''The Assassination of the Duke of Guise'' ( 1908) (original French title: ''La Mort du duc de Guise''; often referred to as ''L'Assassinat du duc de Guise'') is a French

historical film A historical drama (also period drama, costume drama, and period piece) is a work set in a past time period, usually used in the context of film and television. Historical drama includes historical fiction and romances, adventure films, and swa ...

directed by Charles le Bargy and André Calmettes, adapted by Henri Lavedan, and featuring actors of the

Comédie-Française The Comédie-Française () or Théâtre-Français () is one of the few state theatres in France. Founded in 1680, it is the oldest active theatre company in the world. Established as a French state-controlled entity in 1995, it is the only state ...

and prominent set designers. It is one of the first films to feature both an original

film score A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film. The score comprises a number of orchestral, instrumental, or choral pieces called cues, which are timed to begin and end at specific points during the film in order to e ...

, composed by Camille Saint-Saëns,Davis, Richard (1999). ''Complete Guide to Film Scoring'', Berklee Press, Boston. , p. 17 and a screenplay by an eminent screenwriter.Magill's Survey of Silent Films, Vol.1 A-FLA p.155 edited by Frank N. Magill c.1982 (3 book set )

Synopsis

Lasting longer than was then usual, about 15 minutes, the film more or less accurately depicts the events of the day in 1588 when King Henry III (played by co-director le Bargy) summoned his powerful rival, Duke Henri de Guise, to his chambers at the Château de Blois and had him brutally murdered. The film has its share of lurid thrills and better acting than most films of the time. It is staged in a somewhat theatrical manner but has slow pacing throughout.

Production

''The Assassination'' was one of the first and most successful films to be made by , a production company founded in 1907 with the intention of making films that would earn the respect of the cultural elite as well as the patronage of large audiences.Marks, Martin Miller, 1997, ''Music and the Silent Film,'' p. 50. The script was written for the screen (by Henri Lavedan), but its costumes and staging followed the historical tradition of the French theater. The movie contains the rudiments of the more elaborate narrative techniques of films to come. Although it consists of only nine shots, with theatrical rather than cinematic acting and staging, it presents enough elements of a story that it could be understood on its own. It does this through continuity of action and space. Leading up to and including the assassination, the camera follows the movements of the main character over five separate shots, through three separate rooms and back. Other elements were theatrical rather than filmic, such as sets with painted backdrops and the camera's single stationary position for each scene, reminiscent of a seat on the main floor, not far from the "stage." Calmettes and le Bargy were both eminent actors, and le Bargy a member of the

Cast

* Charles le Bargy as Henry III * as Le duc de Guise * Gabrielle Robinne as Marquise de Noirmoutier, maîtresse du duc * Berthe Bovy as ''Le page'' *

Jean Angelo Jean Angelo (born Jean-Jacques Barthélémy, 17 May 1888 - 26 November 1933) was a French film actor of silent movies and early talkies. He was often a leading man playing romantic or athletic roles. Angelo was born and died in Paris. Filmogra ...

* Albert Dieudonné *

Huguette Duflos Huguette Duflos (24 August 1887, Limoges – 12 April 1982, Paris) was a French stage and film actress. Life In 1910, she married the actor Raphaël Duflos, from whom she was divorced around 1928. Initially a theatrical performer with th ...

* * * Rolla Norman

Score

The Fairylogue and Radio-Plays ''The Fairylogue and Radio-Plays'' was an early attempt to bring L. Frank Baum's Oz books to the motion picture screen. It was a mixture of live actors, hand-tinted magic lantern slides, and film. Baum himself would appear as if he were giving a ...

'' contains the earliest documented original score in all of cinema; ''The Assassination of the Duke of Guise'' debuted in the United States around four months later. Calmettes is credited with the idea of scoring the film, and Saint-Saëns was a logical choice for such a prestigious venture. At age 73, he was probably France's most celebrated composer, and he had extensive experience in theater music. The score integrates small-scale dramatic details within a large-scale musical form to a degree rarely equaled during the rest of the silent period. Information about how he approached the project is scarce and ambiguous. Bonnerot, his biographer, tells us that he worked out the music "scene by scene before the screen"; and that because of the approach of winter he left Paris before the film's première, leaving

Fernand LeBorne Fernand is a masculine given name of French origin. The feminine form is Fernande. Fernand may refer to: People Given name * Fernand Augereau (1882–1958), French cyclist * Fernand Auwera (1929–2015), Belgian writer * Fernand Baldet (1885– ...

to conduct the orchestra. Saint-Saëns had a piano reduction of the score, dedicated to LeBorne, published by Durand that year.

