Silent Film of the Month: Sleeping Beauty (1908)

 

Run Time: 11 minutes. Studio: Pathé Frères. Directors: Albert Capellani and Lucien Nonguet. Cast: Julienne Mathieu. Cinematographer: Segundo de Chomón. Original Title:  La belle au bois dormant. 

As some regular readers of my blog may already know, the early 20th century was filled with films that provided condensed tellings of literary classics. It was a time when audiences were admittedly more well-read than today. People knew these stories and showing the highlights was all that was needed. For those of us used to full complete stories in our films, this can feel more than a little alienating today. Not shockingly, the films of this type that hold up best today are the ones where the story is still well known to modern audiences or where the story is simple enough that it can still be followed in a condensed version. This 1908 film version of Sleeping Beauty falls into both of those categories. 

I am sure most of you have at least some familiarity with the basic story. If you aren't, however, here is how it goes. On the birth of a new princess the fairies in the kingdom each give her magical gifts. However, one evil fairy gives her a curse instead. The girl will one day prick her finger on a spinning needle and fall asleep for 100 years. When this happens, a young handsome prince comes to her rescue. 

As stated, before the simplicity of this tale makes the story much more accessible to modern viewers. Though this is still a condensed and simplified version of this classic story, you can still follow it without having to know the source material. However, the focus here is not on the story but the spectacle. This is a very handsome looking film. What will be surprising to many people who are unfamiliar with this era of film is that it is in color. Like other color films of this time, the color was hand painted onto the images themselves. This was a painstaking process but one which works extremely well. While the color may not be realistic, this is a fairy tale and it doesn't have to. The color perfectly captures the mood and atmosphere. It also just simply looks beautiful like a vintage painting. The sets are fantastic. They are incredibly well detailed and enhance the fantasy setting perfectly. The costumes are also perfect for this type of fairy tale story. Visually this film is a fairy tale come to life in the best way possible. 

For anyone wishing to watch this lovely film you can do so below.