Fairbanks plays a crafty street-smart rogue who can easily steal anything his heart desires—except the love of a beautiful princess, daughter of the powerful Caliph of Bagdad.
To win her hand, he must not only change his ways, but also show his worthiness over many other highly placed suitors.
In making the film, Fairbanks spared no expense for what some critics still regard as the most lavish fantasy movie ever made, a show-stopping adaptation of the traditional "A Thousand and One Nights" Arabian legend.
The result is an epic in which a flying carpet is just one of many eye-popping sights designed to astound movie audiences.
Fairbanks, swaggering through massive marketplace sets and cavernous throne rooms as an incorrigible pickpocket, scales towering walls (with the help of a magic rope) and leads merry chases through crowded bazaars in his pursuit of loot.
The jaunty opening is a preamble to the film's spectacular second half, in which the repentant thief embarks on an odyssey through caverns of fire, underwater palaces, and even outer space.
Special effects range from a giant smoke-belching dragon to a magical flying horse, and still glow with a timeless sense of wonder from the early days of movies.
William Cameron Menzies's sets were among the largest ever created for a motion picture. Especially noteworthy is his design for a mythical Bagdad, a unique combination of Art Deco and Islamic elements—a dream city inspired by illustrations from story books.
Fairbanks, among the most popular stars of the 1920s, was the inspiration for the character of George Valentin in the Oscar-winning Best Picture 'The Artist' (2011).
Fairbanks was known for films that used the then-new medium of motion pictures to transport audiences to historical time periods for grand adventures and athletic stunts.
He's often referred to as "Douglas Fairbanks Sr." to avoid confusion with his son, the actor Douglas Fairbanks Jr.
A century after its premiere, 'The Thief of Bagdad' remains highly regarded. In 1996, the film was selected for preservation in the U.S. National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."
Live music for 'The Thief of Bagdad' will be provided by silent film accompanist Jeff Rapsis, who uses a digital synthesizer to create a traditional full orchestra "movie score" sound.
"Seeing a Fairbanks picture in a theater with live music and an audience is a classic movie experience," Rapsis said.
Rapsis emphasized the unique value of seeing early cinema as it was originally presented.
"These films were designed for the big screen, live music, and large audiences. If you put it all together again, you get a sense of why people first fell in love with the movies," Rapsis said.
See Douglas Fairbanks Sr. in the 'The Thief of Bagdad' (1924) with live music on Tuesday, Nov. 26 at 7 p.m. at the Coolidge Corner Theatre, 290 Harvard St., Brookline, Mass.
Tickets $23 per person general admission; students $21. For more information, call the box office at (617) 734-2501 or visit www.coolidge.org.
No comments:
Post a Comment