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with a large and varied team to ties and the 10ullen reaction of
make Fanck's S.O.S. I ceberg for the local peasants, he is never-
Deutsche Universal-Film, who theless befriended by Tonio, a
distributed her own picture. But guide. As he was left on the
over-ambitious or not- and how highway outside the tiny village,
very few people have both played clost:-packed in the valley, with
the leading role in a film and its strange roofed chimneys, tile-
directed it with marked success slanted roofs and narrow alleys,
apart from those geniuses with a threateningly fragile
Chaplin and Welles?- the film wooden bridge over the river,
was made with enthusiasm, Tonio takes him to the inn,
loving care a nd considerable passing on the way the religious
artistic ability. It turned out to st atues carved out of the living
be a co-operative effort between rock by the roadside. Vigo is
the young director, Bela Balazs, told that these are in m emory
script-writer and critic (whose of the village lads killed trying
book "Theory Of the Film" is a to r each the blue light at many
must for all serious film a previous full moon. An added
students), and Hans Schnee- curse has come over the place
berger, brilliant cameraman who since the last la ndslide from the
had worked with Fanck on mountain, since the way up is
several of the Alpine pictures. now even more dangerous, yet
The Blue Light was thus made the attraction stronger. Seated
independently at Sokal-Film, and outside the inn, amid the
nearly all of it was shot on solemnly drinking peasants, Vigo
location in the Saarn Valley in sees Junta approaching, and is
the Italian Dolomites, surely one a t once intrigued by her and
of the most beautiful spots in mystified at the villager's cruel
Europe. As much to achieve reception of her. The boys upset
effect as to cut production costs, h er bask et of fruit, and the inn-
the m1mmum of professional k eeper h a ndles her roughly.
players was used, the actual That night, at full moon again,
villagers t aking part with great the boys are tempted to set out
success.
The plot is of the simplest, as
befits a legendary story, though
.its very thinness is one of the
film's t wo great weaknesses. The
legend itself is re-enacted within
a fra ming story. Two modern
tourist s arrive at the village, are
shown souvenirs of crystal by
the local children, and naturally
b ecom e curious about the tale
of Junta, especially as they in-
tend climbing the Monte Cris-
tallo on the morrow. They are
shown a gigantic ancient clasped
volume, from the cover of which
Junta's oval face stares out.
After a glimpse of her, weird
and supernatural among the
crystal rocks, we are shown the
arrival by coach of a young
Viennese painter, Vigo. D e- Vigo painting the portrait of
feated by the language difficul- Junta, played by L eni Rief enstahl.
twenty-four