Coming this month: Fields, Keaton and a repeat of 'Woman in the Moon'

Happy New Year! ...as we all move just a little bit further away from the time when movies came without soundtracks. In fact, so much time has passed since the silent film era that we're now approaching the centennial of some big titles: D.W. Griffith's 'Birth of a Nation' (1915) turns 100 in just a couple of years.

But for now, January 2013 brings with it some worthy screenings. We're doing a less-well-known Griffith title, 'Sally of the Sawdust' (1925) starring W.C. Fields, of all people, on Thursday, Jan. 10 at the Flying Monkey moviehouse in Plymouth, N.H., and then Buster Keaton's underrated (I think) boxing comedy 'Battling Butler' (1926) on Tuesday, Jan. 15 at the Manchester (N.H.) Public Library.

I'll post more info on these films a bit closer to their screenings; for now, details are available on the "Upcoming Screenings" calendar page on your right.

What I'm most excited right now about is the screening of Fritz Lang's epic lunar voyage adventure, 'Woman in the Moon' (1929), that we did on New Year's Eve at Red River Theatres in Concord, N.H. It was a sell-out! People were actually turned away—so we're doing an encore presentation on Wednesday, Jan. 16 at 7 p.m.

I can't tell you how pleased I am by this, because I've been wondering about 'Woman in the Moon' since I first discovered it several years ago. I've had an interest in silent film nearly my whole life, but somehow hadn't heard about this one. A sci-fi adventure to the moon by Fritz Lang? Why wasn't it more well known? What could be wrong with it?

Turns out a lot of things worked against it. 'Woman in the Moon' came at the very end of the silent film era (October, 1929) when all the public wanted were talkies. Like other Murnau epics, it got edited down to versions as short as one hour, making nonsense of the plot. And finally, the Nazis did their best to pull it out of circulation because of all the on-screen rocketry, which had military importance.

So it remained unseen, even as many of its elements filtered down through the wave of sci-fi films starting in the early 1950s with movies such as 'Destination Moon' (1950). Meanwhile, Lang's silent epic 'Metropolis' had achieved cult status, continually shown and embraced by succeeding generations.

And the years rolled by, and we actually went to the moon in 1969, using some of the techniques shown in 'Woman on the Moon' some 40 years later. But the film didn't get much attention even then—perhaps because not enough time had passed for it to become as oddly interesting as I find it today.

But 'Woman in the Moon' wasn't totally forgotten. About 10 years ago, the Murnau Stiftung in Germany undertook a remastering from the best surviving 35mm elements. The result was a pristine-looking restoration available on DVD with an excellent score by silent film accompanist Jon C. Mirsalis.

After reading about the film a few years ago, I was curious about what it was really like, so got myself a copy in the winter of 2010-11. The night I watched it, I couldn't believe what I was seeing. It was really, really impressive filmmaking about a monumental subject by one of the great silent directors. To me, it was like the sudden discovery of another symphony by Beethoven, or another play by Shakespeare!

Since then, I've waited to program the film, mostly for the right opportunity and also so I felt my musicianship was up to it. But all along, I've been really curious about how 'Woman in the Moon' would play with an audience. Would it hold together as a mind-bending space adventure from a bygone era? Or would it just seem ridiculous, silly, and trivial? Or worse, boring?

You never know. Until you actually show a silent film to an audience in a theater with live music, you just never know.

Well, New Year's Eve is the perfect occasion for a film like this: an excursion into the past to explore a future that would never come to be. And I'm pleased to report that at our screening on Monday, Dec. 31, 'Woman in the Moon' was a complete triumph. The audience loved it!

It held people's attention from the start, with the villain 'Walter Turner' (played by Fritz Rasp sporting an Adolph Hitler haircut) getting a particularly strong reaction during the extended exposition prior to the actual moon voyage.

What surprised everyone, I think, was the amount of comedy that's threaded throughout this ultimately serious film. I'm talking intentional comedy, too—not stuff of the "wink wink, we know better now" variety, but stuff Lang clearly intended as comic relief for the more serious doings.

I tried to bring this out with the music, which I think it helped. Not with funny ha ha music, but just lighter in texture and obviously "different" from the serious elements. Otherwise, I think many folks today would not automatically be sure they should laugh at what they see.

A good example is the pop-eyed neighbor who lets Willy Fritsch use his phone, and then faints dead away at the sight of what Fritsch has done to the plant on his desk.

But 'Woman in the Moon' really takes off (har!) during the extended launch sequence, which is just one great scene after another, all building to the actual blast off, which produced gasps of astonishment.

