Foolish Wives

Among the pioneers in the history of cinema, Erich von Stroheim is undoubtedly one of those who strived the most to invent his own myth. This hero of another time, who seemed to carry the end of the Austro-Hungarian Empire on his shoulders, was a remarkable inventor of forms, creating from his very first silent films gems of narration, carried by a breathtaking art of editing. Although he often acted in the films he directed, it was Greed, his great work in which he did not act, that made him the first cursed filmmaker. No version of this film corresponds exactly to the film he had made, which was quickly butchered. With the advent of talking pictures, he became a simple actor (of genius) crossing with his legendary silhouette countless films.

Keeping silent cinema alive, showing the films of the era at the right speed and in their original image format, and having a pianist accompany them with respect, is all part of the normal work of a film library. But at a time when electronics is offering filmmakers new ways of making their images, it is even more relevant to periodically recall how eloquent were the images of the so-called silent era of film history. Silent cinema is therefore an essential component of the Cinémathèque's programming. And it is not a bad thing to remember that these are the works and filmmakers who made modern cinema possible, not to mention that it is always pleasant to be able to return for a few hours to the era of images that speak.