Video Details
Inspired by grand opera and Italy's imperialist victory in the Libyan War (1911-12), the Italian movie industry produced dozens of historical epics in the period just before World War I. The most influential and successful of these was
Cabiria, the visually spectacular film which set the standard for the big-budget feature-length movies around the world and opened the way for D.W. Griffith and Cecil B. De Mille. The story concerns a girl-Cabiria-who is separated from her parents during the Punic Wars in the Third Century B.C. In her odyssey through the world of ancient Rome, she encounters the eruption of Mt. Etna, capture by pirates, the barbaric splendor of Carthage, human sacrifice and Hannibal crossing the Alps. With meticulous care given to costume and set design,
Cabiria was shot in North Africa, Sicily and the Italian Alps.
Synopsis
Cabiria is an Italian historical epic that ran a full 14 reels (well over three hours) at a time when most American films were still short subjects. The plot hinges on the abduction of wealthy and virginal Cabiria (Lidia Quaranta) by pirates during the Roman/Carthaginian War of ancient times. Highlights (many of which were filmed on tinted stock) include the burning of the Roman fleet, an effect accomplished with miniatures and mirrors, and Hannibal's crossing of the Alps -- with real Alps, and real elephants. Cabiria allegedly inspired the Babylonian segment of D.W. Griffith's 1916 Intolerance. At least four versions of this film exist, each prepared by Giovanni Pastrone. The two most prominent are a 1913 silent cut that runs a full 181 minutes, and a 1931 sound cut that runs 137 minutes, which underwent advanced restoration in 2007. Both versions were screened at the 2007 Berlin International Film Festival. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
