The Song of the Flame
| Song of the Flame | |
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| Directed by | Alan Crosland |
| Written by | Gordon Rigby (screen version & dialogue) |
| Based on |
Song of the Flame (1925 operetta) by Oscar Hammerstein II and Otto A. Harbach |
| Starring | Alexander Gray Bernice Claire |
| Music by | (see article) |
| Cinematography | Lee Garmes (Technicolor) |
| Edited by | Al Hall |
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Production
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| Distributed by | First National Pictures |
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Release date
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Running time
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70 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Song of the Flame is a 1930 Pre-Code musical operetta film photographed entirely in Technicolor. It was produced and distributed by First National Pictures. It was the first color film to feature a widescreen sequence, using a process called Vitascope, the trademark name for Warner Bros.' widescreen process. The film, based on the 1925 Broadway musical of the same name, was nominated for an Academy Award for Sound Recording (George Groves).
Aniuta (Bernice Claire, known as The Flame, is a peasant girl who incites the people against the Czarist regime and the aristocracy through singing. Prince Volodya (Alexander Gray) is the leader of a group of Cossack troops who falls in love with the girl, even though she is part of a revolution that is opposed to his social class. Konstantin (Noah Beery) is a revolutionary who also falls in love with Aniuta, much to the anger of his lover, Natasha (Alice Gentle).
The revolutionaries succeed in overthrowing the regime, leaving the Prince and his aristocratic class in peril for their lives and fortunes. Konstantin becomes the new leader and his brutal treatment of the people make many regret having supported the revolution in the first place. After he attempts to seduce her, Aniuta flees to a village in her native Poland. The Prince, fleeing from the new regime, happens to arrive at the same village. When he meets the girl again he decides to stay. They put their political differences aside and become romantically involved.
Hearing from his spies that the Prince is at a Polish village, Konstantin immediately goes there and arrests him, announcing that he attends to execute him. Aniuta desperately attempts to free the Prince by agreeing to have sex with Konstantin. The Prince is released from prison through this ruse, but when is it discovered that she had no intention of keeping her side of the bargain, she is thrown into jail. The Prince disguises himself and attempts to free the girl, but he is discovered and imprisoned again. Before they can be executed, Natasha, revealing the real reason behind Konstantin's execution order, tells the troops to release both the Prince and Aniuta. Konstantin is arrested by the troops soon after as a traitor to the revolution, and is executed, leaving the Prince and the girl free to pursue their romance.
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Wikipedia