Showing posts with label Italy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Italy. Show all posts

Thursday, January 20, 2022

A silent film collage in an Italian futurist magazine

I have always been drawn to collage, whether in the visual arts or in film or literature. Despite the jumble, it makes sense. Early modernism, especially dada and surrealism made use the technique, as did futurism. Recently, while looking online through some vintage Italian magazines, I came across this collage featuring some early film stars. It really appeals to me. I believe this Italian futurist magazine dates from 1932. How many film stars can you name? (Unfortunately, no Louise Brooks.)

An interior page

The magazine cover

Thursday, August 27, 2020

New Louise Brooks DVD - Prix de beaute released in Italy

Prix de beaute, the Louise Brooks film made in France in 1930, has just been released on DVD in Italy. I haven't yet received a copy, but I assume this to be the silent version of the 1930 film as released in Italy. (Prix de beaute was released as both a silent and sound film in as many as four different languages.) Earlier this year, near the onset of the worldwide coronavirus pandemic, Il Cinema Ritrovato made a streaming version of this classic film available. Read more HERE.



Here is the description of this new release as found on the Il Cinema Ritrovato website. The DVD is for sale there, and on amazon Italy; I also noticed a copy has popped up on eBay.

This new release features 2 DVDs and a booklet - curated by Mariann Lewinsky and Andrea Meneghelli.

Presented in the world premiere or in the most recent restorations, four films to rediscover the genius of Augusto Genina and the extraordinary generation of actresses, between stardom and post-stardom, who illuminated his silent cinema. Goodbye youth! (1918): from the famous comedy by Camasio and Oxilia, miraculously rediscovered, a film of palpitating naturalness, inhabited by the radiant presence of Maria Jacobini. The mask and the face (1919): a satirical and abrasive comedy of matrimonial and sexual customs, which bursts into the cinema of the time with unprecedented audacity. Goodbye youth! (1927): a remake, but it's like a century has passed. Genina and her muse Carmen Boni look to international cinema and create a stunning modern romantic comedy. Prix ​​de beauté (1930): the farewell and apotheosis of the silent Genina. Louise Brooks shines with all her innocent and sensual aura in a timeless European masterpiece.

With essays by Mariann Lewinsky, Andrea Meneghelli, Paola Cristalli, Michele Canosa and six portraits of actresses by Vittorio Martinelli.
Lately, while working on Around the World with Louise Brooks, I have been spending time with all the material I have collected on Prix de beaute. And while doing so, I came across a 1989 Italian book on director Augusto Genina which I didn't have and which I ordered. Though I don't read or speak Italian, flipping through this new-to-me volume got me even more interested in this Italian-born director. Thus, I am looking forward to seeing three more of his early films. I can't wait for my disc to arrive... I plan on blogging about this new DVD sometime soon.

Saturday, August 1, 2020

Around the World with Louise Brooks, MORE trimmings from the cutting room floor

A continuation of yesterday's post.... Here are a couple more odds 'n ends which I can't make use of or don't have room for in Around the World with Louise Brooks. Both come from the December 1930 issue of Vita Cinematografica, an Italian film magazine. This first piece, an article titled "Greta Garbo donna d'affari," seems to be an article about the mysterious allure of the Swedish actress. It starts by describing three other mysterious and alluring stars, the Russian actress Vera Baranovskaya,
Louise Brooks, and the German actress Brigitte Helm. Then briefly mentioned are Lya de Putti,
Bessie Love, and Anita Page. Perhaps an Italian reader could offer a better explanation, but I would guess that these other actresses are evoked in an article about Garbo in comparison to the renowned actress and elusive beautiful.

The paragraph on Brooks reads thus, in translation: "Louise Brooks, with bright black eyes, an impassive face and a supple body, has blossomed in a heavy atmosphere of contented passion, anguish, unsatisfied desires, feverish voluptuousness. She is, at times, cold and ardent, deadly and quivering: one would say the sign of vice." 




The above article was, I believe, authored by Paul Rejac and originally appeared in Cinemonde, an French magazine. I will have to try and track that down. Brooks appeared on the cover of Cinemonde four times, and those four covers appear in Around the World with Louise Brooks.

The next clipping, which also depicts Louise Brooks and a few other actresses, also appeared in the December 1930 issue of Vita Cinematografica. The piece is a holiday greeting.




Saturday, June 27, 2020

Louise Brooks - Two Parallel Lives by Laura Scaramozzino

I just became aware of a new book, Louise Brooks. Due vite Parallele (Louise Brooks: Two Parallel Lives) by Laura Scaramozzino. From what I can tell, it's an Italian noir fantasy novel in which features a character named Louise Brooks. 

The publisher's description reads: "Louise Brooks è una giovane attrice. Vive a Hollywood ed è un'esponente del Nuovo Cinema Impulsoriale: un'elaborazione moderna del cinema muto del passato. Dopo una notte trascorsa in compagnia della collega Greta, riceve sul cellulare un messaggio inquietante: Edmond J. Lermann è morto. La ragazza non conosce nessuno con quel nome e quando prova a risalire al mittente del messaggio fallisce nell'intento. Grazie a Internet, Louise scopre che l'uomo esiste ed è morto davvero, ucciso con un colpo di pistola a Torino, in Italia, e che era originario della sua cittadina natale: Cherryvalle nel Kansas. Inizia così un'avventura in cui la giovane attrice si trova costretta a fare i conti con il proprio passato. C'è una voce che la perseguita da quando aveva otto anni. Una minaccia che non l'ha mai abbandonata e recita: 'Questa bambina è mia'."

Which in rough translation reads: "Louise Brooks is a young actress. She lives in Hollywood and is an exponent of the New Impulsive Cinema: a modern elaboration of the silent cinema of the past. After a night spent in the company of her colleague Greta, she receives a disturbing message on his cell phone: Edmond J. Lermann is dead. The girl does not know anyone with that name and when she tries to trace the sender of the message she fails. Thanks to the Internet, Louise discovers that the man exists and really died, killed with a gunshot in Turin, Italy, and that he was originally from his hometown: Cherryvalle, Kansas. Thus began an adventure in which the young actress is forced to deal with her past. There is a rumor that has haunted her since she was eight years old. A threat that has never left her and says: 'This girl is mine'."

