Ma l'amor mio non muore! was specifically written for Lyda Borelli, one of Italy’s leading stage actresses and featured her performing two of her most famous roles on stage: Salome and Zaza in front of an undoubtedly star-struck audience of extras. It’s one of the moments; historical film as history in itself; the actress and her effect.
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| Lyda Borelli on stage |
As Ivo Bloom notes in the booklet for the Cineteca di
Bologna DVD release, it’s also a document of La Borelli finding her way with
the new medium: her first time on screen, developing her film acting style and so
instinctively well, even from the modern viewpoint. Next to Asta Nielsen,
Borelli’s acting is amongst the most naturalistic you’ll find in 1913. Yes
there are a few moments of over-wrought arms-aloft, hand-jiving but look
closely and you’ll notice an incredible range of expression: fleeting moments
of anger, and even disgust that wouldn’t be found on the face of many.
Borelli didn’t care about her “look” so much as her
expression, it seems, even though the look took care of itself... and her
storytelling is in many ways well in advance of the film’s narrative.
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| Borelli often shows emotion through poise alone... |
Mario Caserini directs well with lots of similarities to
contemporaries in Italy as well as elsewhere in Europe – Bauer, Christensen,
Blom, Perret et al. There is, as
Bloom notes, less editing than in American cinema but long takes on huge sets
which provide their own “cuts” in the story.
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| The vast "playing area" of the Colonel's house |
In Colonel Holbein’s house, the parlour leads off to his
study on the right and the dining room on the left which is initially covered
by curtains. The characters move around in long takes and are choreographed to
move the narrative around the space: Ida’s character Elsa being romanced by
Sthar the spy at her piano whilst the traitor looks over to the study to see
the two colonels examining the war plans he must steal. The colonels leave and
whilst Elsa says farewell, Sthar sneaks across to the study and takes his
prize.
No doubt Lois Weber or DW Griffith would have done this
differently but it works all the same whilst also looking altogether more
splendid and grandiose than they might have made it. It’s probably a bit lazy
to say that the Italians favoured style over substance but there are some rich
textures in the mis-en-scene and so many huge floral displays.
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| Salome? |
La Borelli also has more costume changes than Lady Gaga
or even Lady Miss Kier (anyone remember DeeLite: a costume change for almost
every song if memory serves!?) and this film is a must for dedicated followers
of Mariano Fortuny and the rest. And, of course she wears it all well, with a
practiced physicality developed over a decade on stage and yet with granular
emotional control that belies her cinematic experience: she sucks the viewer
into these improbably large spaces and you completely overlook some of the hams
surrounding her (Improbable spaces? Impossible beards!).
The film starts with information being handed to the spy
Moise Sthar (Gianpaolo Rosmino); he reads the instruction then furrows his brow
working out how to achieve his goal to steal the secret war plans of the
Wallenstein army.
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| The Rotter! |
Next we cut to the army’s chiefs of staff, including Col.
Julius Holbein (Vittorio Rossi Pianelli) who returns home to his daughter Elsa (Lyda
Borelli) and their massive drawing room. They are entertaining Colonel Theubner
(Emilio Petacci) tonight and he is greeted before the surprise arrival of Sthar
who’s fiendish plan is to go to the colonel’s house and steal the plans!
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| The camera pans and follows Lyda... |
The cur makes up to Elsa who politely demonstrates her
skills on piano for him as he prepares his audacious robbery. Mission
accomplished and the Holbein family are in ruins: the Colonel does the
honourable thing leaving the blameless Elsa to be exiled. Harsh, as the young
people now might say…
Elsa may be down but she is not out and, having made her
way to the Riviera, soon secures a gig at the opera where her song and dance
begins to ensure sell-out audiences. She’s the toast of the town and pestered
by male admirers in a manner that must have been all too familiar to La
Borelli.
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| Mario Caserini moves his characters with geometric precision |
Surrounded by men in dinner suits, Elsa has never been
more alone until she catches the eye of another sad-looking individual. We
know, but she doesn’t, that this is Prince Maximilien of Wallenstein (Mario
Bonnard) who has been sent to the coast to recuperate from illness, his father
the Grand Duke of Wallenstein (Dante Cappelli) having been the same man who
signed the order to exile Elsa…
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| The Prince and the showgirl... get a little too close for the censors |
Fate has thrown the two together and soon they fall in
love after Maximilien hears Elsa’s playing in a village church: just so we’re
all clear - she might be an actress but she’s a soulful one.
Queue some moments of happiness and a quite convincing
canoodle on a yacht which would never have got passed the powers that be in the
US: passion.
But... even this new reality cannot escape the couple’s
collective past and they are spotted by Sthar (what a spy he is!) who, having
already done so much damage, is still intent on “revenge” and sets about
revealing their relationship.
You know this will not play well in Wallenstein but will
obligation and shame tear this love apart?
I watched the 2013 restoration which looks quite unreal
for a 102 year old film (that’s as old as my Aunty Lil – who still looks
grand!) with hardly a blemish. This makes the close-ups immensely rewarding as
the Italians appeared to use far less make up than the Americans: Borelli
lives!
There’s a choice of two soundtracks, a collection of
contemporary works and an excellent new score from Francesca Badalini who plays
on piano accompanied by Aurora Bisanti on violin and Guilia Monti on cello.
The disc is available direct from the Cineteca di Bologna
or from Amazon (who bizarrely have it listed in books) – an important part of Italian film history and crystal clear
view of one of the greatest performers of the era. Oh, I forgot to mention that
she was a diva? Of course she was, but she was an actress more than anything else and her work is still fascinating.
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