"Snow White", directed in the far away year 1916 by Herr J. Searle Dawley, is a beautiful film adaptation of the classic Grimm fairy tale.This film was considered long lost but fortunately a copy was found in the"Filmmuseum", a kind of Dutch film archives where the nitrates are not very well arranged, certainly nothing like this German aristocrat's film archives where the films are perfectly organized and classified in a German way, so in this way no film is lost, including Herr Stroheim's "Greed" (in its 9 hours complete version
). Anyway, thanks to the good luck of finding this lost silent film, every silent film fan can now appreciate Herr Searle's talent.
"Snow White" ( this German count doesn't think it necessary to relate this well-know story about beauty competitions in the Middle Ages ), as this aristocrat said before, is a visually lovely film in which the art direction and the sets are absolutely outstanding, not to mention the make-up, some charming special effects and even a little animated sequence. As it happens with some remarkable early silent film versions of fairy tales, there is a remarkable concern to depict and recreate in detail the magical atmosphere of those original stories on the screen and this one is a perfect recreation of the tale. It must said though that in those classic film productions, there is not usually a trace of transgression or boldness ( which is scarcely necessary most of the time since the original stories are full of cruelty ),and they are conservative and polite adaptations intended to be harmless and wholesome entertainment for families around the world. "Snow White" starred Dame Marguerite Clark, an important film star in the teens, and she plays her pure and chaste role very well, and the rest of the cast is equally good, all perfect for an early film that doesn't suffer with the passage of time.
And now, if you'll allow me, I must temporarily take my leave because this German Count has an appointment with the evil Queen.
Herr Graf Ferdinand Von Galitzien http://ferdinandvongalitzien.blogspot.com/