Apparently, the novel - which is something of a genre bender - has a contemporary setting, and in it silent films are still being made, though with contemporary methods. The book is being described as a noir thriller with elements of science fiction and fantasy. However, the fact that the novel's character is an actress named Louise Brooks, and she has a connection to Cherryvale (including an incident of sexual abuse), links the book to the historic silent film star.

image via Facebook
I don't know much about the author, Laura Scaramozzino. As best as I can figure, she has two other Italian books to her credit, including Screaming Dora (2019), which was published by Watson, the same publisher as Louise Brooks: Two Parallel Lives. I sent her an email with a few questions, but have yet to hear back.... I hope the book gets translated into English, as I would like to read it. There is an air of mystery about it that seems intriguing. An Italian-language review of the book, by Fabio Orrico, can be found HERE. Orrico concludes his review by stating, "Laura Scaramozzino, in a span of just over a hundred pages, links stories and history, realism and fantasy, elaboration of mourning and revenge." (This might make for a good Quentin Tarantino film.)

Monday, March 23, 2020

Louise Brooks film Prix de beauté made available for online streaming during coronavirus crisis

Yesterday's blog,Where and how to stream Louise Brooks and silent & classic film from home, featured a segment on Italy's Cineteca Milano. In response to the worldwide coronavirus crisis, that prestigious film archive has made parts of its rich catalogue available to stream online. Among the 500 films available for streaming are a number of silent era features and shorts, including the 1930 Louise Brooks film, Prix de beauté.

To access the Cineteca Milano film catalogue, you must first register at this address - click HERE. Instructions are pretty easy to follow, even if you don’t speak or read Italian. I used the the Chrome browser, which can translate pages on the fly. Once you have set up your free account, search for Louise Brooks, or Miss Europa (the Italian title for Prix de beauté).


I can't stress enough what an extraordinary opportunity this is to view this RARE version of this great Louise Brooks film. First, consider this. The sound version which most Louise Brooks fans are familiar with was released on DVD by KINO. That version runs 1 hour and 28 minutes. This Italian version runs 2 hours and 3 minutes. That's 35 more minutes! I realize that "projection speeds" or FPS can account for varying lengths - but I have watched the Italian version and believe it does contain footage I haven't seen before!

As is known, Prix de beauté was released as both a sound and silent film, and, it was released in four different languages, French, English, German and Italian. (I don't know that the film was released in four different language as both a silent and sound film. That questions still needs to be resolved.)



The version made available through the Cineteca Milano is the silent Italian version. There is no music, and the subtitles are in Italian. Here is the basic film information offered by Cineteca Milano.

TITLE: Miss Europa
ORIGINAL TITLE: Prix ​​De Beauté
FILM DIRECTOR: Augusto Genina
COUNTRY: France
DURATION: 124 '
YEAR: 1930

CAST & CREDITS: Cast: Louise Brooks Georges Charlia Augusto Bandini; Subject: Augusto Genina Rebé Clair Bernard Zimmer Alessandro De Stefani; Screenplay: GW Pabst René Clair; Photogafia: Rudolph Maté Louis Née; Editing: T. Edmond Greville; Scenography: Robert Gys; Costumes: Jean Patou; Production: Sofar-Film

SYNOPSIS: Lucienne, who has a modest job in an office, is a very beautiful and unscrupulous girl. Unbeknownst to her boyfriend, she takes part in the beauty contest for Miss Europe and wins it but then chooses to be his wife, giving up the courtship of a prince. One night, however, she leaves the house and her husband because she wants to try to live in luxury and, above all, she needs to feel surrounded by the admiration of others. The prince has not forgotten her and helps her to enter the world of cinema but her husband will find her and, not knowing how to forgive her, will be ruthless with her.
As I mentioned above, I have viewed the silent Italian version of Prix de beauté. I have always thought it was a good film, but now feel it is better in this longer, silent edition. I also now feel that Louise Brooks did some of the best acting of her career in this film, especially in scenes which I think are not present in the sound version I am far more familiar with.

I have seen a silent version once before. In 2013, the San Francisco Silent Film Festival screened a version of the film, which ran 1 hour and 48 minutes. That version was restored in a silent version by the Cineteca del Comune di Bologna from a silent copy with Italian intertitles from the Cineteca Italiana and a French sound copy from the Cinémathèque française.

The San Francisco Silent Film Festival program essay on Prix de beauté states "Even as Brooks earned some kudos for her performance, particularly from the French critics, the film was a quick flop in Europe and didn’t even merit a U.S. release." While it is true that the film wasn't shown in the United States until 1957 when the Eastman House screened a print, it is NOT TRUE that "the film was a quick flop in Europe." In fact, it was something of a sensation. In Paris, the film enjoyed an extended run and ran  for more than two months. The film was shown across France and Europe in 1930 - in Germany, Norway, Switzerland, and elsewhere. The film continued to be shown in Europe - in Hungary, Spain, Iceland (shown below) and Turkey in 1931, in Poland and Switzerland in 1932, in The Netherlands in 1933, and in Luxembourg in 1934.


I have also documented screenings in Haiti in 1932, 1933, 1935, and 1936 - as well as in Algeria and even Madagascar in 1933. The film was a huge hit in Ro de Janiero, Brazil in 1930, and was also shown in Japan. There was even a revival screening in Uruguay in 1952!

A full record of the rich exhibition history of Prix de beauté will be documented in volume 2 of my forthcoming book, Around the World with Louise Brooks. In the mean time, here is a record of where the film was shown, as well as under what title.

Under its French title, documented screenings of the film took place in Algeria, Belgium, Haiti, Japan, Madagascar, Sweden, Switzerland, and Turkey.