And then it's back to comedy, with a young stowaway being discovered and then the scenes in zero gravity, which are played for laughs. It was all welcome relief after the intense launch scenes and the equally dramatic landing sequence, which builds quickly. The images of the scientist glued to the window, raising his arms in exultation as the lunar surface races by outside, ought to be one of the master scenes from the silent film era, I think.

And the scene of the crash landing itself produced perhaps the biggest reaction of all—another astonished gasp, with one guy crying "Oooow!" And even when things were at their most serious, such as the decision on who will stay on the surface, Lang would insert light touches such as the kid keeping score with a piece of chalk. And it all worked wonderfully.

So in terms of pacing, Lang and screenwriter (and his soon-to-be-ex-wife) Thea von Harbou really knew what they were doing. We discovered 'Woman in the Moon' to be a film that's full of amazing images and faces that have only grown more interesting with time, and constructed as sturdily as the space ship that's fired off to the moon. It was one of the great silent film experiences I've had, and I'm so pleased to be presenting it again on Wednesday, Jan. 16 at 7 p.m. at Red River Theatres in Concord, N.H. For more info, please visit www.redrivertheatres.org. Hope to see you there!

One postscript: Afterwards, we sang "Auld Lang Syne" to ring in the New Year, and only now do I realize how appropriate that title is, given the director of 'Woman in the Moon.' And last year, we showed 'Metropolis,' so there's a pattern here.

Auld "Fritz Lang" Syne; the director (at right) on the set of 'Woman in the Moon.

Back to the future as we ring in 2013 with 'Metropolis' and 'Woman in the Moon'

Its the annual pre-holiday lull, the time when I take a few weeks away from the keyboard. But I'm already excited about a double-barrelled dose of silent sci-fi to welcome in 2013:

• On Sunday, Dec. 30, we're screening 'Metropolis' (1927), the eye-popping futuristic fantasy from German director Fritz Lang. It's one of the all-time great silent films, and if you haven't seen it in a theater with live music, you haven't seen it. Plus, it's a terrific film for live music and I have some good material from prior screening to work with. It's at 4:30 p.m. at the Wilton Town Hall Theater in Wilton, N.H.l for more info, visit www.wiltontownhalltheatre.com. Free admission!

• Then, on Monday, Dec. 31, we ring in the New Year with 'Woman in the Moon' (1929), an amazing feature film that depicts nothing less than man's first voyage to the lunar surface! Also directed by Fritz Lang, it's a remarkable picture that should be much more widely known, but tends to be overshadowed by 'Metropolis,' its slightly older brother. It's at 7 p.m. at Red River Theaters in Concord, N.H. For more info, visit www.redrivertheatres.org. Admission is $10 per person.

It's the first time I've tackled 'Woman in the Moon,' and I'm already preparing some material for the score. I'll be writing more about it in the weeks to come, but I wanted to at least update things so some info was up here.

Because few people are familiar with 'Woman in the Moon,' let me repost this wonderfully concise description from a DVD selling site:

" 'Woman in the Moon' is:

(a) The first feature-length film to portray space-exploration in a serious manner, paying close attention to the science involved in launching a vessel from the surface of the earth to the valleys of the moon.

(b) A tri-polar potboiler of a picture that manages to combine espionage tale, serial melodrama, and comic-book sci-fi into a storyline that is by turns delirious, hushed, and deranged.

(c) A movie so rife with narrative contradiction and visual ingenuity that it could only be the work of one filmmaker: Fritz Lang.

In this, Lang’s final silent epic, the legendary filmmaker spins a tale involving a wicked cartel of spies who co-opt an experimental mission to the moon in the hope of plundering the satellite’s vast (and highly theoretical) stores of gold. When the crew, helmed by Willy Fritsch and Gerda Maurus, finally reach their impossible destination, they find themselves stranded in a lunar labyrinth without walls — where emotions run scattershot, and the new goal becomes survival.

A modern Daedalus tale which uncannily foretold Germany’s wartime push into rocket-science, 'Woman in the Moon' is as much a warning-sign against human hubris as it is a hopeful depiction of mankind’s potential.

Ready to see it now? Then join us on New Year's Eve. And in the meantime, happy holiday season to all!

'Metropolis' on Saturday, Dec. 31 in Concord, N.H.

A few further thoughts on 'Metropolis' (1927) as we get closer to the screening, which will take place on Saturday, Dec. 31 (New Year's Eve!) at 7 p.m. in Concord, N.H. (A lot more basic info is found further down in this blog.)

• First, thanks very much to New Hampshire Public Radio and the crew at 'Word of Mouth' for the chance to talk about 'Metropolis' and silent film music. Host Virginia Prescott and several very nice behind-the-scenes people were most welcoming, and everyone seemed pleased with the segment, which featured a few musical sequences played live.

