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The rare female filmmaker of the time, Germaine Dulac directed
Les Sours Ennemies (1916),
Geo le Mysterieux (1917),
Venus Victrix (1917),
the serial Ames de fous (1918),
La Fete Espagnole (1920) and others, most of them lost, before
La Souriante Madame Beudet/ The Smiling Madam Beudet (1923), which is possibly the first feminist film,
and
the 40-minute film
La Coquille et le Clergyman/ The Seashell and the Clergyman (1928),
which competes with Bunuel's
Un Chien Andalou (1929) as the ultimate surrealist film.
It was a collaboration with Antonin Artaud, author of the "Manifesto for a Theatre of Cruelty" calling for a theater dominated by images instead of words
("a new theatrical language of totem and gesture – a language of space devoid of dialogue that would appeal to all the senses"). Unfortunately in this film Artaud's theories are not visible. Trivia: Artaud had
been expelled from the surrealism movement because he refused the movement’s
drift towards communism.
The film is basically a journey into the subconscious of a priest.
that is depicted as an alchemist at the opening of the film.
A general walks slowly into a room and stands behind the priest as he prepares
wine. The general takes the vessel and smashes it with his sword.
Images flicker. The priest looks terrified at the general's actions.
We then see the priest crawling in the street, and then documentarian images
of streets and buildings. And the priest still crawling like a spider.
He is following the carriage of the general on which the general is sitting next to his gorgeous wife.
They stop and he hides behind a pillar.
He imagines that he strangles the general.
The general turns into a priest sitting inside a confessional.
Blood spreads all over the general's face as the priest tightens his grip on the throat, and the head eventually splits in two.
Next, we see a sea landscape. He dreams of removing her bra.
We see people dancing on a checkered floor, viewed from the ceiling.
While the dance goes on,
the general and his wife sit on two chairs above a platform like royalty on thrones.
They disappear and the dancers stop.
The priest sees fire coming out of the floor. We see him from the viewpoint of the floor.
He wanders in the building dragging two long pieces of cloth.
Then we see the woman running on a country road, chased by the priest.
We see deformed faces of her sticking out her tongue. The chase continues
inside a building.
We see him inside a room contemplating a crystal ball and her head appears inside it.
The general and the wife run out of the building and again on that country road,
and the priest is always chasing them.
We see the hands of four people beating on a table.
The priest spies angrily as the wife kisses the general.
A miniature house appears between his two hands, which is then shown reflected
in the water.
A group of maids enter a vast room and begin mopping the floor and dusting
the windows, and then cleaning the crystal ball inside which the priest's head
appears.
The cleaning maids line up, the priest and the wife enter and the general
officiates their wedding.
We see the house appear on top of the priest's head.
The priest places the crystal ball in the middle of the vast room but it breaks.
The priest stares at the mirror image of his own head, and the film ends.
In between those two films she also directed more conventional stories.
Le Diable dans la Ville/ The Devil in the City (1925) is a
charming and eventful medieval drama about superstition and love.
A statue protects the village of Pimprelune from the devil in the Middle Ages.
A solitary eccentric nicknamed the "Illumine'" (the enlighted one) lives in a
ramshackle tower, supported by public charity because he excels at making medical potions for sick people and is capable of predicting the future.
Unfortunately, the town is bankrupt and has to auction public property
and the tower is purchased by the famous alchimist Marc.
A flashback shows why the alchemist chose that town: he fell in love with a
girl whom he saw singing in the church.
The mayor expels the "Illumine'" from the tower, and the Illumine' warns in vain that Marc has made a pact with the devil and is out to steal the souls of the villagers.
Two orphan girls, Blanche and Rose, were adopted by Bonifacius, a superstitious miser. Blanche is the girl sighted by Marc in the church.
He reads the cards and concludes that Illumine' is right: Marc is the devil.
He gets convinced especially after Illumine' whispers in his ear that he, Bonifacius, will be threatened by Marc's arrival, due to a secret that we are not told.
The rumor spreads around town but the mayor ignores the gossipers and welcomes
Marc when he moves in. Marc hires an old man, Patrice, as his servant.
Patrice tells Marc who Blanche is and where she lives.