Elsewhere, Prix de beauté was shown under the title Vanidad (Argentina); Miss Europa (Austria); Miss Europa (Brazil); El Premio Fatal (Cuba); Miss Europa and Der Schönheitspreis (Czechoslovakia) and Miss Európa (Slovakia); Miss Europa (Danzig); Beauty Prize and Miss Europe (England); Miss Europa and Preis der Schönheit and Der Schönheitpreis (Germany); A szépsvg vására or Szépségvásár and Miss Europa (Hungary); Fegurðardrottning Euröpu (Iceland); Miss Europa and Premio di bellezza and Regina di bellezza (Italy); Premija par skaistumu and Skaistuma godalga (Latvia); Miss Europa (Der Schonheitspreis) (Luxembourg); Miss Europa and Schoonheidsprijs (The Netherlands); Skjønhetskonkurransen (Norway); Kobieto nie grzesz and Nagroda pieknosci and Nie Grzesz Kobieto (Poland); Miss Europa (Der Schonheitspreis) and Weib, sündige nicht (Poland, German language publication); Prémio de Beleza (Portugal); Nagrada za lepoto and Zrtev velike ljubezni (Slovenia); Premio de belleza (Spain, including Catalonia); Miss Europe (Switzerland); Kuzellik Kirali-Casi and Güzellik Ödülü (Turkey); Nie Grzesz Kobieto! (Ukraine); Приз краси and Приз за красоту (U.S.S.R.); Vanidad (Uruguay); Vanidad (Venezuela).

In recent years, numerous screenings of the film have been taken place around the world, including first ever showings under the title Prix de beauté (or Beauty Prize or Miss Europe) in Australia, Canada, Europe, United States and elsewhere.



Monday, January 27, 2020

New Book on German Cinema features Louise Brooks

A book on German cinema has recently been published in Italy which features Louise Brooks. Cinema tedesco: i film (or German Cinema: the films) edited by Leonardo Quaresima, was published at the beginning of 2019, but just came to my attention when I received a message from one of the contributors, Giuliana Disanto. She wrote, "I'd like to inform you about a publication of my essay, "Il vaso di Pandora di Georg Wilhelm Pabst. Dalla parola alla visione," or "Pandora's Box by Georg Wilhelm Pabst. From word to vision." Disanto, who teaches at the University of Salento, added that her 21 page essay interest to the members of the Louise Brooks Society. She is right. More information about the book is available (in Italian) HERE.

According to the publisher in Italian: "Lungo l’arco della sua traiettoria, il cinema tedesco ha avuto a più riprese grandissimo rilievo, esercitando anche un ruolo di punta sul piano internazionale. Il volume ripercorre questa storia attraverso una selezione dei film che ne sono stati protagonisti: dalla stagione del “cinema d’autore” degli anni Dieci, in cui il nuovo mezzo si avvalse della collaborazione dei più noti protagonisti della scena letteraria e teatrale dell’epoca, al periodo weimariano, caratterizzato dalle invenzioni del cinema espressionista e dalla messa a punto di un complesso, raffinato sistema linguistico; dalla fase che accompagna gli anni del nazismo, in cui si fa portavoce delle parole d’ordine del regime, ma anche delle sue, ancor oggi dibattute, contraddizioni, al periodo apparentemente più provinciale dell’immediato dopoguerra, oggetto peraltro di riletture e riconsiderazioni in anni recenti; dall’exploit del Neuer Deutscher Film, che riporta il cinema tedesco a una posizione preminente nel contesto europeo, alla situazione degli ultimi decenni, orientata verso gli standard del racconto internazionale, ma non senza varchi verso modelli autoriali e sintesi tra questi due ambiti."

According to the publisher in English: "Over the course of its trajectory, German cinema has been important on several occasions, exercising a leading role on the international level. This volume traces this story through a selection of the star films: from the "auteur cinema" of the 1910s, in which the new medium made use of the collaboration of the best known protagonists of the literary and theatrical scene of the time, to the Weimar period, characterized by the invention of expressionist cinema and the development of a complex, refined linguistic system; from the phase accompanying the years of Nazism, in which it spoke the slogans of the regime, but also of its still debated contradictions, to the apparently more provincial period of the immediate post-war period, the subject of re-readings and reconsiderations in recent years; from the exploit of Neuer Deutscher Film, which brings German cinema back to a pre-eminent position in the European context, to the situation of the last decades, oriented towards the standards of international narrative, but not without gaps towards authorial models and synthesis between these two areas." The book includes essays by Paolo Bertetto, Francesco Bono, Lorella Bosco, Sonia Campanini, Simone Costagli, Giulia A. Disanto, Luisella Farinotti, Antioco Floris, Matteo Galli, Massimo Locatelli, Francesco Pitassio, Leonardo Lent, Luigi Reitani, Giovanni Spagnoletti, Domenico Spinosa, and Anita Trivelli.

Leonardo Quaresima, the editor, is Senior Professor at the University of Udine. In Germany, he curated, in particular, the revised and expanded edition of From Caligari to Hitler by Kracauer (2004), the Italian edition of The Visible Man by Balázs (2008), and the writings of Joseph Roth on cinema (2015). His other publications are focussed on Leni Riefenstahl (1985), Edgar Reitz (1988), Walter Ruttmann (1994).


Cinema tedesco: i film is available on amazon in Italy, France, Germany, England and elsewhere including either as a print book or as an ebook. I just ordered the ebook / kindle version from amazon in the United States.

Thursday, August 8, 2019

Louise Brooks died on this day in 1985

Louise Brooks died on this day in 1985. Her passing made news around the United States and the world. The most extensive coverage came from the Democrat and Chronicle in Rochester, New York, where Brooks had lived since the late 1950s. There, her death was front page news. LBS friend Jack Garner contributed many articles.

 
Wire service articles appeared in just about every newspaper in the United States, Canada, Australia  and elsewhere the following day. Here are two examples of note.



Obituaries and articles also appeared in Europe, where Brooks' passing was major news. There were even front page articles in newspapers in France, where the actress was a beloved figure. A half-page of articles devoted to Brooks and her film career were printed in the Italian newspaper shown below. As in France, Brooks was also a beloved figure in Italy.


The end.

Tuesday, February 12, 2019

Around the World with Louise Brooks : The Enigma of Louise Brooks

It has long been thought that the post-WWII revival of interest in Louise Brooks began in France in the late 1950s. However, some newly uncovered material suggests that while this revival may have flowered in France in the late 1950s, it had its roots in Italy - a country where interest in the actress never seems to have entirely faded.