Premiere

The première was held at the Salle Charras on 17 November 1908. It was high-toned throughout, befitting such an "art" film. Sponsored and advertised by Le Film d'Art under the title "Visions d'Art", the various entertainments mostly combined imagery and live music. There were two other features beside ''The Assassination'', each with an original score of its own: '' Le Secret de Myrto'', depicting ballerina

Régina Badet Anne Régina Badet (9 October 1876 – 26 October 1949) was a French comedic actress, dancer, and star of the Ópera-Comique de Paris. Career Badet was first dancer with the Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux in 1890. She began with the Opéra-Comiqu ...

dancing to music of

Gaston Berardi Gaston is a masculine given name of French origin and a surname. The name "Gaston" may refer to: People First name *Gaston I, Count of Foix (1287–1315) *Gaston II, Count of Foix (1308–1343) *Gaston III, Count of Foix (1331–1391) *Gaston I ...

; and '' L'Empreinte'', with music by Fernand Le Borne contained a series of "picturesque tableaux" using silhouettes of

Pierrot Pierrot ( , , ) is a stock character of pantomime and '' commedia dell'arte'', whose origins are in the late seventeenth-century Italian troupe of players performing in Paris and known as the Comédie-Italienne. The name is a diminutive of ''Pi ...

and other pantomime figures. The program included color photographs from Asia, described as "fairy-tale views" taken by Gervais-Courtellemont. Le Bargy also recited Edmond Rostand's poem "Le Bois sacré", which was said to be "illustrated by a ballet—or rather, a choreographic vision."

Reception

The film's success in France inspired other companies to make similar films, thus inaugurating a genre which eventually became known as ''films d'art'', taking the name of the leading production company; a genre characterized by elaborate theatricality in sets, costumes, and acting, and associated with historical dramas concerned with noble characters. ''The Assassination of the Duke of Guise'' was released in the United States by

Pathé Frères Pathé or Pathé Frères (, styled as PATHÉ!) is the name of various French businesses that were founded and originally run by the Pathé Brothers of France starting in 1896. In the early 1900s, Pathé became the world's largest film equipme ...

on February 17, 1909. There is no trace of a special premiere for the program. In ''

Moving Picture World The ''Moving Picture World'' was an influential early trade journal for the American film industry, from 1907 to 1927. An industry powerhouse at its height, ''Moving Picture World'' frequently reiterated its independence from the film studios. I ...

'', Pathé simply announced the film as one of its current "dramatic" releases, at a length of 853 feet, considerably shorter than the version for which Saint-Saëns had composed his score; and the company dropped the film from its listings five weeks later. There is no record that the score was even heard in America at that time. Neither the film nor the score was suited to the

nickelodeon Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its networks division's Kids and Family Group. It ...

-centered American film industry in 1909, but it was nevertheless reviewed extensively over the next several weeks. It received considerable attention from critics because of the reputation of its creators and crew. Many critics noted that with the movie's basis in French history, the film might appeal to the upper class, but the average American moviegoer might not be able to follow the plot. When comparing the movie with contemporary American historical drama, many critics considered ''The Assassination'' to have better photography, better acting, and better dramatic construction.

Sources

* Gunning, Tom, ''D.W. Griffith and the Origins of American Narrative Film'', 1994, University of Illinois Press * Hanson, Bernard, "D.W. Griffith: Some Sources," ''The Art Bulletin'', Vol. 54, No. 4. (December 1972), pp. 493–515 * Marks, Martin Miller, ''Music and the Silent Film: Contexts and Case Studies, 1895–1924 '', 1997, Oxford University Press
''Milestones of the Millennium: Great Film Music''
1999,

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External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Assassination Of The Duke Of Guise, The 1908 films French silent short films French black-and-white films Films about assassinations French films based on actual events Films set in the 1580s Films set in France Compositions by Camille Saint-Saëns Articles containing video clips French historical films 1900s historical films Cultural depictions of Henry I, Duke of Guise Cultural depictions of Henry III of France