Dickens Before Sound

Synopsis

This collection of films, the majority of which are previously unreleased, shows how early cinema storytelling developed, as practitioners of this new art struggled to transform a tale from page to screen. This DVD includes the first existing Dickens adaptation, Scrooge; or Marley’s Ghost (1901) photographed a mere thirty-one years after the author’s death; an entirely original attempt to animate a series of original lantern slides depicting the story of Gabriel Grub; the first Dickensian sound film with Bransby Williams as the character Grandfather Smallweed from Bleak House, and a version of Oliver Twist (1922) featuring Jackie Coogan and Lon Chaney. The films are presented for the first time with new scores by the composer and pianist Neil Brand.

Contents of Disc One (90 mins) are: Gabriel Grub (date unknown) (8 mins); Scrooge; or, Marley’s Ghost (W R Booth, UK, 1901, 4 mins); The Cricket on the Hearth (D W Griffith, USA, 1909, 14 mins); Oliver Twist (J Stuart Blackton, USA, 1909, 9 mins); The Boy and the Convict (David Aylott, UK, 1909, 12 mins); Nicholas Nickleby (George O Nichols, USA, 1912, 20 mins); The Pickwick Papers - The Honourable Event (Larry Trimble, UK/USA, 1913, 15 mins); David Copperfield (Thomas Bentley, UK, 1913, 8 mins extracts).
Contents of Disc Two (98 mins) are: Oliver Twist (Frank Lloyd, USA, 1922, 74 mins);
Dickens’ London (Frank Miller and Harry B Parkinson, UK, 1924, 12 mins); Grandfather Smallweed (Hugh Croise, UK, date unknown, 12 mins).

DVD extras include: 40-page booklet with introduction, notes on each film and original production stills; spoken word performance by Ken Campbell of Dickens’ original text over Gabriel Grub and The Pickwick Papers; voiceover commentary by screenwriter Michael Eaton on The Cricket on the Hearth; downloadable essay by Dickens scholar Graham Petrie.

Language

English

Country

Great Britain; United States

Year of release

2006

Year of production

1901-1922

Subjects

Literature; Film Studies

Keywords

archive films; Dickens, Charles (1812-1870); early cinema; film adaptations; silent films

Credits

Writer

Charles Dickens

Distribution Formats

Type

DVD

Format

Region 2 PAL

Price

£12.99

Availability

Sale

Duration/Size

171 minutes

Year

2016

Distributor

Name

BFI Video

Email

video.films@bfi.org.uk

Web

http://www.bfi.org.uk External site opens in new window

Phone

020 7957 8957

Fax

020 7957 8968

Address

21 Stephen Street
London
W1T 1LN

 

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