Consider this rather stunning 1941 magazine page - one page from a four page article published in Italy - which depicts the actress in a rather atypical fashion. Not only does it evidence interest in the actress at a time when she was largely forgotten, but, it describes her as an "enigma" and actress of great dramatic qualities (not just a pretty, alluring flapper-type). The almost violent nature of this imagery is a bit stunning for the time, as is the fact that these images were based on film cells from Pandora's Box (1929), not film stills or publicity photos. [In Italy, Pandora's Box was titled Lulu.]

This post is one in a number of posts excerpting material included in my forthcoming book, Around the World with Louise Brooks. The entire four page article, which focuses on Brooks and another actress, will be reproduced in my forthcoming book, which I expect will be published this summer.


Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Louise Brooks a la Valentina news stand in Rome

Gianluca Chiovelli sent this snapshot of a news stand in Rome which features an image of Valentina, the Italian comix character based on Louise Brooks.


Friday, May 23, 2014

1933 Italian crossword puzzle with Louise Brooks

Here is a page from a famous weekly Italian puzzle magazine, published in Italy and distributed in other European countries. This special number, with an image of Louise Brooks, dates from 1933. The first issue of La Settimana Enigmistica was published in January 1932, and featured the Mexican actress Lupe Vélez on the front cover. The magazine is still published to this day. [Special thanks to Gianluca for finding this treasured item.]


Sunday, December 8, 2013

Louise Brooks :: “Musei in Musica”: riprende l’attività della Casa del Jazz con un triplo concerto

Yesterday, Louise Brooks was celebrated in jazz in Italy. . . 
 
Il 7 dicembre, ore 21, alla Casa del Jazz, Roma 

SIMONE GRAZIANO QUINTET
“Frontal”
David Binney sax alto
Dan Kinzelman sax tenore
Simone Graziano pianoforte
Gabriele Evangelista contrabbasso
Stefano Tamborrino batteria
 
CRISTIANO ARCELLI QUARTET
“Brooks”
Cristiano Arcelli sax alto
Federico Casagrande chitarra elettrica
Marcello Giannini chitarra elettrica
Zeno de Rossi batteria

CRISTIANO ARCELLI /SIMONE GRAZIANO ENSEMBLE
Ingresso libero sino ad esaurimento posti
In collaborazione con l’Assessorato alla Cultura, Creatività e Promozione Artistica di Roma Capitale e Zètema Progetto Cultura

Riprende l’attività della Casa del Jazz, sabato 7 dicembre nell’ambito di “Musei in Musica” in collaborazione con l’Assessorato alla Cultura, Creatività e Promozione Artistica di Roma Capitale e Zètema Progetto Cultura, con un triplo concerto: alle ore 21.00, il pianista  Simone Graziano presenta  il suo cd “Frontal” acclamato dalla critica musicale come una delle migliori produzioni del 2013, con lui sul palco, un quintetto d’eccezione composto dall’icona del sassofonismo americano David  Binney (sax alto), dal giovane talento americano ma naturalizzato in Italia, Dan Kinzelman al sax tenore, da contrabbassista Gabriele Evangelista e dal batterista Stefano Tamborrino.Alle ore 22,00 ,Cristiano Arcelli con il suo quartetto  presenterà il suo ultimo progetto discografico “Brooks”, un tributo alla diva dark del cinema muto Louise Brooks, realizzato per l’etichetta Auand.Sul palco, accanto a Cristiano Arcelli (sax contralto), alcuni dei più interessanti musicisti del jazz italiano: Federico Casagrande e Marcello Giannini (chitarre elettriche) e Zeno de Rossi (batteria).Infine alle 23,00,Cristiano Arcelli / Simone Graziano Ensemble con i musicisti dei due gruppi che si uniranno sul palco.

“Frontal”, il nuovo disco del pianista fiorentino Simone Graziano pubblicato a maggio da Auand Records e realizzato insieme a Chris Speed, David Binney, Gabriele Evangelista e Stefano Tamborrino, è un concept album che nasce dall’improvvisazione, si cristallizza nella scrittura e si semplifica nella canzone, suggerendo una forma che è data dall’insieme di tre cerchi concentrici. Con il cerchio esterno, il più grande, a rappresentare l’improvvisazione; il cerchio intermedio, la composizione; e quello più piccolo le song. Nessuno di questi elementi viene mai disatteso, perché nella composizione, anche laddove la scrittura appare molto compressa, la musica continua a mantenere una singolare cantabilità e l’improvvisazione è sempre presente.
Il primo cerchio dell’album passa attraverso tre momenti improvvisativi: Frontal, la title track che apre il disco, No Words At All, brano centrale e Carolina, l’unica in piano solo, che chiude il disco. Il momento compositivo si sublima nei quattro brani articolati su forme inusuali e complesse Tre Spirali, As a First Point, Away From Here, Takehiko, tutti caratterizzati da una densa scrittura. Ci sono infine brani come Rock Song #1, Rock Song #2, Nocturnal Fly, e Lucyne, dove predomina la semplicità formale e melodica.

Sono molti, in “Frontal”, di Simone Graziano, i riferimenti alla formazione e alla personalità del leader. C’è il desiderio di dare suono a una forma geometrica, come nel caso della song minimale Lucyne, che sfuma nel brano Tre Spirali, prendendo un andamento vorticoso e complesso proprio come le spire; o come in Takehiko, dedicato all’incontro presso il Bauhaus Archiv di Berlino con un’affascinante scultura dell’artista Takehiko Mizutan: una lastra di bronzo fusa che dà vita a tre coni concentrici poggianti su un asse obliquo. C’è la passione per la musica rock, quella con cui il pianista fiorentino è cresciuto, espressa nelle due Rock Song. Ci sono le improvvisazioni collettive come in No Words At All dove la suggestione è un suono senza alcuna evoluzione, statico, asettico e distante. Ci sono i grooves di As a First Point; le sovrapposizioni armoniche inusuali di Away From Here; la rappresentazione in musica del sogno di volare di Nocturnal Fly; l’inno al mistero della vita di Carolina.Quella che ha accompagnato Simone Graziano nella realizzazione di “Frontal” è una formazione d’eccezione che avvicina in maniera esclusiva due realtà musicali distanti solo geograficamente, ovvero la sempre più vivace scena jazzistica italiana e l’effervescente mondo dell’improvvisazione newyorkese.  Due assi della scena contemporanea statunitense incontrano tre giovani ma già affermati musicisti italiani in una combinazione di originalità e talento.