The mayor invites Marc to a grand ball and Marc finally meets his love, Blanche.
Meanwhile, Patrice is at the tavern gossiping that Marc is a sorcerer.
At midnight the town is battered by a heavy storm that destroys the statue
of the protector. The townsfolks are terrified that the devil has entered the town.
Illumine' interrupts the mayor's ball and accuses Marc of having cause the tragedy.
The mayor, skeptic of Illumine's prophesy, calls for calm.
Ghostly figures run around town and steal the fragments of the statue.
Marc receives a note warning him of danger and advising him to flee the town.
He follows the messenger, who is wrapped in a white cape, and sees him enter the house of Bonifacius.
Later someone, wrapped in a black cape, throws fragments of the statue into
the homes of the village, breaking their windows.
The following morning the townsfolks notice that only the head of the statue
remains in the street: the rest of the debris has disappeared.
Those who received fragments of the statue start going mad, wreaking havoc in the streets, creating the belief that touching any debris of the statue is a curse.
The madmen assemble in city hall.
When Marc walks around town, people avoid him.
Blanche and Rose drag him away before the crowd can turn against him.
Marc believes that one of them is the secret messenger and displays the message
hoping that either one would betray herself, but both look innocent.
The mayor still discounts the superstition.
Those who are still sane beg the mayor to inspect the tower but the coward
fakes an attack of gout.
At the tower Patrice discovers the hands of the statue in one of Marc's drawers,
indicating that Marc would be the sinister man in the black cape, but Marc
looks puzzled: someone is trying to frame him.
Patrice goes mad and is found ringing the bells nonstop.
When he leaves the tower, Marc is attacked by
a posse that wants to stone him to death on the steps of the church.
He is saved by Blanche and the priest, who wants no violence in his church.
Blanche confesses that she was the messenger in the white cape.
The mayor inspects the tower and finds pieces of the statue, which is taken
as proof that Marc is the devil.
Many people leave the town in terror.
Rose derides Blanche's love and cruelly prophesizes that he will be massacred.
The mysterious man in a black cape throws a fragment of the statue to the doctor and he too goes mad.
Marc catches the mysterious man: it's Illumine', caught with a bag full
of fragments of the statue.
Marc declares that Illumine' is the real sorcerer and Illumine' flees the town.
Marc catches Illumine' entering a secret tunnel under the tower and
follows him to his secret hide-out and confronts him.
Illumine' confesses that that place is a storage of
salt, wool and alcohol: he is a member of a gang of smugglers.
They schemed against Marc because Marc's presence in the tower was an impediment to their illicit trade.
Illumine' takes him to the tavern where the mad people have congregated:
they are not mad at all, they are the smugglers, co-conspirators of the scheme
to get rid of Marc.
It is revealed that they are the ones who broke the statue, not the wind.
Bonifacius witnesses that they are not crazy and almost goes crazy himself.
The mayor is hailed as a hero by the townfolk.
Marc and Blanche get married, but decide to leave town because (the last lines of the movie), once the devil arrives, the devil will never leave.
La Folie des Vaillants (1925) is a symbolist film that mimics musical
composition, a “visual symphony” based on rhythmic editing.
Antoinette Sabrier (1927).
The poetic 40-minute film L'Invitation au Voyage/ Invitation to a Journey (1927) unfolds slowly, as if in a trance, and with no text, purely visual.
"L'Invitation au Voyage" is the name of a cabaret decorated like a ship and popular with sailors.
A lady arrives in a taxi and she sits alone at a table.
She is tired of her monotonous life at home:
her husband leaves every night to party with other women.
A handsome naval officer invites her to dance.
She dreams of leaving with him on a ship.
He notices her wedding ring and kisses it.
A vulgar woman steals him from her and he indulges in humiliating the married woman, who eventually leaves.
He remains to stare melancholy to the flowers on the table while she returns
home to her monotonous life.
She also directed brief experiments such as:
the “cinegraphic ballet” Etude Cinematographique sur une Arabesque (1929),
the "arabesque" Themes et Variations (1929) devoted to the act of dancing,
the Disque 957 (1929) based on a spinning record and ostensibly a “visual impression while listening to Chopin’s preludes 5 and 6”,
etc.
