Another fascinating presentation from the tireless Kennington Bioscope team and special guests. Again, we saw two films from the EYE Filmmuseum’s Jean Desmet Collection which according to MC Michelle Facey, has some 900 items which should see us through to sometime mid-century if the lockdown continues…
The main feature, In Search of the Castaways (1914),
also known as Les enfants du Capitaine Grant, was an adaptation of Volume
6 of 54 of Jules Verne's "Extraordinary Voyages", first printed in
1867 between From the Earth to the Moon and Twenty Thousand Leagues
Under the Sea. Michelle’s introduction was provided by Bioscope regular and
Jules Verne scholar Alex Kirstukas who has a fascinating history with the
French author and in particular his reputation in English-speaking countries where
he has been poorly served by translators. As with Swedish author, Selma
Lagerlöf, who’s poetic realism was stifled by the over-literal interpretation
of her US translator, Verne’s vision was compromised by stilted contemporary English
interpretations.
Alex majored in this subject at St. Olaf College, Minnesota,
producing a paper on Verne’s use of intertextuality in The Children of
Captain Grant which was presented to the North American Jules Verne Society
in 2014. His aim was: to show how “… misunderstood Verne’s novels are in the
English-speaking world, and what the authentic Verne can tell us about
combining creativity and rationality in our lives and work…” , he wanted to
show the “.. real, authentic Verne…”.
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| The Duncan - Victorian technology at its most thrilling! |
Every cinematic adaptation is a visual and textural translation
and the wonder is how much of the real Verne is in this film. His book was some
900 pages long and dedicated, as with his other works of this time, to showcasing
the World – above and below - to eager readers in the age of European empires. In
a film, there is only so much you can carry across in just over an hour, but
directors Victorin-Hippolyte Jasset, Henry Roussel and Joseph Faivre do their best with the assistance of
Michel Verne, son of Jules.
Part One: Concerning the finding and deciphering of an
almost illegible document.
The story begins at sea, on Lord Glenarvon’s yacht, The
Duncan, upon which he has been enjoying a cruise with his wife, Lady Helena
(Josette Andriot, one of the few cast members identifiable). Their sailors
recover a large fish within which is a bottle and, of course, a message. The letter
in the bottle is partially destroyed but they do see enough to know that it came
from a Captain Grant who, along with two of his crew, have survived the sinking
of their ship, Britannia, only to have been taken captive by natives in
Patagonia.
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| Sadly Josette Andriot - in the dress - is the only cast member I can identify |
Glenarvon tries to find out more by placing an ad in the paper
and discovers Captain Grant’s two children, Mary and Young Robert, who persuade
him to help rescue their father, wherever he may be on the 37th
Parallel… the Longitude sadly being illegible on the letter!
Quite by chance they enlist the help of “learned geographer
and ever absent-minded professor…” Jacques Paganel who, having bought a ticket
from the White Star company from Liverpool to Bombay – and possibly had a few
too many in the White Star Pub in Matthew Street (I know I have) – mistakenly boards
the Duncan. He is soon onboard in more ways than one and offering his eccentric
genius in the search for Grant.
Forty Two days later, they have clearly rounded the notoriously
dangerous Cape Horn and found themselves in Concepcion, Chile. Oddly the
British Consul has no record of a missing ship and so Paganel decides that they
should traverse the whole of the 37th Parallel in South America and
be picked up by the Duncan on the other side in the hope of bumping into Grant.
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| This was a big budget effort but the Great War put an end to such ambition |
There’s some excellent location shooting here, the film was mostly shot in Normandy but they must have used the Alps to stand in for the Andes as they’re clearly at altitude and the cast are indeed struggling on ice ridges and glaciers. It’s not quite a Berg Film but extra points for the altitude!
An earthquake leads to them falling down hill whilst a huge eagle carries off young Robert only to be shot down by a friendly local tribesman, Thalcave, Chief of the Patagonians who helps get them across the Pampas. They encounter wild bulls, floods and lightning before finally reaching the coast and the comfort of the Duncan. But daft of Professor Paganel – who must be a Mad Professor – realises that they should be looking in Australia!
PART TWO: Australia bound… and the Irish get a bad name.
It is now that we meet the oddly-named Ben Joyce who, stereotypically,
is a dodgy Irish man with a secret identity as a goodly mill owner but who is
really a crook called Ayrton who was thrown off Grant’s Britannia for mutiny
and who now even has a secret base set impressively against a backdrop of
waterfalls.
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| Honestly, no relation, although there's a few of my forefathers in Australia for obvious reasons... |
Joyce/Ayrton offers to help find Grant who he says is being
held by natives… but what he really wants is to take control of the Duncan and
turn it into a pirate ship. From now on Ayrton causes a lot of the mischief but
Grant’s son Robert proves intrepid and not only spots that Joyce is a wrong ‘un,
he also races a train on horseback to save Lord Glenarvon from certain death.
The group eventually get captured by a tribe of Maoris; some 200 extras who had to be painted green to look the right shade of grey. It’s breakneck stuff and the group finally escapes over the shore to be rescued by the Duncan. But, where is Grant? There is only one place left to check on the 37th Parallel and that’s New Zealand…
There IS a lot of action crammed into just over an hour and yet it was mostly understandable and was, above all, enjoyable. This was in no small part due to John Sweeney, who played up a storm and, as Michelle suggested, obviously relished the chance to return to a facsimile of New Zealand! Mr Sweeney is an adventure specialist and can cope with the breadth of Verne’s story, the sudden twists and turns and the need to underpin a wayward narrative with moral force and characterful flourishes. English translators may have struggled with Verne’s prose but Mr Sweeney is a fellow traveller in wonder and unquenchable inquisition!
Contemporary reviews damned with faint praise, Variety saying that whilst the film was action-packed and visually exciting, "...there were some scenes that could not be readily understood..." whilst film historian Brian Taves, says that the film has more of the feel of a pageant of illustrations than a thorough film adaptation. I’m not so sure though as with the aid of John Sweeney’s music and excellent translation work from the Bioscope’s Tod Higginson, who added additional “conjectural” intertitles to explain the fuller narrative context, and helped us to enjoy a more rounded story. Which brings us back to the Alex Kirstukas’ call for intertextuality and a more informed translation of Verne’s work. With John interpreting the moods and Tod explaining the action, the film made more sense than probably at any point since it was first shown in this country.
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| Can you ride tandem? Apparently not... |
Can’t go without mentioning the hilarious short film shown first, Une Partie de Tandem (1913) or as Todd translated, The Wife and I Go Cycling. This involved a succession of wild downhill rides and crashes across Paris, from restaurants to road works, and even the Eiffel Tower. Great stunt work and lively accompaniment from Colin Sell.
So, a massive tip of my pith helmet to the whole team. The
Bioscope may seem to specialise in screening silent films but what they really
do is to interpret them and to bring their meaning back to life as much as
their images. So, another five-star effort; enjoyable and thought provoking!
Every silent film discovery leads you onwards to another and
to a wider search for context and meaning. I look forward to reading Jules
Verne as he intended to be read!
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