L’eccezionalità dell’incontro è accresciuta dal fatto che Chris Speed e David Binney, pur avendo all’attivo più di 160 pubblicazioni discografiche, non si erano mai proposti prima d’ora in uno stesso gruppo. La carica innovatrice della band sta nella scelta di eseguire solo musiche originali, composte e arrangiate ad hoc dal leader Simone Graziano; tutte le composizioni mirano a valorizzare il virtuosismo dei singoli esecutori in una musica che non lascia mai da parte la melodicità dei temi e la ricchezza armonica, frutto dello studio dei più grandi maestri della tradizione classica e jazzistica. Tutto ciò contribuisce a determinare un suono d’insieme unico e moderno.

A un anno dalla sua fondazione, il gruppo guidato da Simone Graziano ha già raccolto un pregevole successo di pubblico ed entusiasmanti consensi dalla critica specializzata, che hanno consentito al pianista di essere nominato nel Top Jazz 2012, indetto dalla rivista Musica Jazz, nella categoria Migliori Nuovi Talenti.

“Brooks” è il nuovo lavoro di Cristiano Arcelli, un tributo alla diva dark del cinema muto Louise Brooks, realizzato per l’etichetta Auand.

Alla mostra del Cinema di Parigi del 1950, il famoso storico del cinema Henri Langlois, curatore della mostra, proclamava senza mezzi termini: “Non esistono Garbo e Dietrich, esiste solo Louise Brooks!”. Fu l’inizio della riscoperta e riabilitazione dell’attrice che durerà fino ad oggi. La sua straordinaria e conturbante bellezza, che ne fecero subito il prototipo della donna seduttrice e l’incarnazione del sesso, irruppero nel perbenismo di quegli anni. Divenne l’oggetto del desiderio d’intere generazioni.Guido Crepax dichiarò di essersi ispirato a una foto dell’attrice e alla sua malizia conturbante quando creò l’eterea e peccaminosa Valentina e iniziò un fitto rapporto epistolare con lei per presentarle i suoi lavori e scambiarsi idee, pensieri e intima amicizia. La musica del disco nasce dalla penna di Cristiano Arcelli, il quale fonde il jazz con l’hardcore e il punk e raccoglie tutte le sue esperienze artistiche maturate in questi anni, traendo ispirazione dal personaggio di Louise Brooks.

Ogni brano ha un riferimento preciso:
“Solid Gray”
il titolo è ispirato alla luce dei film dell’epoca del muto. Louise Brooks, alla quale è dedicato il cd, è stata una diva indiscussa di quel mondo.
“Boogeyman and Me”
il lato oscuro della personalità di Louise Brooks (e della nostra), quello che traspare dal suo sguardo, quello che si percepisce leggendo la sua biografia e guardando la sua immagine.
“Elison Parade”
una canzone, firmata assieme a Cristina Zavalloni, che racconta di lontananza, di distacco. Un testo ispirato ai tanti cambiamenti repentini che Louise Brooks ha avuto come donna e come artista nel corso della sua vita
“Pandora”
ispirato al film di Pabst “Il Vaso di Pandora”. Louise Brooks diventerà Lulu, una vera icona del ‘900. La forma del brano “bipartita” e frammentata ritmicamente, descrive la pericolosità dell’essere doppi.
“Verse for Brooks”
come un “verse”, l’introduzione delle canzoni americane di jazz, ritmicamente largo e cantabile, nel mio immaginario descrive la vita di Louise precedente alla carriera cinematografica.
“The City Gone Wild”
il titolo è preso in prestito dall‘omonimo gangster – film del ‘27. Il brano è rabbioso, corrosivo e accelera la percezione come in un film scomodo e di movimento.
“Around Lulu”
un brano dedicato alla Lulu del “Vaso di Pandora”, volendo guardare l’altra faccia della luna. Un brano diviso in due, prima tranquillo e lirico, poi di colpo ritmico e distorto.
“Corale for Brooks”
un’introduzione elettronica prepara il campo ad un corale. Si percepisce la calma del cammino compiuto con tutta la solenne pacatezza di un brano che non ha bisogno di sviluppo ma solo di essere cantato.
“I’ll remember Louise”
il voler tenere a mente la luce dello sguardo di Louise Brooks, un’artista che ha fatto del vivere la contemporaneità una missione e che ha avuto nel suo destino la persecuzione delle sfide dell’arte e della vita.
“Elison Parade” (reprise)
in conclusione un “ritorno”.

In “Brooks”, accanto a Cristiano Arcelli (sax contralto), alcuni dei più interessanti musicisti del jazz italiano: Federico Casagrande e Marcello Giannini (chitarre elettriche), Zeno de Rossi (batteria) e, ospite d’eccezione, la voce di Cristina Zavalloni.

Cristiano Arcelli in questi anni si è affermato come sassofonista e compositore. Ha collaborato con artisti quali: Enrico Rava, Joe Chambers, Paolo Damiani, Cristina Zavalloni, Dafins Prieto, Paul McCandless, Cyro Baptista, Danilo Rea, Gabriele Mirabassi, Nguyen Le, Stefano Battaglia. Si è esibito in molti festival tra i quali: Umbria Jazz, Roccella Jazz, Jazz at Lincoln Center (NY), Casa del Jazz (Roma), European Jazz Expo (Cagliari), Maison de la Culture de Grenoble, New Morning (Parigi), Jazz Festival Saalfelden, Barga Jazz, Beijing Internationl Jazz Festival, Amiens, Teatro Regio (Torino), Auditorium Parco della Musica (Roma). La sua attenzione per la composizione e l’arrangiamento l’hanno portato a cimentarsi con organici di ogni tipo, dal trio all’orchestra sinfonica, travalicando gli ambiti del jazz verso le stagioni concertistiche classiche, le colonne sonore, il teatro e la danza.