(Copyright © 2022 Piero Scaruffi | Terms of use )
Dulac's Filmography
Fiction Films
1916
Les Soeurs ennemies (The enemy sisters).
35mm, black and white. 765m, 38 min., 18 f/s.
Status: Lost.
1917
Geo le mysterieux (Geo the mysterious).
35mm, black and white. 1242m, 61 min., 18 f/s.
Status: Lost.
Dans l’Ouragan de la vie (In the hurricane of life)
35mm, black and white. 1510m, 74 min., 18 f/s.
Status: Lost.
1918
Ames de fous (Mad souls; cine-roman in six episodes).
35mm, black and white. 3874m, 190 min., 18 f/s. Alternate length 3775m, FGD 4339.
Status: Lost.
Trois Pantins pour une poupee (Three puppets for a doll)
35mm, black and white. Unknown length and duration.
Status: Lost.
Le Bonheur des autres (The happiness of others).
35mm, black and white. Unknown length and duration.
Status: Lost.
1919
La Cigarette.
35mm, black and white. 1156m, 56 min. (original 1400m, 69 min.), 18 f/s. Alternate length 1900m, FGD 4340.
La Fête espagnole (The Spanish fiesta).
35mm, black and white, tinting and toning. 170m (fragment), 8 min. (original 1671m, 82 min.), 18 f/s. Alternate length 710m, FGD 4340.
1920
Malencontre (Misfortune).
35mm, black and white. 1588m, 78 min. (18 f/s).
Status: Lost.
La Belle Dame sans merci (The beautiful woman without mercy).
35mm, black and white, tinting and toning. 1781m, 80 min. (original 1935m, 95 min.), 18 f/s. Alternately listed as 2200m, FGD 4340.
1921
La Mort du soleil (The death of the sun). Working title: “Le Fleau” (The scourge).
35mm, black and white. 1684m, 83 min. (original 1925m, 95 min.), 18 f/s. Alternate length 1700m, FGD 4339.
Source: Centre national de la cinematographie, Bois d’Arcy. Restored 1985.
Scriptwriter: Andre Legrand. Camera operator: Paul Parguel, Belval.
Producer: Les Films Legrand (with funding from the American Committee against Tuberculosis.) Distributor: Pathe/Agence Generale Cinematographique.
Starring Andre Nox (Lucien Faivre), Denise Lorys (Marthe Voisin), Louis Vonelly (Daniel Voisin), Regine Dumien (Jacqueline), Jeanne Berangere, Jeanne Brindeau.
Press screening December 13, 1921. Premiere February 17, 1922 (Salle Marivaux).
1922
Werther (unfinished).
35mm, black and white. Unknown length and duration.
Status: Lost.
Scriptwriter: Germaine Dulac adapted from the novel Die Leiden des jungen Werthers (The Sorrows of Young Werther) by J. W. von Goethe. Camera operator: Belval.
Producer: Les Films DH.
Starring Gabriel de Gravonne (Werther), Denise Lorys (Charlotte), J.-David Evremond (Albert).
Unreleased.
La Femme au travail (Women at work). Alternate title Jenny l’ouvriere (Jenny the worker).
35mm, black and white. Five of six completed newsreel shorts. Each approx. 120m, 5 min., 18 f/s. Total 600m, 30 min.
Status: Lost.
Scriptwriter: Germaine Dulac.
Producer: Triomphe Films.
Starring Musidora, Suzanne Bianchetti, France Dhelia, Denise Lorys, Marthe Regnier, Yvette Andreyor.
Premiere June 7, 1922 (Palais de la mutualite).
La Souriante Madame Beudet (The Smiling Madame Beudet).
35mm, black and white. 773m, 38 min., 18 f/s. Alternate length 814m, FGD 4326.
Source: EYE Film Instituut Nederland (Swiss print: French/German intertitles).
Scriptwriter: Andre Obey, based on the play by Denys Amiel and Andre Obey. Camera operator: A. Merrin. Set designer: M. Delattre.
Producer: Charles Delac and Marcel Vandal (Film d’art). Distributor: Aubert.
