Movielogr
Cabiria (1914)
Directed by Giovanni Pastrone
Twitter Facebook Google+Overview
Young Cabiria is kidnapped by pirates and sold as a slave in Carthage. Just as she’s to be sacrificed to Moloch, Cabiria is rescued by Fulvius Axilla, a good-hearted Roman spy, and his powerful slave, Maciste. The trio are broken up as Cabiria is entrusted to a woman of noble birth. With Cabiria’s fate unknown, Maciste punished for his heroism, and Fulvius sent away to fight for Rome, is there any hope of our heroes reuniting?
Length 148 minutes
Actors
Carolina Catena | Lidia Quaranta | Gina Marangoni | Dante Testa | Umberto Mozzato | Bartolomeo Pagano | Raffaele di Napoli | Emilio Vardannes | Edoardo Davesnes | Italia Almirante-Manzini | Alex Bernard | Luigi Chellini | Vitale Di Stefano | Enrico Gemelli | Ignazio Lupi | Francesca Bertini | Soava Gallone | Pina Menichelli
Viewing History (seen 1 time)
| Date Viewed | Device | Format | Source | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11/30/2018 | Computer | Streaming | Video on Demand | 9 stars |
| (Average) 9 stars |
Viewing Notes
Wow, what a movie, especially for its time! It was a huge influence on D.W. Griffith’s INTOLERANCE (and other films) so I wanted to watch it before getting to that.
The angle of shots coupled with the expansive sets really adds depth to the scenes. And for the first time we get camera movement in the form of some tracking shots, which is kind of shocking to see when it suddenly happens, given the age of the film.
The sets are incredible, especially the temple of Moloch, which is astounding in scale. Easily an influence on Cecil B. DeMille’s later sets.
The standout character is the slave Maciste who does all the heavy lifting, literally and figuratively. While the child Cabiria presents the framework around which the film moves, she’s barely a presence in the actual movie.
I may need to pick up the disc from Kino Lorber.
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