Movie Monday: The Dying Swan 1917
One hundred, five years ago, today, the 1917 short, silent film The Dying Swan (Russian: Umirayushchiy Lebed) was released in Russia (Moscow). Starring Vera Karalli (Gizella), Aleksandr Kheruvimov (Gizella’s Father), Vitold Polonksy (Viktor Krasovsky), Andrej Gromov (Valeriy Glinskiy) and Ivane Perestiani (Glinskiy’s Friend), it was directed by Yevgeni Bauer and written by Zoya Barantsevich.
A grief-stricken ballerina becomes the obsession of an increasingly unhinged artist.
Gizella, who is a dancer and mute, falls in love with Victor, whom she met at the lake. She believes that love is mutual but, […] sees Victor with another girl after he cancels a date with her. She becomes an object of sympathy for the artist Glinsky, who sees Gizella dancing The Dying Swan and uses her as a model for a picture on the theme of death.
When Viktor meets Gizella one day beside the lake, he takes an interest in her and begins to call on her regularly. When Viktor deceives her and she finds him with another woman, she moves away and begins a career as a ballerina.
A brokenhearted dancer and an artist desperate for inspiration form a strange collaboration in Russian director Yevgeni Bauer’s psychological drama. Morbid in the best possible way.
Additional:
The Dying Swan (Century Film Project/12-10-2017)
Full Movie
January 18, 2022 at 2:38 AM
This sounds very interesting, but it would to an old romantic 😂 Some of the storylines of the old movies are very good and quite dark at times. Alan Ladd made some good ones, but I digress, as always. I do like a bit of romantic morbidness, (no red line so I’ll take it that is a word) One film that stuck with me since childhood is Maytime, Jeannette MacDonald and Nelson Eddie. I watched it with my mum when I was a kid. I loved the ending, no spoiler alert 😉 I’ll try and catch this one on YouTube, thank you 😀
January 19, 2022 at 2:26 AM
Morbidness works! LOL!
I will have to look up Maytime.
I’m an old romantic, too.
January 18, 2022 at 9:52 AM
Wow…it’s still around! I’m glad it’s not lost to the nitrate ash can.
January 19, 2022 at 2:27 AM
Yep. I was surprised to find it. It is intact.