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The Cameraman's Revenge

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The Cameraman's Revenge
Russian: Месть кинематографического оператора
Directed byWładysław Starewicz
Written byLadislas Starevich
Produced byAleksandr Khanzhonkov
Release date
  • October 27, 1912 (1912-10-27)
Running time
12 minutes
CountryRussia
The Cameraman's Revenge (1912)

The Cameraman's Revenge (Russian: Месть кинематографического оператора, romanized: Mest' kinematograficheskogo operatora) is a 1912 Russian short film written and directed by Ladislas Starevich.[1][2][3] It, along with other works by Starevich, stands out in the history of stop-motion animation for its use of actual dried insect specimens (beetles, grasshoppers, dragonflies, etc.) as articulated stop-motion puppets portraying all of the characters.[4][5][6][7]

Plot

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Bored with married life, Mr. Beetle goes to a nightclub and fights off a grasshopper for the attention of a dragonfly dancer. Little he knows, the grasshopper is a cameraman who follows the couple to the home of the dragonfly and films their amorous encounter. When Mr. Beetle returns home, he finds Mrs. Beetle in the arms of a young artist, another beetle. After throwing the intruder out, Mr. Beetle magnanimously forgives his wife. Together they go to the movies, and, to their surprise, the film being shown is of Mr. Beetle’s infidelity, as the grasshopper from before is, in fact, the projectionist. Mrs. Beetle is not happy, and attacks the grasshopper after charging his booth. The date ends when the couple gets thrown in a prison cell.

Production

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The film was one the last Starevich made in Russia.[8]

Home video

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A DVD version of the short exists.[9]

Reception

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The film was described as "Starevich's most famous Russian production"[10] and his "most ambitious film".[11]

Analysis

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According to Giannalberto Bendazzi, "The Cameraman’s Revenge is a perfect example of young Starewitch’s unsentimental, unmoralistic style. The story is perfectly suited for animal characters. As in Aesop and Phaedrus’ fables, it is universal because its protagonists are animals – i.e. symbols. Mr. and Mrs. Beetle are a typical middle-class couple bored by family life. Starewitch’s characters are also good actors: The spectator has fun and identifies himself in the incoherent and very realistic Mr. Beetle. His acting is, again, a balanced mix between human and animal action: His human feelings are clear but, at the same time, his features and anatomical structure are scientifically correct.[12]"

References

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  1. ^ ""Вечер немого кино" в "Аптекарском огороде"". www.molnet.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 2019-11-05.
  2. ^ "В Москве пройдет показ мультфильмов начала XX века". The Village. 2017-07-05. Retrieved 2019-11-05.
  3. ^ "Показы немого кино будут проходить в Москве". ovideo.ru. Retrieved 2019-11-05.
  4. ^ "The Cameraman's Revenge (1912): The Truly Weird Origin of Modern Stop-Motion Animation | Open Culture". Retrieved 2024-08-25.
  5. ^ Géry, Catherine (2016-05-20). KinoFabula: Essais sur la littérature et le cinéma russes (in French). Presses de l’Inalco. ISBN 978-2-85831-263-4.
  6. ^ Bordwell, David; Thompson, Kristin (2014-12-05). L'art du film: Une introduction (in French). De Boeck Superieur. ISBN 978-2-8041-8536-7.
  7. ^ Martin-Starewitch, Léona Béatrice; Martin, François (2023-07-26). La filmographie raisonnée de Ladislas Starewitch (in French). Editions L'Harmattan. ISBN 978-2-14-049034-7.
  8. ^ Benoit-Lévy, Jean (1945). Les grandes missions du cinéma (in French). L. Parizeau & Cie.
  9. ^ Beck, Jerry (2009-10-13). "A rare Starevich article". Cartoon Brew. Retrieved 2024-08-25.
  10. ^ Salys, Rimgaila (2023-09-12). The Russian Cinema Reader (Volume I): Volume I, 1908 to the Stalin Era. Academic Studies PRess. ISBN 979-8-88719-365-6.
  11. ^ Holliday, Christopher; Sergeant, Alexander (2018-04-27). Fantasy/Animation: Connections Between Media, Mediums and Genres. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-351-68140-7.
  12. ^ Bendazzi, Giannalberto (2016). Animation : A World History - Vol. I (1st ed.). Boca Raton: CRC Press. p. 74. ISBN 978-1-315-72105-7.
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