Casa del Jazz
Viale di Porta Ardeatina, 55 – Roma
Info: 06/704731
Ingresso libero sino ad esaurimento posti
Relazioni con la stampa: Maurizio Quattrini 338/8485333

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Louise Brooks Society is "famous" in Italy

The Louise Brooks Society is "famous" in Italy! Today, I received a complimentary copy of the Italian edition of Laura Moriarty's terrific Louise Brooks inspired novel, The Chaperone, on which the the LBS received an acknowledgement. See the October 12th blog for details about this new edition.

And today as well, the LBS got a photo credit on this Italian article about Moriarty's book, which has just been released in Italy. "Louise Brooks: sensuale e ingenua" is di Marina Jonna. Check it out.

Tuesday, August 13, 2013

An imaginary interview with Louise Brooks

Italian Louise Brooks fan G. Luca Chiovelli, author of the fantastic Italian website devoted to the actress, had penned a two-part imaginary interview with Louise Brooks titled (in translation) "Louise Brooks, the girl with the black helmet."

Part one can be read here. And part two can be read here. (The Google Chrome browser will translate from the Italian automatically.) The interview appears on the blog of the Monteverdelegge cultural association.

I think it is possible that Louise Brooks is as popular in Italy as she is in France, or Germany.

Friday, May 3, 2013

Louise Brooks silent film to show at Cineteca Nazionale

The Louise Brooks silent film, Diary of a Lost Girl (1929), will be show at Cineteca Nazionale in Italy on May 12th. The film will be accompanied on piano by Maestro Antonio Coppola. The Cineteca Nazionale website says this:

«Pensavamo di titolare questa rassegna di cinema muto accompagnato dal vivo con Il cinema è donna, ma nel rifletterci più appassionatamente abbiamo deciso per femmina che ci è suonato più autorevole ma non retorico, più impetuoso ma non enfatico, più seducente ma non provocante. Qualcuno ha detto che la donna è come la Natura, generosissima ma spietata, e prendendo per buona questa definizione, seppur estrema, abbiamo compilato il programma includendo non solo dive ma anche registe e autrici. Perché affermiamo che Il cinema è femmina? Sebbene rispondere a una domanda con un'altra domanda cozzi violentemente contro la buona creanza, ci concediamo uno scampolo d'insolenza replicando: "Cosa vagheggeresti se anziché spiegarti il perché e il percome nominassimo semplicemente Francesca Bertini? Greta Garbo? Louise Brooks? Pina Menichelli? Mary Pickford? Leda Gys? Quali e quanti cassetti della tua memoria e della tua anima si spalancherebbero rovesciando cascate di emozioni e di immagini?". Il cinema come arte prenderebbe immediatamente corpo nel tuo immaginario al di là di tutte le chiacchiere, troverebbe istantaneamente nitida connotazione, schiettissima identità fino alla tanto paradossale quanto legittima asserzione che per quanto volessimo disquisire sul Cinema, per quanto volessimo essere accademici, ecumenici e snob, la donna uscirebbe sempre e comunque dalla porta per rientrare dalla finestra, gettando alle ortiche tutti i possibili papiri e le possibili ciance. Per questa rassegna il Cinema Trevi sarà la nostra spalancata finestra. Buona visione e buon ascolto» (Antonio Coppola).

L'appuntamento di maggio è dedicato a Louise Brooks. «Nata nel Kansas, a Wichita, nel 1900. Iniziò come ballerina, allieva della famosa Ruth Saint-Denis; il grande impresario Ziegfeld la scoperse mentre si esibiva nelle "Denishawn Dancers" e la scritturò per lo spettacolo Louis the th14 alle "Follies", segnato quindi da George White che la volle con sé per Scandals e dal famoso "Café de Paris" che la chiamò a Londra. Tornata negli Stati Uniti, Hollwyood ne saggiò cautamente le possibilità affidandole, a partire dal 1925, alcune parti di fianco. Due anni dopo, Howard Hawks la impone all'attenzione con A Girl in Every Port (Capitan Barbablù). […] Con il film di Hawks, la ballerina del Kansas diviene il prototipo della ragazza europea dell'epoca, inquieta, e piena di vita. "Bruna, con occhi vivi e stupendi, i capelli diritti acconciati con la frangetta di moda, lo sguardo provocante e pur fanciullesco, il riso smagliante grazie ad una chiostra di denti sfavillanti, essa era l'immagine stessa della garçonne, la maschietta, la ragazza europea degli anni intorno al 1925" (Castello). La sensualità frammista ad un fondo di maliziosa innocenza, soprattutto la prepotente freschezza e vitalità sono le caratteristiche che fecero della B., pur nel numero limitato delle sue interpretazioni, un'attrice importante (dotata, tra l'altro, di notevoli qualità espressive). Nel '29 fu protagonista assoluta di The Canary Murder Case, un film poliziesco che Malcom St. Clair aveva tratto dal romanzo di S.S. Van Dine, conosciuto in Italia come La canarina assassinata, imperniato sulla misteriosa morte d'una celebre "diva" del varietà, conosciuta come la "Canarina" per un suo costume di piume. […] Ormai famosa, l'attrice attendeva ancora un film di autentico impegno e fu Pabst, nel suo periodo migliore, ad offrirgliene l'occasione, con il torbido personaggio di Lulù, la donna che si degrada nel vizio e finisce assassinata, in Die Büchse der Pandora (Lulù), ispirato a due drammi di Wedekind; ad esso seguì Das Tagebuch einer Verlorenen (Il diario di una donna perduta) […]. A cavallo fra il '29 ed il '30 la B. disegnò il suo ultimo personaggio importante, la sartina che diventa Miss Europa (Prix de beauté), in un film diretto da Augusto Genina su soggetto di Clair» (Ernesto G. Laura, Filmlexicon degli autori e delle opere).

ore 21.00
Diario di una donna perduta (1929)
Regia: Georg Wilhelm Pabst; soggetto: tratto dal romanzo omonimo di Margarethe Bohme; sceneggiatura: Rudolf Leonhardt; fotografia: Fritz Arno Wagner, Sepp Allgeier; musica: Timothy Brock, Otto Stenzeel; interpreti: Louise Brooks, Adré Roanne, Josef Rovensky, Fritz Rasp, Vera Pawlowa, Franziska Kinz; origine: Germania; produzione: Hom Film, Pabst Film; durata: 106'

Thymiane (Maria nella versione italiana) figlia di un farmacista, viene violentata dall'assistente del padre. Rimasta incinta viene rinchiusa in un riformatorio. Scappa con un'amica e le due finisco a lavorare in un bordello.«Ultimo dei 10 film muti di Pabst, forse il più geniale, anche più di Lulù, certamente il più sarcastico nella critica sociale. Al centro di un macchinoso intrigo, esplicitamente melodrammatico, la Brooks vi disegna un personaggio complesso e contraddittorio di taglio sadiano che si adatta con vitalità primitiva alle peripezie del suo destino» (Morandini).


