La Bohème (1926 film)
Encyclopedia
La Bohème is a 1926 silent
drama film
directed by King Vidor
, based on the opera La bohème
by Giacomo Puccini
.
in 1830. Several bohemians
try to survive on the streets, living under poor conditions and desiring to one day become famous. One of them is Marcel (Gino Corrado
), a painter who is starving himself to create a masterpiece. Just like his roommate, playwright Rodolphe (John Gilbert
), he has no luck. They are constantly bothered by the landlord
, but they have no money to pay him. The landlord, annoyed by their behavior and refusal to pay rent, threatens to throw them out if they don't come up with rent that night. Rodolphe reluctantly starts writing an article for a newspaper editor to earn some money, but the editor isn't satisfied.
Meanwhile, Mimi (Lillian Gish
), an orphaned embroiderer without any friends, is bothered by the same landlord, Bernard (Eugene Pouyet), who takes an interest in the girl. When she doesn't give in to his attempts to seduce her, he makes the same threat. Devastated, she packs her stuff and leaves her apartment. Rodolphe immediately notices her, but lets her walk away. She goes to the pawnshop
to sell almost everything she owns, but she doesn't receive a great amount of money for it. The rich but lazy aristocrat Vicomte Paul (Roy D'Arcy
) finds Mimi wandering on the streets and falls in love with her. Meanwhile, musician Schaunard (George Hassell), Rodolphe's other roommate, has more luck and is able to earn the rent in a single night. Rodolphe is able to pay the rent later that night, but notices that Mimi isn't.
Another plot involves Marcel's relationship with his wealthier neighbor Musette (Renée Adorée
). His roommates convince him to use her to get some food. Rodolphe stays behind and receives a visit from Mimi, who is desperate to warm up as she has no stove
. Later that night, she is at the point of leaving behind her apartment, knowing she isn't able to pay the rent, when Rodolphe and Musette invite her to stay with them. She enjoys the night celebrating, until Vicomte Paul comes over. She thinks he is only there for embroidery
and doesn't realize he is in love with her. Rodolphe, however, does and immediately thinks of the aristocrat as his rival. He expresses his worries of the patron to her, but she assures him that he is the only one for her.
Times goes by and spring reaches Paris. Mimi is out for her very first picnic and kisses Rodolphe after telling him she loves him. The romantic feeling inspire Rodolphe to write a play, but this results into neglecting his work at the newspaper office. Mimi hears from his editor he is discharged, but she doesn't tell Rodolphe about it, not wanting to destroy his happiness. Trying to keep up the deception, she makes longer hours at work to earn more money, but this makes her getting sicker every day. Meanwhile, Vicomte Paul takes a look at Rodolphe's play and offers Mimi to bring it to a theatrical manager, if she comes with him to the theatre. Rodolphe sees them together in the apartment and, in a rage, blames Mimi for having an affair. She tries to explain everything, but he is too mad to listen and leaves her.
Rodolphe decides to flee the apartment in order to forget Mimi. At a bar, he runs into the editor and is surprised to here he has been fired for five weeks now. Meanwhile, Mimi, with the help of Musette, tries to make his play successful by going out with Vicomte Paul. He tries to force himself on her, but she refuses his attempts and returns home. There, she is confronted by Rodolphe over the job at the newspaper. She admits having worked extra hard for him, wanting him to become a success. He initially forgives her, until he finds out she went out with Vicomte Paul, and makes the conclusion she got her money from him. He hits her, but later apologizes to her and pleads to always take care of her when she finds out she is very sick.
Rodolphe tries to find her a doctor, but she has left him in the meanwhile, leaving him a letter in which she explains she will only be in his way of becoming a successful playwright. He searches for her for months and becomes very depressed. His play turns out to be very popular, but he can't be happy until he finds Mimi. Meanwhile, Mimi is working very hard in the slum
s of Paris, but one day collapses. She stumbles on the street and eventually reaches her old apartment. Rodolphe is very happy to see her and tells her he loves her. However, she dies only moments later of tuberculosis
, leaving Rodolphe behind devastated.
was glad to make the film, because she just came back from a visit to Europe
and since then she wanted to especially reach out to her European fans. Making a film which takes place in Paris would be a good way to do this. After seeing an uncut version of The Big Parade
(1925), she decided that John Gilbert
and Renée Adorée
were most suited as her co-stars. When she first arrived at the studio for filming, Gish was treated as 'a queen'. Co-stars said she was acting very arrogant, with Marion Davies
telling she brushed off Gilbert and didn't want to give director King Vidor
a hand. However, it was reported that Gilbert was infatuated with her regardless, and deliberately flubbed love scenes to kiss her as many times as possible.
To prepare herself for the role, Gish allowed no liquid touch her lips to make her death scene believable. She also learned how to breathe without visible movement. She also visited hospitals to learn about several stages of tuberculosis
. Shooting lasted from August 19 to November 5, 1925.
