| Night Two: The Medal Competition For Outstanding Contributions is the Field of Film Editing. |
| The Finalists Are: � Anne Bauchens: Male & Female (1919) (USA): The crowd gives a murmur of applause for Bauchens and her excellent work for director Cecil B. De Mille in this semi-lurid comedy of class and manners. Bauchens work is especially well served in the dramatic shipwreck sequences, and the assembled crowd oohs and awes appropriately as this work appears before them on the big screen. � Andree Danis, Abel Gance: J�Accuse (1919) (France): The partisan crowd roars its approval, as France gets its first nomination. Gance, and his partner Danis, use rapid cutting and juxtapose horrific images of war to very artful effect in this anti-war effort that is both harrowing and humane, a large part through the artful use of editing. Gance, who some say has out-Griffithed Griffith, seems poised to deliver the goods in the medal department, much to the delight of the Parisians who vigorously applaud artful examples of his work. � Elenor Fried, Frank Lawrenece, Viola Malory, Grant Waytock & Erich von Stroheim: Blind Husbands (1919) (USA): The audience gives up the love for "The man you love to hate" Erich von Stroheim and his stellar crew, especially when watching the suspensefully cut mountain disaster scenes. von Stroheim really played up his villainry in this one and he and his editing co-horts keep this intricate tale of naughtiness and infidelity humming along at an enjoyable clip. � D. W. Griffith, Joseph Henabery, James Smith, Rose Smith & Raoul Walsh: The Birth of a Nation (1915) (USA): The hue and cry has begun, but in between all the boos and hisses, many in the crowd secretly admire the artistic cutting of the civil war battle re-enactments being shown on the screen and acknowledge the importance and innovation of this landmark film. � D. W. Griffith, James Smith & Rose Smith: Intolerance (1916): Not as controversial as BOAN, Griffith's awe inspiring follow-up is a 3 1/2 hour epic where four stories covering instances of intolerance dating from Ancient Babylon to modern times are masterfully entwined, using shots of actress Lillian Gish as an eternal mother figure rocking a child as a point of transition. The boos die down as the crowd can't help be awed by the rapid cutting while watching an on-screen depiction of the Fall of Babylon. � James Smith: Broken Blossoms (1919) (USA): The third Griffith film nominated (and the third nomination for his major editing partner James Smith) Broken Blossoms is done on a smaller scale than the two epics but is perhaps Griffith's most satisfying work. The audience in the Olympic hall can't help but be moved by the cutting between a terrified Lillian Gish hiding in a closet and her evil, abusive father trying to get to her that makes for some of the most emotionally harrowing sequences ever put on film. |
And the medals go to: Bronze: D. W. Griffith, Joseph Henabery, James Smith, Rose Smith & Raoul Walsh: The Birth of a Nation (1915) (USA) A gasp escapes from the crowd, followed by a chorus of hisses. However, this award confirms the importance of this film, and its place in history. Whatever you think of it, the battle scenes and the climax with the KKK riding to the rescue are among the most stirring ever seen, and the editing of these scenes (and the film) helped pave the way for modern cinema. Silver: Andree Danis, Abel Gance: J�Accuse (1919) (France) The locals are pleased, as one of their own pulls in the first medal for France. Gance put himself on the map with this film and established himself as a major artist and a figure to watch in modern cinema. He learned the lessons from Griffith well, and has helped paved the way for a European art-cinema. Gold: D. W. Griffith, James Smith & Rose Smith: Intolerance (1916) (USA) While, BOAN paved the way, Griffith pulled out all the stops with this follow-up. Cutting back and forth between the centuries in four grand stories of intolerance throughout the ages, this epic extravaganza would deserve a nomination for simply remaining somewhat coherent. That it holds the audiences attention and provides thrills throughout gets it the Gold. Griffith was the cinema's first true master, and if this award is a sign of things to come, it may be turn out that Intolerance (a financial disaster upon release) and not Birth of a Nation, will be declared his masterpiece at these games. After day two, the big winners are D.W. Griffith and the editing team of James and Rose Smith who take home 2 medals each and France, for whom native-son, Abel Gance gives its first medal. The current medal count is USA 3 (1 Gold, 1 Bronze, 1 Special), France 1 (1 Silver). |
| Ok, ok, I know everyone is in a hurry to declare the medals, but in the spirit of sportsmanship, let's take a moment to applaud all the men and women who were nominated in this first competitive category for their excellent work. In a way they are all winners... Ok, that's enough feel-good mularkey. Who won you ask? Well, hang on to your britches bucko; I'm going to tell you right now! |
| Well, it's time to step knee-deep into the fray and award a gold, silver and bronze medal in the very first competitive category in the history of the Cinema Olympics, Film Editing. All the controversy surrounding the possible nomination of The Birth of a Nation is a disservice to the other worthy nominees, so let's put that aside for the time being and focus briefly on just what we are honoring. This evening, we award those men and women who assemble the film footage and arrange the individual shots into sequences that tell the story, maintain continuity and keep the film moving. They painsakingly pore over thousands of feet of film, studying each indivual shot, finding the best takes and camera angels, and piece it all together to bring the creative vision of the writer and director to the screen. In a very real sense, they are the creators of a visual "language" that seperates the cinema from all other art forms. So without further disruptive ado, it's time to announce the nominees: |