The Assassination of the Duke of Guise

The Assassination of the Duke of Guise 1908 original French title La Mort du duc de Guise often referred to as LAssassinat du duc de Guise is a French historical film directed by Charles Le Bargy and Andr Calmettes, adapted by Henri Lavedan, and featuring actors of the ComdieFranaise and prominent set designers. It is one of the first films to feature both an original film score, composed by Camille SaintSans, and a screenplay by an eminent screenwriter.

The Assassination was one of the first and most successful films to be made by Le Film dArtfr , a production company founded in 1907 with the intention of making films that would earn the respect of the cultural elite as well as the patronage of large audiences. The script was written for the screen by Henri Lavedan, but its costumes and staging followed the historical tradition of the French theater.The movie contains the rudiments of the more elaborate narrative techniques of films to come. Although it consists of only nine shots, with theatrical rather than cinematic acting and staging, it presents enough elements of a story that it could be understood on its own. It does this through continuity of action and space. Leading up to and including the assassination, the camera follows the movements of the main character over five separate shots, through three separate rooms and back. Other elements were theatrical rather than filmic, such as sets with painted backdrops and the cameras single stationary position for each scene, reminiscent of a seat on the main floor, not far from the stage. ........

Source: Wikipedia