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Camille

With Sarah Bernhardt and Lou-Tellegen

and

Le Duel d'Hamlet

BACKGROUND: In 1880, after breaking her contract with the Comedie Francaise, Sarah Bernhardt began final preparations for her first American tour. It was around this time that she created her signature role as the tragic courtesan in La Dame aux Camellias, known in America as Camille. Over the years, she played the dying woman more than 3,000 times, making the play her most dependable vehicle for decades. In 1911 at the age of 67, she consented to film this “highlights” version as a motion picture short. The actors went to Neuilly-sur-Seine to rehearse, and it was photographed in a series of single takes in one day. Great care was taken to record her famous death scene in which she stands in Armand’s embrace with her face hidden from view. Her hand droops, and a tiny handkerchief falls like the flower from which Marguerite’s sobriquet was derived.

LOU-TELLEGEN: Over the years, many actors played the role of Armand Duval opposite Sarah, and in this production, Dutch actor, Lou-Tellegen, who toured with Sarah during 1910-1914, plays the role. Their sensitive characterizations thrilled movie audiences, many of whom could not afford to see them in live performances of the full-length play. Sarah went on to film several more motion pictures, and continued her illustrious stage career until her death in 1923. Handsome Lou-Tellegen struck such a responsive chord with movie audiences that he was snapped up by Fox Film Corporation after his contract with Sarah expired, and he headlined a long series of motion pictures as a matinee idol for millions of adoring fans.

RESTORATION: The Library of Congress lists the original copyright with only a few dozen prints made for the American distribution. These prints were severely cut by censors, and many subtitles were eliminated. Those that remained were badly translated.  Only a few of these prints have survived and they show a great deal of wear, a compliment to the staying power of the film but a problem for modern audiences. This version has been somewhat restored.

SYNOPSIS: To contain the long play within the limits of a single reel film format, the story was abridged to highlight the key scenes, including Sarah’s memorable death scene. The film does not tell the entire story of the ill-fated romance between Marguerite Gautier and Armand Duval.

It begins when Marguerite is attempting to regain her rapidly fading health by living in a country cottage with Armand. One morning while she is arranging camellia flowers, the unexpected arrival of Armand’s father heralds a terrible turning point in her life. Concern that his romance with her has tainted his son with the stigma of her impure past, he implores her to end the relationship, and even offers her money to stop seeing him. After pointing out that no good can come of their love, he begs her to break away from him for no reason other than her noble love for the younger man. Marguerite reluctantly agrees to his reasoning, tosses aside her camellia flowers, and tearfully writes a letter telling Armand that she is now in love with the Count de Varville. She dresses and abandons the cottage, exclaiming, "After I die, people will say that I had but one dream in the world, crushed it with my own hands, and died because of it! May God forgive me!"

Armand is distraught after reading the letter, and when he unexpectedly encounters Marguerite at a gambling party, he implores her to reunite with him. Keeping her word to his father, she spurns him, which prompts an angry outburst from Armand. He flings his gambling winnings in her face, humiliating her with a public denunciation. Marguerite suffers the debasement in stoic silence, never revealing her true feelings and leaving him to believe that she is a wretched creature who deceived him. To save Marguerite’s honor, the Count de Varville demands a duel at dawn with Armand, and the next morning, the Count suffers the first wound in a sword fight with the stalwart youth.

     After the duel, Mr. Duval renounces his request that Marguerite end her relationship with Armand, and he sends a letter to her that Armand will return to ask forgiveness. Unaware that Marguerite is near the portal of death, Armand returns repentant. Marguerite is overjoyed at seeing him and hides the truth of her mortal illness in order to regain a few more months of life and love but it is too late. Joy turns to grief when, standing in Armand’s embrace, she drops her handkerchief, stiffens, and dies. 

SCENES:

Marguerite rejects Mr. Duval's offer of money to renounce her love of his son.

Giving in to his appeal, Marguerite tearfully writes Armand a letter, telling him that she has given herself to another man. 

Some months later, Armand confronts Marguerite at a gambling party at her friend's apartment. Remaining true to her promise to his father, Marguerite insists that she does not love him and spurns Armand's attempt at a reconciliation. He reacts by nearly strangling her, and then humiliates her in front of their friends by hurling a deck of cards in her face.

Armand's angry outburst at Marguerite's rejection prompts the Count de Varville

to challenge him to a duel at dawn.

Regretting his decision to demand the end of their relationship, Mr. Duval sends Armand to Marguerite with a letter of apology.

Repentant, Armand returns to Marguerite, unaware how near to

death she is.

Safely in the arms of the great love of her life, Marguerite dies.

SCENES FROM LE DUEL D'HAMLET:

An early experiment in sound film, this one-minute short film was made for the Paris Exposition in the year 1900 for the unique Phono Cinema Theater. It was Sarah's motion picture debut. A full bill of other sound films accompanied Sarah's film. The scene filmed as Le Duel d'Hamlet is an excerpt from the play in which Sarah then appeared. No dialogue was recorded, and the sound consisted of clanking swords. The sound cylinders are considered "lost" and all that remains is this silent footage depicting a young and vigorous Sarah Bernhardt in a duel to the death with Laertes. When she impales him on her sword, he dies, and she swoons into the conveniently waiting arms of her attendants. They lift her up over their heads, and bear her off stage. 

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