The New York herald., 1922-05-28
Italy Fast Falling Back
In Production of Films;
US. Has Foothold There

leaps from precipices. blood, the more
blood the better. In spite of the
triumph of American films the Italian
appetite for running feet Of kisses and
cory tragedy Is still keen.
Prestige Goes to America.
The prestige which Italy built up fol
her pictures soon passed to America
France and Germany. who devoted yearf
Of hard work improving their photog
raphy and the technic OF production
There was none of this work, much less
hard work. in Italy. The producers
rested back on their easy profits and
the novelty of the motion picture anc
were unable to duplicate the speed will
which America seized on new, inventions
new methods of lighting and new de-
velopments of staging. They began te
feel the competition. however, and ever
larger sums became necessary to produce
films.
This led to the formation OF the
Italian motion picture combine. the
Italian Cinema Union. which still ex-
lists as a sort of whited sepulchre over
the remains of the once active COM
panies in its membership. The chief
companies to combine were the Itala,
which produced Quo vadis"; the AM
brosia. Fert, Bernini and Pasauale. The
~, sab III ~ faI a. ha
union was none other than the fated
Banca di sconto. But the crash in the
motion picture business came before the
crash in the Banca di sconto.
When the companies were all safely
together in the union they lost the last
shred of initiative and sense OF competi-
tion which had kept them alive. Bad
Management and extravaganza flour
tshed. The "divas," who were often
little else than the personal friends Of
producers. lived in luxury which scam
dalized Italy and reminded thoughtful
people of the days before the fall OF
Rome.
During the war there were few Amer
lean films to cross the ocean. When
they finally arrived on the Italian
screen. with their marvellously devel-
oped technic and their fresh and varied
themes, the public gasped. At first the
American films seemed too tame. The
successful ones we're those full of air
planes. automobile rescues and pursuits.
acrobatic feats, splashing whitewash,
pictures with plenty of action; in short.
the kind american audiences had liked
several years before.
In a short time the victory OF the
American film was secure and the fate
Of the Italian one sealed. Company after
company closed its studios. The Italian
Cinema Union, instead OF making an at
tempt to duplicate the American film.
set up the cry of foreign competition" :"
which can always find sympathetic
ear in Italy.
Press Campaign Fails.
Adopting the slogan protection OF
home industry" the union carried on ex-
pensivc press campaigns to keep the
superior foreign Aims from the native
screen. An elaborate campaign was
conducted against the German film
Passion" on the grounds that 1t was
the work of Bolsbevists who wanted TO
stir UP a revolution in every country.
Doubtless some of the anger against this
Aim was reused by the fact that the
star, Paois Negrl, who played the part
OF Madame du Barry, was formerly one
OF the assets OF the italian companies.
The famous Italian actor, .Maciste, who
starred in "Cabiria," had also gone over
to a German company. and there was q
large exodus OF talent from italy.
The pride OF the Romans was par
tlcularly offended because the Fox pro-
ducers used as a pert OF their back
ground the famous Fountain OF Trevi.
which happened TO be built 1900 years
after Nero's death.
Ii Is their belief tina. American CON-
panies WIN more and more avail them
selves " the environment OF European
fo- films based on events Of
history.