Here is the Italian language page run through Google Chrome translate:

"We thought the owner of this collection of silent films accompanied by live with The cinema is a woman , but we decided to think about it more passionately female that there is not rhetorical but sounded more authoritative, more impetuous but not emphatic, more seductive but not provocative. Someone said that the woman is as Nature, generous but ruthless, and taking good for this definition, albeit extreme, we have compiled the program including not only dive but also directors and authors. Why do we say that cinema is female ? While answering a question with another question cozzi violently against good manners, we allow a remnant of replicating insolence: "What if instead of vagheggeresti explain the whys and wherefores nominassimo simply Francesca Bertini? Greta Garbo? Louise Brooks? Pina Menichelli ? Mary Pickford? Leda Gys and what and how many drawers of your memory and your soul will throw open waterfalls spilling of emotions and images? ". The cinema as art in your body immediately take imaginary beyond all the talk, would instantly clear connotation, schiettissima to the identity as paradoxical as a legitimate assertion that as far as we wanted to quibble about the cinema as we wanted to be academic, ecumenical and snobbish, the woman always come out the door to return to the window, throwing to the winds all possible papyri and possible nonsense. For this review, the Cinema Trevi will be our window wide open. Good vision and good listening "(Antonio Coppola).

The appointment of May is dedicated to Louise Brooks. "Born in Kansas, Wichita, in 1900. She began as a dancer, a student of the famous Ruth Saint-Denis, the great impresario Ziegfeld discovered while she was performing in the "Denishawn Dancers" for the show and scritturò Louis the 14th to "Follies", then scored by George White that decided to use him for Scandals and the famous "Café de Paris" who called in London. Back in the United States, Hollywood nor wise cautiously entrusting the possibilities, starting from 1925, some parts of the left. Two years later, Howard Hawks to the attention with A Girl in Every Port ( Captain Bluebeard ). [...] With the Hawks film, the dancer of Kansas becomes the prototype of the European girl at the time, restless, and full of life. "Brown, with bright eyes and beautiful, straight hair with bangs styled fashion, the look provocative and even childish, rice thanks to a dazzling white teeth gleaming, it was the very image of tomboy, the flapper, the European girl the years around 1925 "(Castle). The sensuality mixed with a fund of mischievous innocence, especially the bully freshness and vitality are the characteristics that made ​​of the B., even in the limited number of his interpretations, an actress important (with, among other things, of considerable expressive qualities) . In '29 it was the absolute protagonist of The Canary Murder Case , a crime film that Malcolm St. Clair had the novel by SS Van Dine, known in Italy as the canary murdered , based on the mysterious death of a famous "diva" of the variety , known as the "Canarina" for his costume feathers. [...] Now famous, the actress was still awaiting a film of genuine commitment and Pabst was, in his prime, to offer him the opportunity, with the turbid character of Lulu, the woman who degrades in vice and ends up murdered in Die Büchse der Pandora ( Lulu ), inspired by two plays by Wedekind, it followed Das Tagebuch einer Verlorenen ( The Diary of a Lost Girl ) [...]. At the turn of the '29 and '30s B. drew his last major character, the seamstress who becomes Miss Europe ( Prix de Beauté ), in a film directed by Augusto Genina on the subject of Clair "(Ernesto G. Laura, Filmlexicon of authors and works ).

21.00
Diary of a Lost Girl (1929)
Director: Georg Wilhelm Pabst , subject: based on the novel by Margarethe Bohme; screenplay: Rudolf Leonhardt; photograph: Fritz Arno Wagner, Sepp Allgeier; Music: Timothy Brock, Otto Stenzeel; Cast: Louise Brooks, Adre Roanne, Josef Rovensky, Fritz Rasp, Vera Pavlova, Franziska Kinz; origin: Germany; production: Hom Film, Film Pabst, duration: 106 '

Thymiane (Maria in the Italian version), the daughter of a pharmacist, is raped by the Assistant father. Pregnant is locked up in a reformatory. Run with a friend and the two end up working in a brothel. "Last of the 10 silent films of Pabst, perhaps the most ingenious, even more than Lulu, certainly the most sarcastic social criticism. At the center of an intricate plot, melodramatic explicitly, the Brooks will draw a complex and contradictory cutting Sadian that fits with primitive vitality to the vicissitudes of his destiny "(Morandini).

Sunday, February 17, 2013

Louise Brooks - vintage Italian postcard

This vintage Italian postcard depicts Louise Brooks, the silent film star who is undergoing something of a revival of late in that European country. See some of the posts from earlier this week about the screenings of Brooks films take place this month in Italy.


Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Louise Brooks shines again this month in Italy

A couple of posts prior I wrote that a four film mini festival of Louise Brooks films taking place in Rome at the House of Cinema at the Villa Borghese in Italy. Now comes word that another of Brooks' films will be shown in Italy, this time on February 22 in Milan at the Fondazione Cineteca Italiana. That film is the silent version of Miss Europa (Prix de Beaute). Musical accompaniment will be provided by Antonio Zambrini. Here is the Italian website description:

Miss Europa (Prix de Beauté) – Copia restaurata



R.: Augusto Genina
Sc.: René Clair, Georg W. Pabst
Int.: Louise Brooks, Georges Charlia, Jean Bradin, Augusto Bandini, André Nicolle, Yves Glad, Gaston Jacquet.
Francia, 1930, b/n, 109’, muto.