Starring Germaine Dermoz (Madame Beudet), Alexandre Arquillere (Monsieur Beudet), Jean d’Yd (Monsieur Lebas), Madeleine Guitty (Madame Lebas), Yvette Grisier (maidservant), Raoul Paoli (tennis player), Thirard (auditor).
Press screening January/February 1923. Premiere June 19, 1923.
1923
Gossette (cine-roman in six episodes).
35mm, black and white, tinted. 5477m, 268 min. (original 8200m, 403 min.), 18 f/s. Alternate length 7200m, FGD 4340.
Source: Cinematheque française. Restored 1987 (Renee Lichtig).
Scriptwriter: Germaine Dulac, based on the novel by Charles Vayre. Published in L’echo de Paris (1923). Camera operator: Henri Stuckert, Albert Cohendy. Set designer: Jean Perrier.
Assistant Director: Marie-Anne Malleville.
Producer: Societe des cineromans. Distributor: Pathe-Consortium.
Starring Regine Bouet (Gossette), Jean-David Evremond (Robert de Tayrac), Monique Chryses (Lucienne Dornay), Jeanne Brindeau (Mme de Savieres), Maurice Schutz (M. de Savieres), Georges Charlia (Phillipe de Savieres), Jean d’Yd (Master Varades, the notary), Mario Nathasio (Andriano), Paul Menant (the chauffeur), Bernard (father Bonnefoy), Vialar (son Bonnefoy), Madeleine Guitty (Mme Bonnefoy).
Six episodes (1000–1200m each): 1. La Nuit tragique (55 min.), 2. Le Revenant (43 min.), 3. Face à face (50 min.), 4. L’Embûche (45 min.), 5. Les lettres volees (41 min.), 6. La Vengeance du mort (34 min.).
Press screening November 21, 1923. Premiere December 28, 1923 (Salle Marivaux).
1924
Le Diable dans la ville (The devil in the city).
35mm, black and white. 1629m, 80 min., 20 f/s. Alternate length 1800m, FGD 4339.
Source: Cinematheque française.
Scriptwriter: Jean-Louis Bouquet. Artistic Director: Louis Nalpas. Camera operator: Henri J. Stuckert. Set designer: Marco de Gastyne.
Assistant: Marie-Anne Malleville.
Producer: Societe des cineromans. Distributor: Pathe-Consortium.
Starring Jacqueline Blanc (Blanche), Michele Clairfont (Rose), Leon Mathot (Marc Herner, philosopher), Rene Donnio (the illuminated one), Albert Mayer (Alchemist Master Ludivigo), R. Vetty (Mr. Pattaus, the Mayor), Pierre de Ramey (Captain of the Guard), Emile Saint-Ober (a crazy person), Mario Nasthasio (a crazy person), Jean-François Martial, Jacques Vandenne, Canelas, Bernard, Lucien Bataille, Emilien Richaud (a crazy person).
Press screening October 29, 1924. Premiere January 30, 1925.
1925
Âme d’artiste (An artist’s soul; UK release title: The Heart of an Actress).
35mm, black and white. 2032m, 100 min., 18 f/s. Alternate length 2300m, FGD 4339.
Source: Cinematheque française.
Scriptwriter: Germaine Dulac and Alexander Volkoff based on the play “Opad” by Christian Molbech. Camera operator: Jules Kruger, Nicolas Toporkov. Set designer: Alexander Lochakoff.
Assistant Director: Marie-Anne Malleville.
Producer: Cine-France-Film (Consortium Westi). Distributor: Pathe-Consortium.
Starring Ivan Petrovich (Herbert Campbell, poet), Nicolas Koline (Morris, Helen’s adoptive father), Mabel Poulton (Helen Taylor), Yvette Andreyor (Edith Campbell, poet’s wife), Henry Houry (Lord Stamford, Mylord), Jeanne Berangere (Edith’s mother), Felix Barre (Phillips, theater director), Gina Manes (actress), Charles Vanel (actor).
Press screening June 23, 1925. (Salle Marivaux) Premiere November 6, 1925.
La Folie des vaillants (The folly of the brave).
35mm, black and white, tinted. 844m, 46 min. (original 1250m, 61 min.), 18 f/s.
Source: Centre national de la cinematographie, Bois d’Arcy. Restored 1989.
