Revolutionsbryllup (The Heart of Lady Alaine)
R: August Blom. B: Sophus Michaëlis. K: Johan Ankerstjerne. D: Philip Bech, Johanne Fritz-Petersen, Volmer Hjorth-Clausen, Frederik Jacobsen, Torben Meyer, Betty Nansen, Valdemar Psilander. P: Nordisk Film Kompagni. Dk 1914/15
Print: Danish Film Institute (DFI)
Span. subtitles

“The Danish film company Nordisk avoided costume pictures almost entirely from 1911, when they adopted the feature-length drama as their standard, until 1919. Revolutionsbryllup was one of the few exceptions. It was based on an internationally successful play by the author Sophus Michaëlis, which Nordisk had already adapted as a single-reel film in 1909 (now lost). Michaëlis proposed a feature-length remake, warning that Max Reinhardt was considering a German film version. Nordisk spent lavishly on the film, which had a budget three or four times that of a regular feature. They also put their biggest stars in it: Valdemar Psilander and Betty Nansen. Nansen (1873-1943), then the prima donna of the Danish theater, had played Alaine on stage in 1909, and Nordisk had big hopes for her as a screen star, but although she got a contract with Fox and made several films (all lost) in the United States in 1914-15, her film career was brief and disappointing. The film has some nice sunlit exteriors, but it mostly takes place indoors. The expensive sets are sometimes subtly lit. The film is shot in relatively long, continuous shots with the camera set very far back; when, at the moment Alaine touches Marc-Arron, the film cuts in to a closer shot of the two (which still includes their upper legs), the effect is appropriately electrifying. The characters tend to face the camera, listening to people speaking beside or behind them while revealing their emotions to us. Combined with the formal poses struck by many of the actors, this gives the film a somewhat theatrical feel.”
Casper Tyberg
Il Cinema Ritrovato

“In Great Britain, the ‘London weekly Pictures’ and the ‘Picturegoer’ ran advertisements during 1915 Nordisk Exlclusives, one of which read, ‘Don’t on any account fail to see charming Betty Nansen in the marvellous four part drama A Revolution Marriage. This wonderful picture is a dramatic and photographic masterpiece. It cannot fail to thrill you through and through with sheer delight.’ During 1915 ‘Motion Picture News’ printed ‘Great Northern Brings Out Betty Nansen Subject’, which ran, ‘The vast number of admirers of Betty Nansen are afforded an unusual treat in seeing this star in a masterwork produced by the Great Northern Film Company entitled A Revolutionary Wedding by the famous Danish author Sophus Michaelis, which under the title A Son of the People had a long successful run.

The Moving Picture World, July 3, 1915

 

With the superb acting of Betty Nansen as Alaine de l’Etiole…the rich and beautiful settings of the Great Northern Film Company, the production is justly meriting the enthusiasm of all who view.’ Great Northern advertised the film as The Heart of Lady Alaine, ‘The new four part Betty Nansen photoplay has been unanimously proclaimed by critics to be a supreme accomplishment. It is genuinely perfect in every respect. The exquisite interiors, magnificent exteriors, unexcelled acting,   strong and fascinating story challenge comparision.”
SCOTTLORD