The piece aired this past Wednesday, Dec. 21, but I understand will be re-broadcast as part of a show on Saturday, Dec. 24 at noon. However, this being the age of everything-when-you-want-it, you can also hear it right now.

I was especially glad for the chance to play some of my futuristic Broadway show music, which will be used in 'Metropolis' to accompany the "Bad Maria" in her wild nightclub act. It's a tune that I've found to be catchy enough to actually blot out Christmas carols, which is no small feat this time of year.

• Next, if you're interested in attending, please get in touch with Red River Theatres early and reserve your tickets. We're showing 'Metropolis' in the theater's screening room, which has a limit of only about 60 seats, so if you really do want to attend, it's worth reserving the tickets in advance. Also, if the screening books up early, there's a chance we might get to do a repeat, and the sooner we know that, the better.

• Behind the scenes: Below is an interesting production still from 'Metropolis' showing Brigette Helm wearing the "machine man" costume during a break in filming. At least I think that's Helm, if you can believe www.imdb.com, but to my eye it doesn't look very much like her. Anyway: I've heard stories about how Lang would demand a lot from his performers, and this shows something of the reality of what that meant. Whoever it is in the costume, the woman looks like nothing so much as a prize-fighter between rounds of a tough bout. And if it is Helm, my regard for her contribution to 'Metropolis' film goes up another notch, because the robot costume completely conceals whoever is wearing it, so it could have been anyone under there. And yet it was her!


• Finally, the more I look at 'Metropolis,' the more impressed I am with how it's all put together, especially with the missing 25 minutes of footage discovered in 2008. Yes, the visual design is hard to miss. But what's equally amazing, I think, is how director Fritz Lang created a multi-layered story that leads to an exciting and dramatic multi-stage climax—one that really moves and is full of powerful visuals in its own right. As a result, it's a very satisfying film. Hope you can join us!

P.S. And if seeing 'Metropolis' isn't enough, the evening also includes a champagne toast to welcome in 2012!

It's about time: 'Metropolis' (1927) on NYE

What better way to ring in the new year than with yesterday's view of tomorrow? That's the thinking behind our upcoming screening of 'Metropolis' (1927), the great German silent sci-fi epic from director Fritz Lang, on New Year's Eve at Red River Theatres in Concord, N.H.

As I quoted myself in the press release below (and I love doing that), "'Metropolis' stands as an stunning example of the power of silent film to tell a compelling story without words, and reach across the generations to touch movie-goers from the real future that came to pass, which means us."

The screening, with live music, is on Saturday, Dec. 31 at 7 p.m. at Red River Theatres, 11 South Main St. in Concord, N.H. Admission is $15 per person and seats are limited, so call the theater at (603) 224-4600 or visit www.redrivertheatres.org right away to reserve right now.

The press release is below, but one thing I love about this film is the sheer athleticism of the performers, especially Brigette Helm. If you see this, watch the way she throws herself around the screen, putting her whole body into everything she does! Silent film never came as close to ballet as it did with her performance in 'Metropolis.' It's graceful and seemingly effortless, but not outrageous or over-the-top, and fits the character of the film perfectly, I think. Even her small gestures, such as an eye-blink that assumes much significance, are somehow big.

As for the music, this is a kickass film to score live, with just the right kind of pacing for things to build and develop nicely, and the kind of dramatic scenes that music can add a lot to if it all comes together. I've got several themes I've used in the past ready to go, and I'm developing a couple more to round things out. I might try to push the digital synthesizer a little beyond the traditional orchestral sound I go for, given the film's unusual setting. One of the major challenges is to hold back. The film is just one amazing visual after another, and there's a temptation to go too far too fast. Things do build, however, and you've got to have somewhere to go for the climax.

And finally, though 'Metropolis' is billed as a science fiction flick, the newly restored version we're showing (all 2½ hours of it!) reveals it to be heavy on the Christian spiritual allegory. Don't let that scare you, but any film that includes major scenes in underground churches and on cathedral rooftops has more than technology on its mind.


Still, the movie is jammed with enough proto-televisions and futuristic elevators and 10-hour clocks and massive machinery halls to delight any steampunk geek.

But it's more than that. So come see it!

And if all that's not enough, I'm told that the good folk at Red River have arranged for 'Metropolis' to be followed by a champagne toast to welcome in 2012. (Better brush up on the words to 'Auld Lang Syne,' too.)

