Gizilla (Gisella) is as mute as the film. Yevgeni Bauer doesn't overuse intertitles. He's a visual director, which is especially important in silent films, but I consider cinema generally a visual art form. The protagonist being mute is one of the more obvious self-referential elements of "The Dying Swan". There's also the other artistic media, which in turn reflect the film itself: painting, dancing and the stage. There are dreams, which are associative to motion pictures. It seems that Bauer meant his films to be self-reflexive. You can see this in the rest of his oeuvre, as well. It helps ground the narrative; the art, this film, is so detailed it not only reflects death and what the filmmaker is telling, but reflects this back upon itself.
Bauer again features dreams. The dolly out and lightening effects introducing the premonition, in addition to the low-key lighting and tinting make for a very modernly stylization. This is just one example of the masterful lighting and camera-work of Bauer and longtime cinematographer Boris Savelyev. Many scenes are outdoors, so there isn't much room to control lighting, although Bauer finds plenty of ways to design the space, but even in the way they let the light through to create slight shadows shows intent and skill. As in "After Death" (1915), shots flow into the next, such as during the romance. It doesn't seem enough to say that it's just fine continuity. The film dances.
Speaking of the romance, it seems out of place in a tragedy. When Gizilla said "No... no... it is just a dream", it left me wondering. With such a director who obviously knew how to incorporate dreams into his narratives, it leaves the story rather open. Even the film's stunning end isn't entirely certain. Bauer created amazing compositions, not so much in a painterly manner, but, rather, in a way that made cinema an art.
(Note: The print contains some brief bleeding.)
Bauer again features dreams. The dolly out and lightening effects introducing the premonition, in addition to the low-key lighting and tinting make for a very modernly stylization. This is just one example of the masterful lighting and camera-work of Bauer and longtime cinematographer Boris Savelyev. Many scenes are outdoors, so there isn't much room to control lighting, although Bauer finds plenty of ways to design the space, but even in the way they let the light through to create slight shadows shows intent and skill. As in "After Death" (1915), shots flow into the next, such as during the romance. It doesn't seem enough to say that it's just fine continuity. The film dances.
Speaking of the romance, it seems out of place in a tragedy. When Gizilla said "No... no... it is just a dream", it left me wondering. With such a director who obviously knew how to incorporate dreams into his narratives, it leaves the story rather open. Even the film's stunning end isn't entirely certain. Bauer created amazing compositions, not so much in a painterly manner, but, rather, in a way that made cinema an art.
(Note: The print contains some brief bleeding.)