Cabiria (1914)

Director:

Giovanni Pastrone

Writers:

Gabriele D'Annunzio (titles)
Titus Livus (book)

Release Date:

1 June 1914 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | War

Tagline:

1200 - Scenes - 1200 (original ad)

Plot:

Three centuries before Christus. Young Cabiria is kidnapped by some pirates during one eruption of the Etna...

Plot Keywords:

Carthage | Roman | Slave | Moloch | Punic Wars

Cast

Carolina Catena	...	Cabiria, as a Child (as Catena)
Lidia Quaranta	...	Cabiria, also called Elissa
Gina Marangoni	...	Croessa, Cabiria's Nurse
Dante Testa	...	Karthalo, the High Priest
Umberto Mozzato	...	Fulvio 'Fulvius' Axilla
Bartolomeo Pagano	...	Maciste, Axilla's Slave
Raffaele di Napoli	...	Bodastoret, the Innkeeper
Emilio Vardannes	...	Hannibal
Edoardo Davesnes	...	Hasdrubal
Italia Almirante-Manzini	...	Sophonisba, Hasdrubal's Daughter
Alessandro Bernard	...	Siface 'Syphax', King of Cirta
Luigi Chellini	...	Scipione 'Scipio', the Consul
Vitale Di Stefano	...	Massinissa, the Numidian King
Enrico Gemelli	...	Archimede
Ignazio Lupi	...	Arbace

Also Known As:

Cabiria, Visione Storica del Terzo Secolo A.C. (Italy) (long title)

Runtime:

148 min | 125 min (1990 alternate version) | USA:123 min (Kino Restored Print) | 162 min (1995 restoration) | 181 min (16 fps) (2006 restoration)

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Color:

Black and White (tinted)

Aspect Ratio:

1.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

Silent

Filming Locations:

FERT Studios, Turin, Piedmont, Italy

Company:

Itala Film

Trivia:

This was the first feature to be shown on White House grounds.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Le notti di Cabiria (1957)

Splendid Set Design Worth Watching

The splendid set design back in 1914, which would obviously influence Griffith's Intolerance a few years later, is worth watching. Other than that, as a work in the dawn of film history, Cabiria inevitably suffers several flaws. Comprising exclusively medium and long shots (with absolutely no close-ups), the film should have relied on engaging storytelling, but it just progresses tediously. As a title role, Cabiria should have appeared on the screen more, but she serves as a catalyst and stays behind the scene for most time.

Versatile solo piano on the soundtrack (which is, according to the credit of "1990 alternate version" I watched, "Piano Score recorded by Jacques Ganthier, based on the original 1914 score," which I assume is composed by Manlio Mazza) imitates Classical composers in various eras, from Bach to Beethoven to Schumann to Brahms to Debussy, and is quite enjoyable by itself.