![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
I have seen Lt. Kijé
Jun. 14th, 2009 09:02 pmNot the famous orchestral suite by Prokofiev. Certainly not the person, who never existed. I mean the 1934 Russian film that the music was originally written for.
I've been curious about this film since I first heard and liked the suite, and that's a very long time. I've wanted to see it for so long that I'd forgotten it was on my want list. It's been very elusive. Early on I read in some reference books that, although the music was written, the film was never actually made. Eventually I found out that this had to be mistaken, because by happenstance I came across a review from when it was shown in the U.S. in the '30s, under the title The Tsar Wants To Sleep. But from the plot description and mention of Prokofiev's music, it was clearly the right film.
But perhaps it had not survived the years? Many films of that age have not. But a few years ago I came across a notice on the web site of some museum in London that has a copy it occasionally screens. Suddenly today it occurred to me to check more widely, and sure enough, it's on the Internet. God bless the Internet. The copy I watched is here (and starts playing immediately). Another copy is here (and doesn't).
( All the plot and musical details )
After watching the film, I, like the Tsar, went to sleep -- and dreamed that I was watching a dubbed, colorized version with added scenes, one of which had the camera panning over a map towards a town which it couldn't find where it was expecting, so it started scanning the map every which-way in search of it.
I've been curious about this film since I first heard and liked the suite, and that's a very long time. I've wanted to see it for so long that I'd forgotten it was on my want list. It's been very elusive. Early on I read in some reference books that, although the music was written, the film was never actually made. Eventually I found out that this had to be mistaken, because by happenstance I came across a review from when it was shown in the U.S. in the '30s, under the title The Tsar Wants To Sleep. But from the plot description and mention of Prokofiev's music, it was clearly the right film.
But perhaps it had not survived the years? Many films of that age have not. But a few years ago I came across a notice on the web site of some museum in London that has a copy it occasionally screens. Suddenly today it occurred to me to check more widely, and sure enough, it's on the Internet. God bless the Internet. The copy I watched is here (and starts playing immediately). Another copy is here (and doesn't).
( All the plot and musical details )
After watching the film, I, like the Tsar, went to sleep -- and dreamed that I was watching a dubbed, colorized version with added scenes, one of which had the camera panning over a map towards a town which it couldn't find where it was expecting, so it started scanning the map every which-way in search of it.