Scriptwriter: Germaine Dulac, based on the novella “Makar Chudra” (Radda) by Maxim Gorky. Camera operator: Paul Parguel and Maurice Forster.
Producer: Cinegraphistes français. Distributor: Mappemonde Film.
Starring Raphaël Lievin (Loïko Sodar), Lia Loo (Radda), Castelluci (Lenka).
Press screening December 17, 1925. Premiere April 2, 1926 (Salle du Colisee).
1926
Antoinette Sabrier.
35mm, black and white, tinted. 1712m, 73 min., 20 f/s (original 2300m, 98 min., 18 f/s).
Source: Cinematheque française. Restored 1998.
Script and adaptation: Germaine Dulac, based on the play by Romain Coolus. Cineroman published by Rene Jeanne (1928). Camera operator: Henri Stuckert, Georges Daret. Set designer: G. Silvagni and Georges Quenu.
Assistant: Marie-Anne Malleville.
Artistic director: Louis Nalpas.
Producer: Societe des cineromans. Distributor: Pathe-Consortium.
Starring eve Francis (Antoinette Sabrier), Gabriel Gabrio (Germain Sabrier), Jean Toulout (Jamagne), Yvette Armell (Helene Doreuil), Paul Guide (Rene Dangenne), Paul Menant (Chartrain), Maurice Cervieres (Gaston Doreuil, Mr. Sabrier’s advisor), Ashida (the dancer), Lou Davy.
Press screening April 13, 1927. Premiere January 20, 1928.
1927
L’Invitation au voyage (Invitation to a voyage).
35mm, black and white, tinted. 797m, 39 min., 18 f/s.
Source: EYE Film Instituut Nederland. Restored 1999.
Scriptwriter: Germaine Dulac, inspired by the poem of Charles Baudelaire. Camera operator: Paul Guichard. Set designer: Cesare Silvagni, Hugo Squarciafico.
Assistants: Marie-Anne Malleville, Louis Ronjat.
Producer: Germaine Dulac. Distributor: Productions Natan.
Starring Emma Gynt (woman), Raymond Dubreuil (marine), Robert Mirfeuil (partier), Paul Lorbert (sailor), Tania Daleyme (girl), Djemil Anik (dancer), Lucien Bataille (drummer).
Premiere November 1927.
La Coquille et le clergyman (The Seashell and the Clergyman).
35mm, black and white. 812m, 39 min., 30 sec., 18 f/s.
Source: Light Cone Film and EYE Film Instituut Nederland. Restored 2004.
Scriptwriter: Antonin Artaud. Camera operator: Paul Guichard.
Producer/Assistant director: Louis Ronjat.
Starring Alexander Allin (the clergyman), Genica Athanasiou (the woman), Lucien Bataille (the officer).
Pre-screening October 25 and December 10, 1927 (CCF). Premiere February 9, 1928 (Studio des Ursulines).
1928
La Princesse Mandane. Working title: L’Oublie (The forgotten one).
35 mm, black and white. 1775m, 74 min., 20 f/s. Original length 2400m, FGD 4339.
Source: Centre national de la cinematographie, Bois d’Arcy.
Scriptwriter: Germaine Dulac, based on the novel L’Oublie (The forgotten one) by Pierre Benoît. Camera operator: Paul Guichard, Lucien Bellavoine. Set designer: Silvagni.
Producer: Alex Nalpas. Distributor: Films Louis Aubert.
Starring Edmonde Guy (Mandane), Mona Goya (Simoun), Groza Wesco (Lily de Thorigny), Ernest Van Duren (etienne Pindere), Jacques Arnne (Gerys-Kahn), Paul Lorbert, Yvonne Legeay, Valenti Colino (Azyme Electropoulos), Sylvie Mai (Anna), Gerard de Wibo (Michel Voraguine), Genevieve Cargese, Christian Gerard.
Press screening March 15, 1928. Premiere November 23, 1928.
Abstract Films or “Technical Studies”
1929
Disque 957 (Record 957).
35mm, black and white, silent. 97m, 6 min., 18 f/s (original 16 f/s).
Source: EYE Film Instituut Nederland.
