Captain Fracasse (Full Frame)

Last Minute Sales & Specials

"Captain Fracasse" is among the best films you've never heard of. Recently recovered and restored; it was long thought among the 75% of lost silent cinema. Had it remained available over the years, Alberto Cavalcanti's stylish 1929 production would enjoy a marvelous reputation, for it's a lavish, action-filled, involving, poignant, extremely cinematic adventure-romance. A colorful troupe of itinerant actors gives background to the episodic adventures of a chivalrous noble (Pierre Blanchar) traveling incognito and a dastardly Duke (Charles Boyer) pursuing an innocent damsel (Lien Deyers) in the basest manner. It also has highway robbers, sword fights, disguises, Royal commands, and the very long arm of coincidence. In much the same vein as "The Three Musketeers," "Captain Fracasse" by Theophile Gautier has been a celebrated novel since its publication in 1863, especially in France. Its colorful characters and lively incidents inspired eight film versions from 1909 to 1991, several of them notable.

Two optional music tracks: a contemporary jazz score by clarinetist Michel Portal and period French piano music by Neal Kurz, Cast/Crew Biographies, Digitally Mastered Video, NTSC.