Sinossi

Louise Brooks nei panni di una semplice impiegata, Lucienne, che si ritrova proiettata nel dorato mondo dello spettacolo dopo essere stata eletta Miss Europa. Il suo fidanzato è all’oscuro di tutto, ma all’inizio Lucienne resiste alle lusinghe della notorietà, si sposa e accetta di dedicarsi alla casa. Solo che quella vita è troppo dura, e un giorno Lucienne se ne va, torna dal principe che l’aveva corteggiata e grazie al suo aiuto inizia una carriera cinematografica. Il marito, disperato, non smetterà di cercarla e quando alla fine la ritroverà tutto finirà in tragedia.
Accompagnamento dal vivo al pianoforte di Antonio Zambrini.


Saturday, February 9, 2013

Louise Brooks: Icon of Silent Film in Italy

Louise Brooks is the focus of a series of screenings in Rome, Italy. The series, "Louise Brooks: Icon of Silent Film," features The Show Off (February 9th), The Canary Murder Case (February 16th), Pandora's Box (February 23rd), and Diary of a Lost Girl (March 2nd). The series is being put on by the House of Cinema at the Villa Borghese (Largo Marcello Mastroianni, 1). Here is the Italian description of the event.

Attrice leggendaria, diva affascinante e enigmatica, Louise Brooks è stata una delle donne più belle e celebri di Hollywood. Dal 9 febbraio al 9 marzo la Casa del Cinema omaggia la grande attrice del cinema muto con la proiezioine di una serie di film: “The Show Off”, “La canarina assassinata”, “Lulu” e “Diario di una donna perduta”.
La vita di Louise Brooks fu attraversata da un senso spiccato per la verità, la libertà e la sessualità senza permessi di “buona condotta”. La sua straordinaria e conturbante bellezza, che ne fecero subito il prototipo della donna seduttrice e l’incarnazione del sesso (ispirò il fumettista Guido Crepax per il personaggio di Valentina ), irruppero nel perbenismo di quegli anni.

Mal vista a Hollywood negli anni Trenta per la sua innata incapacità di piegarsi alle richieste dei produttori, dovette accontentarsi di parti minori e di qualche soap opera radiofonica. Lasciò il cinema e la celebrità a solo 36 anni.
Here is a scan of an article, "La diva che uscì dal vaso di Pandora," which appeared in today's Rome edition of Corriere della Sera, Italy's leading newspaper. Thank you Gianluca (Italy's leading Louise Brooks fan/scholar.)


Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Canary Murder Case released on DVD in Italy

Yesterday, I reported on the forthcoming release of Overland Stage Raiders (1938). Louise Brooks last film will be released on DVD and BluRay in early October. The release of Overland Stage Raiders by Olive Films marks the first time this B-western starring John Wayne will be available on DVD.



Now come word that another hard-to-come-by Brooks' film, The Canary Murder Case (1929), will be or already has been released on DVD in Italy.

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Louise Brooks film Prix de Beauté screens in Italy


The 1930 Louise Brooks film, Prix de Beauté, will be screened on June 23rd as part of the 26th edition of Il Cinema Ritrovato festival in Bologna, Italy. The prestigious international festival is put on by the Mostra Internazionale del Cinema Libero and Cineteca di Bologna. The program from the event can be viewed and even downloaded on this page.

Here is the small listing for the Prix showing, which will be accompanied by Timothy Brock and a (newly?) commissioned score.


I don't know for sure, but suspect, that the festival will screen the silent version of Augusto Genina's Prix de Beauté. It is considered superior to the more commonly seen sound version, which has added sound effects, dialogue and a couple of songs. Genina was an Italian director working in France when he came to make the film, which was based on a story idea by the German director G.W. Pabst (who made Pandora's Box and Diary of a Lost Girl) and the French director Rene Clair. Brooks' voice was dubbed in the sound version (she didn't speak French), and a professional singer sang the lovely theme song Brooks is shown singing.

Prix de Beauté has great charm, and its ending scene is considered one of the most remarkable passages in film history. A clip is embedded below. If you haven't seen Prix de Beauté, please note that this fragment contains spoilers.


Thursday, May 17, 2012

New art exhibit inspired by Louise Brooks

If I am reading it right, this Italian webpage notes that a new exhibit titled "Valentina Movie" about Guido Crepax's Valentina artwork (which was directly inspired by Louise Brooks) will be on display in Rome, Italy starting in late May and running through September. The exhibit is curated by the Archivio Crepax and Vincenzo Mollica.


According to LBS member and Italian friend Gianluca Chiovelli, Mollica was "an incredible Louise Brooks’ fan, "who wrote one book on the actress and participated in the 1983 interview in Rochester together with Hugo Pratt." Here is the text of the Italian announcement.

VALENTINA MOVIE
Roma, Palazzo Incontro
30 maggio – 30 settembre 2012
 
ANTEPRIMA STAMPA
Martedì 29 maggio ore 12.00
 
VALENTINA MOVIE, curata da Archivio Crepax e Vincenzo Mollica, è la prima mostra romana dedicata a Valentina. Promossa dalla Provincia di Roma nell’ambito del Progetto ABC Arte Bellezza Cultura ed organizzata da Civita, apre al pubblico dal 30 maggio al 30 settembre, a Palazzo Incontro.

Nata nel 1965 dalla penna di Guido Crepax, la donna più complessa e sensuale del fumetto italiano si presenta in un'esposizione "anarchica" ed emozionale, costituita da sale tematiche che avvolgono il pubblico in un'atmosfera sempre in bilico tra sogno e realtà.

Sagome di Valentina a grandezza naturale guidano gli spettatori lungo il percorso, raccontando il mondo di Crepax e fornendo spunti dal ricco bagaglio culturale che caratterizza le storie della saga. Il tutto, amplificato da ambientazioni e spettacolarizzazioni di grandi dimensioni tratte dai disegni, animato da installazioni e contributi video e valorizzato da 120 tavole originali scelte tra le circa 2.600 che quest'Autore ha dedicato a Valentina.

I am curious to find out if there will be a catalog or any related screenings? And of course, should you find yourself in Rome this Summer do check out this exhibit and post something about what you see.

 
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