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
drama film
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
directed by King Vidor
King Vidor
King Wallis Vidor was an American film director, film producer, and screenwriter whose career spanned nearly seven decades...
, based on the opera La bohème
La bohème
La bohème is an opera in four acts,Puccini called the divisions quadro, a tableau or "image", rather than atto . by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa, based on Scènes de la vie de bohème by Henri Murger...
by Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini was an Italian composer whose operas, including La bohème, Tosca, Madama Butterfly, and Turandot, are among the most frequently performed in the standard repertoire...
.
Plot
The film takes place in ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
in 1830. Several bohemians
Bohemianism
Bohemianism is the practice of an unconventional lifestyle, often in the company of like-minded people, with few permanent ties, involving musical, artistic or literary pursuits...
try to survive on the streets, living under poor conditions and desiring to one day become famous. One of them is Marcel (Gino Corrado
Gino Corrado
Gino Corrado was an Italian film actor. He appeared in 355 films between 1916 and 1954, almost always in small roles as a character actor.-Career:...
), a painter who is starving himself to create a masterpiece. Just like his roommate, playwright Rodolphe (John Gilbert
John Gilbert (actor)
John Gilbert was an American actor and a major star of the silent film era.Known as "the great lover," he rivaled even Rudolph Valentino as a box office draw...
), he has no luck. They are constantly bothered by the landlord
Landlord
A landlord is the owner of a house, apartment, condominium, or real estate which is rented or leased to an individual or business, who is called a tenant . When a juristic person is in this position, the term landlord is used. Other terms include lessor and owner...
, but they have no money to pay him. The landlord, annoyed by their behavior and refusal to pay rent, threatens to throw them out if they don't come up with rent that night. Rodolphe reluctantly starts writing an article for a newspaper editor to earn some money, but the editor isn't satisfied.
Meanwhile, Mimi (Lillian Gish
Lillian Gish
Lillian Diana Gish was an American stage, screen and television actress whose film acting career spanned 75 years, from 1912 to 1987....
), an orphaned embroiderer without any friends, is bothered by the same landlord, Bernard (Eugene Pouyet), who takes an interest in the girl. When she doesn't give in to his attempts to seduce her, he makes the same threat. Devastated, she packs her stuff and leaves her apartment. Rodolphe immediately notices her, but lets her walk away. She goes to the pawnshop
Pawnbroker
A pawnbroker is an individual or business that offers secured loans to people, with items of personal property used as collateral...
to sell almost everything she owns, but she doesn't receive a great amount of money for it. The rich but lazy aristocrat Vicomte Paul (Roy D'Arcy
Roy D'Arcy
Roy D'Arcy was an American film actor of the silent film and early sound period of the 1930s noted for his portrayal of flamboyant villains...
) finds Mimi wandering on the streets and falls in love with her. Meanwhile, musician Schaunard (George Hassell), Rodolphe's other roommate, has more luck and is able to earn the rent in a single night. Rodolphe is able to pay the rent later that night, but notices that Mimi isn't.
Another plot involves Marcel's relationship with his wealthier neighbor Musette (Renée Adorée
Renée Adorée
Renée Adorée was a French actress who had appeared in Hollywood silent movies during the 1920s.-Early life:...
). His roommates convince him to use her to get some food. Rodolphe stays behind and receives a visit from Mimi, who is desperate to warm up as she has no stove
Stove
A stove is an enclosed heated space. The term is commonly taken to mean an enclosed space in which fuel is burned to provide heating, either to heat the space in which the stove is situated or to heat the stove itself, and items placed on it...
. Later that night, she is at the point of leaving behind her apartment, knowing she isn't able to pay the rent, when Rodolphe and Musette invite her to stay with them. She enjoys the night celebrating, until Vicomte Paul comes over. She thinks he is only there for embroidery
Embroidery
Embroidery is the art or handicraft of decorating fabric or other materials with needle and thread or yarn. Embroidery may also incorporate other materials such as metal strips, pearls, beads, quills, and sequins....
and doesn't realize he is in love with her. Rodolphe, however, does and immediately thinks of the aristocrat as his rival. He expresses his worries of the patron to her, but she assures him that he is the only one for her.
Times goes by and spring reaches Paris. Mimi is out for her very first picnic and kisses Rodolphe after telling him she loves him. The romantic feeling inspire Rodolphe to write a play, but this results into neglecting his work at the newspaper office. Mimi hears from his editor he is discharged, but she doesn't tell Rodolphe about it, not wanting to destroy his happiness. Trying to keep up the deception, she makes longer hours at work to earn more money, but this makes her getting sicker every day. Meanwhile, Vicomte Paul takes a look at Rodolphe's play and offers Mimi to bring it to a theatrical manager, if she comes with him to the theatre. Rodolphe sees them together in the apartment and, in a rage, blames Mimi for having an affair. She tries to explain everything, but he is too mad to listen and leaves her.
