Thaïs (Italian film)
Encyclopedia
Thaïs, also known as Perfido incanto is a 1917 silent film
directed by Anton Giulio Bragaglia
. The movie is the only surviving Italian futurist film and currently kept at the Cinémathèque Française
. It is based on the novel
of the same name by Anatole France
.
of turbid "diva-film" typical of the period.
The beautiful Slavic countess Vera Preobrajenska (played by Thaïs Galitzy) is a seductress
of married men, who drags them to the brink of ruin. When Thaïs seduces the husband of her best friend, she dies from falling off her horse.
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
directed by Anton Giulio Bragaglia
Anton Giulio Bragaglia
Anton Giulio Bragaglia was a pioneer in Italian Futurist photography and Futurist cinema. A versatile and intellectual artist with wide interests, he wrote about film, theatre, and dance.-Early life:...
. The movie is the only surviving Italian futurist film and currently kept at the Cinémathèque Française
Cinémathèque Française
The Cinémathèque Française holds one of the largest archives of films, movie documents and film-related objects in the world. Located in Paris, the Cinémathèque holds daily screenings of films from around the world.-History:...
. It is based on the novel
Thaïs (novel)
Thaïs is a novel by Anatole France published in 1890. It is based on events in the life of Saint Thaïs of Egypt, a legendary convert to Christianity who is said to have lived in the 4th century...
of the same name by Anatole France
Anatole France
Anatole France , born François-Anatole Thibault, , was a French poet, journalist, and novelist. He was born in Paris, and died in Saint-Cyr-sur-Loire. He was a successful novelist, with several best-sellers. Ironic and skeptical, he was considered in his day the ideal French man of letters...
.
Plot
The plot is fairly conventional and refers to the love storiesRomance film
Romance films are love stories that focus on passion, emotion, and the affectionate involvement of the main characters and the journey that their love takes through courtship or marriage. Romance films make the love story or the search for love the main plot focus...
of turbid "diva-film" typical of the period.
The beautiful Slavic countess Vera Preobrajenska (played by Thaïs Galitzy) is a seductress
Seduction
In social science, seduction is the process of deliberately enticing a person to engage. The word seduction stems from Latin and means literally "to lead astray". As a result, the term may have a positive or negative connotation...
of married men, who drags them to the brink of ruin. When Thaïs seduces the husband of her best friend, she dies from falling off her horse.
External links
- Thaïs at celluloidbreakfast.com