* * *

MONDAY, DEC. 12, 2011 / FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For more info, contact: Jeff Rapsis • (603) 236-9237 • jeffrapsis@gmail.com

Red River Theaters to screen restored 'Metropolis' on New Year's Eve

Landmark sci-fi fantasy movie to be shown with live music at Concord, N.H. cinema on Saturday, Dec. 31

CONCORD, N.H.—A silent film hailed as the grandfather of all science fiction fantasy movies will be screened with live music on Saturday, Dec. 31, 2011 at Red River Theatres in Concord, N.H. The show starts at 7 p.m. and tickets are $15 general admission.

'Metropolis' (1927), regarded as German director Fritz Lang's masterpiece, is set in a futuristic city where a privileged elite pursue lives of leisure while the masses toil on vast machines and live deep underground. The film, with its visions of futuristic factories and flying cars, set new standards for visual design and inspired generations of dystopian fantasies from Ridley Scott's 'Blade Runner' to Terry Gilliam's 'Brazil.' The story centers on an upper class young man who falls in love with a woman who works with the poor, and encompasses mad scientists, human-like robots, and industrial espionage, all set in a society divided between haves and have-nots.

The version of 'Metropolis' to be screened at Red River is a newly restored edition that includes nearly a half-hour of missing footage cut following the film's premiere in 1927. The footage, discovered in 2008 in an archive in Argentina, has since been added to the existing 'Metropolis,' allowing plot threads and characters to be developed more fully.

The restored 'Metropolis,' now 2½ hours in length, will be accompanied by a score created live by New Hampshire-based silent film musician and composer Jeff Rapsis.

When 'Metropolis' was first screened in Berlin, Germany on Jan. 10, 1927, the sci-fi epic ran an estimated 153 minutes. After its premiere engagement, the film's distributors (including Paramount in the U.S.) drastically shortened 'Metropolis' to maximize the film's commercial potential. By the time it debuted in the U.S. later that year, the film ran about 90 minutes.

Even in its shortened form, 'Metropolis' went on to become one of the cornerstones of science fiction cinema. Due to its enduring popularity, the film has undergone numerous restorations in the intervening decades in attempts to recover Lang's original vision.

In 1984, the film was reissued with additional footage, color tints, and a pop rock score (but with many of its intertitles removed) by music producer Giorgio Moroder. A more archival restoration was completed in 1987, under the direction of Enno Patalas of the Munich Film Archive, in which missing scenes were represented with title cards and still photographs. More recently, a 2001 restoration combined footage from four archives and ran at a triumphant 124 minutes.

It was widely believed that this would be the most complete version of Lang's film that contemporary audiences could ever hope to see. But, in the summer of 2008, the curator of the Buenos Aires Museo del Cine discovered a 16mm dupe negative of 'Metropolis' that was considerably longer than any existing print. It included not merely a few additional snippets, but 25 minutes of "lost" footage, about a fifth of the film, that had not been seen since its Berlin debut.

The discovery of such a significant amount of material called for yet another restoration, which debuted in 2010 to widespread acclaim. It's this fully restored version that will be screened at Red River Theatres.

"We felt New Year's Eve was a great occasion to screen the restored 'Metropolis,' as it's a film all about the future and things to come," said Jeff Rapsis, who provides live musical accompaniment to silent film screenings throughout New England. "'Metropolis' stands as an stunning example of the power of silent film to tell a compelling story without words, and reach across the generations to touch movie-goers from the real future that came to pass, which means us."


To accompany a silent film, Rapsis uses a digital synthesizer to recreate the texture of the full orchestra. The score is created live in real time as the movie is screened. Rather than focus exclusively on authentic music of the period, Rapsis creates new music for silent films that draws from movie scoring techniques that today's audiences expect from the cinema.

"Silent film is a timeless art form that still has a unique emotional power to move audiences, as the recent success of 'The Artist' has shown," Rapsis said. "With original silent films, which were made in another era, my goal is to help them come to life by using music to bridge the gap between the film and today's audiences. If you can show them as they were originally intended—on the big screen, in a restored print, with live music and an audience—they create the same kind of excitement that made people first fall in love with the movies."

The restored 'Metropolis' will be shown on Saturday, Dec. 31 at 7 p.m. at Red River Theatres, 11 South Main St., Concord, N.H. General admission tickets are $15 per person. For more information, call (603) 224-4600 or visit www.redrivertheatres.org. For more information on the music, visit www.jeffrapsis.com.

CRITIC COMMENTS on ‘METROPOLIS’

“'Metropolis' does what many great films do, creating a time, place and characters so striking that they become part of our arsenal of images for imagining the world.”
—Roger Ebert, 2010, The Chicago Sun-Times

“If it comes anywhere near your town, go see it and thank the movie Gods that it even exists. There’s no star rating high enough.”
—Brian Tallerico, Movieretriever.com