Costume designer and art director Natacha Rambova clearly had her work cut out for her. 'Salomé' is immediately eye-catching, and that goes most of all for the extravagant sartorial arrangement of every character, headpieces and makeup included. The same is just as true of the sets she concocted, and production design broadly - from the very beginning there's a strong focus on the visual presentation. Even lighting feels tightly controlled for emphatic use in shots, playing too with shadow. This is nothing if not a feast for the eyes.
The cast matches that tenor with performances that ably realize their characters. As is true with silent films broadly, lack of sound and verbal dialogue demands more embellished facial expression and body language to communicate actions and emotions. Yet between the guidance from director Charles Bryant and the skills of the actors, the portrayals are given captivating nuance. This especially goes for Alla Nazimova, starring as the title character. Salomé is proud, wielding a strong force of personality, and Nazimova depicts her with bewitching willfulness and playful arrogance.
Regrettably, the spectacle before our eyes somewhat outpaces the rendition of the narrative. Oscar Wilde's play is a tale in one act, and this feature reflects that brevity. However, the film is constrained by - presumably - technical limitations, censorial rigor, and alterations per the artistic liberties or formulative necessities of adaptation. There are moments, some very critical, that are only meagerly implied instead of actively shown; some finer points are unclear without additional outside context. Case in point: even as characters display emotion, lack of clarity from the adapted screenplay means the basis for these emotions, or their channeling, is sometimes nebulous.
To even briefly glance at a synopsis of Wilde's work also informs of background aspects that Rambova cut from her screenplay. Now to be fair, given the expense of the production as it was, and technical restrictions of the silent era, additional considerations were no doubt a low priority - undesirable or maybe outright implausible. Yet 'Salomé' seems to rather just plod along with its lack of narrative detail. Even the much-discussed scene of the princess' "dance of the seven veils," ostensibly the centerpiece of the film, is a little bit underwhelming in my eyes.
It's not that 'Salomé' is bad; I did surely enjoy it. I just can't help but feel disappointed that the strong attention to detail in creating the setting didn't extend also to those elements that would concretize the story. This feature is suitably entertaining, but it could and should have struck us as rich, enticing, and altogether dazzling.
It's worth noting that the movie bears more fruit with even a second viewing than it does with only a first. All the same, I wanted to like this more than I do. 'Salomé' is quite worth watching, and perhaps even seeking out to do so. Just be aware that there are marked deficiencies that curb the marvel it would have been.
The cast matches that tenor with performances that ably realize their characters. As is true with silent films broadly, lack of sound and verbal dialogue demands more embellished facial expression and body language to communicate actions and emotions. Yet between the guidance from director Charles Bryant and the skills of the actors, the portrayals are given captivating nuance. This especially goes for Alla Nazimova, starring as the title character. Salomé is proud, wielding a strong force of personality, and Nazimova depicts her with bewitching willfulness and playful arrogance.
Regrettably, the spectacle before our eyes somewhat outpaces the rendition of the narrative. Oscar Wilde's play is a tale in one act, and this feature reflects that brevity. However, the film is constrained by - presumably - technical limitations, censorial rigor, and alterations per the artistic liberties or formulative necessities of adaptation. There are moments, some very critical, that are only meagerly implied instead of actively shown; some finer points are unclear without additional outside context. Case in point: even as characters display emotion, lack of clarity from the adapted screenplay means the basis for these emotions, or their channeling, is sometimes nebulous.
To even briefly glance at a synopsis of Wilde's work also informs of background aspects that Rambova cut from her screenplay. Now to be fair, given the expense of the production as it was, and technical restrictions of the silent era, additional considerations were no doubt a low priority - undesirable or maybe outright implausible. Yet 'Salomé' seems to rather just plod along with its lack of narrative detail. Even the much-discussed scene of the princess' "dance of the seven veils," ostensibly the centerpiece of the film, is a little bit underwhelming in my eyes.
It's not that 'Salomé' is bad; I did surely enjoy it. I just can't help but feel disappointed that the strong attention to detail in creating the setting didn't extend also to those elements that would concretize the story. This feature is suitably entertaining, but it could and should have struck us as rich, enticing, and altogether dazzling.
It's worth noting that the movie bears more fruit with even a second viewing than it does with only a first. All the same, I wanted to like this more than I do. 'Salomé' is quite worth watching, and perhaps even seeking out to do so. Just be aware that there are marked deficiencies that curb the marvel it would have been.