Napoleon

San Francisco: Zoetrope Studios, 1980. Vintage program and invitation for Francis Ford Coppola's 1980 Los Angeles screening of the 1927 French silent film. Housed in a white envelope with Coppola's address on the return flap letterhead.

One of the late masterpieces of the silent era, following Napoleon’s early life through his appointment as Commander in Chief of the Army. Notable for the many innovative and experimental techniques used by director Abel Gance, uncommon in the silent era, including location shooting, fast cutting, close up, hand held, and point of view shots, multiple camera set ups, in-camera movement, and visual effects such as superimposition, film tinting, and split screen or mosaic shots. Most famously, the film helped pioneer widescreen viewing, as Gance created a technique, later referred as Polyvision, which required three projectors to run film shot from three different cameras simultaneously to achieve a 4:1 aspect ratio for the film’s climatic battle sequence (although seams between the screens would remain visible).

After only showing at a handful of theaters, the film was acquired by MGM and severely cut, with only the middle section of the triptych retained, the other two sections remaining largely unseen until Coppola's restored version in 1980. The restoration debuted at Radio City Music Hall in New York on January 23, igniting public interest in Gance and bringing him much-belated recognition before his death eleven months later, in November 1981.

Program folded three times, 7 x 10.5 inches. Near Fine. Invitation 6 x 9 inches, Near Fine.

[Book #152548]