| 4 Devils | |
|---|---|
_poster.jpg')) Poster | |
| Directed by | F. W. Murnau |
| Produced by | William Fox |
| Written by | Carl Mayer |
| Based on | "Les Quatre Diables" by Herman Bang |
| Starring | Janet Gaynor Charles Morton Mary Duncan Barry Norton |
| Music by | Ernö Rapée Lew Pollack |
| Cinematography | L. William O'Connell Ernest Palmer |
Production company | William Fox Studio |
| Distributed by | Fox Film Corporation |
Release date |
|
Running time | 100 minutes (Sound version) 97 minutes (Silent version) |
| Country | United States |
| Language | Silent film English intertitles |
4 Devils (also known as Four Devils) is a 1928 American silent drama film directed by German director F. W. Murnau and starring Janet Gaynor.[1][2] It is considered to be lost.
Premise
The plot concerns four orphans (Janet Gaynor, Nancy Drexel, Barry Norton, and Charles Morton) who become a high wire act, and centers around sinister goings-on at a circus.
Cast
- Janet Gaynor as Marion
- Anne Shirley as Marion as a girl (billed as Dawn O'Day)
- Mary Duncan as The lady
- Anders Randolf as Cecchi
- Barry Norton as Adolf
- Philippe De Lacy as Adolf as a child
- Charles Morton as Charles
- Jack Parker as Charles as a child
- André Cheron as Old roue
- George Davis as Mean clown
- Nancy Drexel as Louise
- Anita Louise as Louise as a child
- Wesley Lake as Old clown
- J. Farrell MacDonald as The clown
- Claire McDowell as Woman
Production
4 Devils was released by Fox Film Corporation and was produced by William Fox, who had hired Murnau to come to the United States. It was initially released as a silent with a synchronised music score and sound effects in October 1928,[3] and grossed $100,000 in New York City, but because of the talkie picture craze, Fox pulled it from distribution and ordered sound to be added.[4] A 25% sound version, incorporating "synchronised sound effects, music and dialogue sequences", was made without Murnau's cooperation.[5]
Preservation status
No copies of either version of the film are known to exist, and 4 Devils remains among the most sought after lost films of the silent era. Details of the movie can be found on the DVD for Sunrise,[5] released by Fox as part of their 20th Century Fox Studio Classics collection.
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Film historian and collector William K. Everson stated that the only surviving print was lost by actress Mary Duncan, who had borrowed it from Fox Studios.[6] Martin Koerber, curator of Deutsche Kinemathek, is more hopeful, writing that the print was given to Duncan, and that her heirs, if any, may yet have it.[5]
Other adaptations
The novel by Herman Bang was first adapted into film in 1911[7] by Robert Dinesen and Alfred Lind, and finally in 1985 by Anders Refn.
References
- ^ The Library of Congress American Silent Feature Film Survival Catalog: Four Devils
- ^ Four Devils at TheGreatStars.com; Lost Films Wanted(Wayback Machine)
- ^ "4 Devils". SilentEra.com. May 21, 2012.
- ^ Eyman, Scott. The Speed of Sound: Hollywood and the Talkie Revolution 1926-1930. Simon and Schuster, New York: 1997.
- ^ a b c "Lost Films: 4 Devils". Deutsche Kinemathek. Retrieved March 12, 2013.
- ^ "4 Devils". silentera.com.
- ^ "DE FIRE DJÆVLE". Danish Film institute.
External links