Scriptwriter: Germaine Dulac (based on Preludes 5 and 6 of Frederic Chopin). Camera operator: Alfred Guichard. Producer: Germaine Dulac.
Premiere May 19, 1929 (l’oeil de Paris).
etude cinegraphique sur une arabesque (Cinegraphic study of an arabesque). Alternate title Arabesque.
35mm, black and white, silent. 140m, 7 min., 18 f/s (original 16 f/s).
Source: Cinematheque française, Light Cone Film.
Scriptwriter: Germaine Dulac, based on Deux arabesques (Two arabesques, 1888–91) of Claude Debussy.
Starring Marie-Anne Malleville.
Producer: Germaine Dulac.
Premiere April 12, 1929 (l’oeil de Paris).
Themes et variations. Alternate title Theme et variation. Working title: “Theme visual et variation cinematographique.”
35mm, black and white, silent. 190m, 9 min., 18 f/s (original 16 f/s).
Source: Cinematheque française, Light Cone Film.
Scriptwriter: Germaine Dulac (based on “classical melodies” incl. Maurice Ravel).
Producer: Germaine Dulac.
Starring Lilian Constantini (dancer).
Premiere December 9, 1929 (l’oeil de Paris).
“Films musicaux” (musical films) or “Disques illustrees” (record illustrations)
1930
Autrefois … aujourd’hui (In the old days … nowadays).
35mm, black and white, sound. 177m, 7 min., 20 f/s (original 192m, 8 min.).
Source: Centre national de la cinematographie, Bois d’Arcy.
Scriptwriter: Germaine Dulac. Camera operator: Paul Guichard. Assistant: Marie-Anne Malleville.
Producer: Isis Films.
Starring Lilian Constantini, Reix Darcourt (dancers).
Records:
“Dis-moi tu, dis-moi toi” (4 min.), Columbia 1929 (author: Johann Strauss).
“Smiles, then, kisses” or “Facilita” (4 min.), Columbia 1929 (author: John Hartmann and Jack Mackintosh).
“Quatre et Trois” (4 min.), Columbia 1929 (author: Marius Brun).
Source: Special thanks to Alain Carou (BNF) for locating the original gramophone records.
Celles qui s’en font (Those [women] who worry).
35mm, black and white, sound. 130m, 6 min. (variable speed: 18 f/s for “Toute seule,” 20 f/s for “À la derive.”) Original length: 146m.
Source: Lobster Films, Paris.
Scriptwriter: Germaine Dulac. Camera operator: Jean Jouannetaud.
Producer: Isis Films.
Starring Lilian Constantini, Georges Vallee.
Records:
“Toute seule” (4 min.), Parlophone 1928 (author unknown; singer Frehel).
“À la derive” (4 min.), Pathe 1927 (Daniderff; singer Georgette Kerlor).
Source: Bibliotheque nationale de France.
Ceux qui ne s’en font pas (Those who don’t worry).
35mm, black and white, sound. 145m, 6 min., 20, then 17 f/s.
Source: Centre national de la cinematographie, Bois d’Arcy.
Scriptwriter: Germaine Dulac.
Producer: Isis Films.
Records:
“Si j’etais chef de gare” (4 min.), Columbia 1928 (from the operetta Kadubec by Maurice Yvain and Andre Barde; singer Georges Milton).
“Sur le Pont d’Avignon” (4 min.), Columbia 1928 (author unknown).
Source: Bibliotheque nationale de France.
Danses espagnoles (Spanish dances).
35mm, black and white, sound. 160m, 7 min. (original 146m, 6 min.), 20, then 21 f/s.
Source: Lobster Films.
Scriptwriter: Germaine Dulac. Camera operator: Jean Jouannetaud.
Producer: Isis Films.
Starring Carmencita Garcia (dancer), Marie-Anne Malleville (spectator).
Records:
“Cordoba” (4 min.), Gramophone 1926 (author: Isaac Albeniz).
“Sevillanas” (4 min.), Columbia 1928 (author: Isaac Albeniz).
Source: Bibliotheque nationale de France.
Jour de fête (Holiday).
35mm, black and white, sound. 167m, 7 min., 22 f/s.
Status: Lost.
Scriptwriter: Germaine Dulac.
Producer: Isis Films.
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