A frightened 13 year old boy, pretending to be brave, kisses
his father good-bye before climbing, alone, onto a steamship in the Genoa
harbor. His father whispers, “Remember,
you are on a mission from God” just before leaving his last embrace. The child climbs onto the ship with his small
bag of belongings, wondering what Argentina will be like and how long it will
take to find his mother, last known to be working as a maid for a wealthy Argentinean
family.
This is the opening scene of the Italian silent film, Dagli Appennini alle Ande (From the
Apennines to the Andes ) by Umberto Paradisi (1916). The film is adapted from the classic short
story Cuore (Heart) by Edmondo De
Amicis, written in 1886. I viewed this
rare, restored film at Leshowitz Hall, Cali School of Music, Montclair
State University
Although the film was richly emotional and engrossing on its
own, it appeared within a larger context of Italian silent filmmaking. This information was provided by Dr. Teresa
Fiore who holds Inserra Endowed Chair in Italian and Italian American Studies
at MSU, and Prof. Jacqueline Reich of Cinema and Cultural Studies from Stony
Brook University
The short story upon which the film was based.
Prof. Reich opened her talk with film clips of two iconic
representations of Italian immigration.
The first was from The Godfather
Part II showing the young Vito Andolini (later Vito Corleone) smuggled out
of Sicily and into America
for his safety. This film doesn’t tell
the tale of the sea voyage itself, but focuses instead on his departure and emotional
arrival in America . The second clip was from 2006’s Nuovomondo (The Golden Door) which gives
a rather detailed description of life aboard ship as it crosses the ocean,
complete with its indignities and uncertainties. Dagli
Appennini alle Ande, made many decades before either of these examples,
showed the loneliness and desolation of the young boy during his 27-day voyage. However, his arrival in Argentina
was not highlighted as a meaningful moment, perhaps because the rest of film
followed the tortured search for his mother.
In Italy
during the silent film era, venues for watching films were shared with other
activities. The phrase cinema ambulante (walking film)
described the portability of these works, which were shown in a variety of
places. Opera houses, music halls, fair
grounds and even churches (depending on the film) were quickly transformed into
temporary movie theaters.
There were several genres popular with moviegoers at the
time. Travelogues were often shown, allowing viewers who may have never left
their villages with the chance to see what other countries might look
like. Films of natural disasters were
also popular, such as the eruption of Vesuvius in 1906 and the earthquake of Messina
in 1908. During WWI, film was used to
document many battles and general destruction.
Around 1916, a genre known as Diva Films emerged, featuring popular
actresses in plots involving high fashion and high society. Religious themes were also frequent celluloid
topics.
Meanwhile, across the ocean, New York
was the center of American filmmaking and the city most densely populated with Italian
immigrants. This guaranteed an eager
audience for immigrant-themed stories.
Many new Italian arrivals used these films as behavioral guides or
cautionary tales. Either way, they were learning how to be American.
