Song of the Flame (film)
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| Song of the Flame (1930) | |
|---|---|
| Image:1930FlameSong.jpg | |
| Directed by | Alan Crosland |
| Written by | Gordon Rigby based on the 1925 operetta by Oscar Hammerstein II and Otto A. Harbach. |
| Starring | Alexander Gray Bernice Claire Alice Gentle Noah Beery |
| Music by | George Gershwin Harry Akst Jay Chernis Grant Clarke David Mendoza Herbert Stothart Edward Ward |
| Cinematography | Lee Garmes (Technicolor) |
| Editing by | Alexander Hall |
| Distributed by | First National Pictures: A Subsidiary of Warner Bros. |
| Release date(s) | May 25 1930 |
| Running time | 96 min. |
| Country | Image:Flag of the United States.svg United States |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
Song of the Flame is a 1930 musical operetta film photographed entirely in Technicolor. It was the first color film to feature a widescreen sequence using a process called Vitascope (a Warner Bros. wide screen process). The film, based on the 1925 Broadway musical of the same name, was nominated for an Oscar for "Best Sound Recording."
[edit] Film
Alice Gentle has the sinister rôle of Natasha.
The story, such as it is, runs from St. Petersburg to a small town where there is a fête. It happens at a time when The Flame is exhorting the populace to rebellion. As in most such narratives, the man who falls in love with this heroine is the Prince and the individual who would snare her away with the valuables he has pocketed for himself is the rascal Konstantin. Konstantin, however, as has been told, meets an inglorious end and the Prince becomes one of the masses to win the love of Aniuta, The Flame.
[edit] Music
Noah Beery was widely praised for his deep bass voice, which he first exhibited it this film in the song "One Little Drink." This song was satirized in a Bosko cartoon entitled: The Booze Hangs High (1930). Based on the success of this song, the Warner Bros. subsequently cast Beery in a number of musical films, most notably in Golden Dawn (1930). The public was so enthralled by his singing abilities that Brunswick Records hired Noah Beery to record songs from both of these films which were issued in their popular series.
[edit] Preservation
The film is believed to be lost. Only the soundtrack, which was recorded separately on Vitaphone disks, survives. The extant sound discs from this film reveal a very high quality Vitaphone sound - round, warm and clear with good sound effects and a quality reproduction of speaking and singing voices as well as orchestrations. It would seem it fully deserved its Academy Award nomination for Best Sound. The score is a marvelously operatic one. All nine songs are preserved in the sound disc performances. There were four choruses as well, three of traditional Russian folk tunes and one drawn from Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker.
George and Ira Gershwin musicals and operas | |
|---|---|
| Together | A Dangerous Maid • Primrose • Lady, Be Good! • Tell Me More • Tip-Toes • Oh, Kay! • Strike Up the Band • Funny Face • Rosalie • Treasure Girl • Show Girl • Girl Crazy • Of Thee I Sing • Pardon My English • Let 'Em Eat Cake • Porgy and Bess |
| George | La La Lucille • Morris Gest "Midnight Whirl" • Blue Monday • Limehouse Nights • George White's Scandals • The Broadway Whirl • Our Nell • By and By • Innocent Ingenue Baby • Walking Home with Angeline • The Rainbow • Sweet Little Devil • Song of the Flame |
| Ira | Ladies First • The Sweetheart Shop • Two Little Girls in Blue • For Goodness Sake • Molly Darling • Captain Jinks • Garrick Gaieties • Sweet and Low • Shoot the Works • Life Begins at 8:40 • Thumbs Up! • Lady in the Dark • The Firebrand of Florence • Park Avenue |