Rodolphe decides to flee the apartment in order to forget Mimi. At a bar, he runs into the editor and is surprised to here he has been fired for five weeks now. Meanwhile, Mimi, with the help of Musette, tries to make his play successful by going out with Vicomte Paul. He tries to force himself on her, but she refuses his attempts and returns home. There, she is confronted by Rodolphe over the job at the newspaper. She admits having worked extra hard for him, wanting him to become a success. He initially forgives her, until he finds out she went out with Vicomte Paul, and makes the conclusion she got her money from him. He hits her, but later apologizes to her and pleads to always take care of her when she finds out she is very sick.
Rodolphe tries to find her a doctor, but she has left him in the meanwhile, leaving him a letter in which she explains she will only be in his way of becoming a successful playwright. He searches for her for months and becomes very depressed. His play turns out to be very popular, but he can't be happy until he finds Mimi. Meanwhile, Mimi is working very hard in the slum
Slum
A slum, as defined by United Nations agency UN-HABITAT, is a run-down area of a city characterized by substandard housing and squalor and lacking in tenure security. According to the United Nations, the percentage of urban dwellers living in slums decreased from 47 percent to 37 percent in the...
s of Paris, but one day collapses. She stumbles on the street and eventually reaches her old apartment. Rodolphe is very happy to see her and tells her he loves her. However, she dies only moments later of tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
, leaving Rodolphe behind devastated.
Cast
- Lillian GishLillian GishLillian Diana Gish was an American stage, screen and television actress whose film acting career spanned 75 years, from 1912 to 1987....
- Mimi Brodeuse - John GilbertJohn Gilbert (actor)John Gilbert was an American actor and a major star of the silent film era.Known as "the great lover," he rivaled even Rudolph Valentino as a box office draw...
- Rodolphe - Renée AdoréeRenée AdoréeRenée Adorée was a French actress who had appeared in Hollywood silent movies during the 1920s.-Early life:...
- Musette - George Hassell - Schaunard
- Roy D'ArcyRoy D'ArcyRoy D'Arcy was an American film actor of the silent film and early sound period of the 1930s noted for his portrayal of flamboyant villains...
- Vicomte Paul d'Aubray - Edward Everett HortonEdward Everett HortonEdward Everett Horton was an American character actor. He had a long career in film, theater, radio, television and voice work for animated cartoons. He is especially known for his work in the films of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.-Early life:Horton was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Isabella...
- Colline - Karl DaneKarl DaneKarl Dane was a Danish comedian and actor known for his work in American films, mainly of the silent film era. He worked alongside Rudolph Valentino, John Gilbert, and King Vidor. In 1926, he teamed up with George K. Arthur to form the successful comedy duo Dane & Arthur...
- Benoit - Mathilde ComontMathilde ComontMathilde Comont was a French actress of the silent era. She appeared in 71 films between 1908 and 1937.She was born in Bordeaux, France and died in Hollywood, California from a heart attack.-Selected filmography:...
- Madame Benoit - Gino CorradoGino CorradoGino Corrado was an Italian film actor. He appeared in 355 films between 1916 and 1954, almost always in small roles as a character actor.-Career:...
- Marcel - Eugene Pouyet - Bernard (as Gene Pouyet)
- Frank CurrierFrank CurrierFrank Currier was an American actor and director of the silent era. He appeared in 133 films between 1912 and 1928. He also directed 19 films in 1916...
- Theatre Manager - David Mir - Alexis
- Catherine Vidor - Louise
- Valentina ZiminaValentina ZiminaValentina Zimina was a silent screenplay actress.Russian-born, the daughter of a Moscow stage actress, Zimina served with the Women's Battalion of Death for three years. She was in a Siberian prison, from which she escaped and made her way across Asia and onto Hollywood. The rest of her family...
- Phemie - Harry CrockerHarry CrockerHarry Crocker was an American actor of the 1920s. He appeared in Charlie Chaplin's The Circus in 1928. He was a Los Angeles Examiner newsman.-Biography:Crocker was born on July 2, 1893...
- Bit Part (uncredited) - Blanche PaysonBlanche PaysonBlanche Payson was an American film actress. She appeared in 123 films between 1916 and 1946. At 6 foot 2 inches, she towered over both men and women co-stars in the many slapstick comedies she appeared....
- (uncredited)
Production
Lillian GishLillian Gish
Lillian Diana Gish was an American stage, screen and television actress whose film acting career spanned 75 years, from 1912 to 1987....
was glad to make the film, because she just came back from a visit to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and since then she wanted to especially reach out to her European fans. Making a film which takes place in Paris would be a good way to do this. After seeing an uncut version of The Big Parade
The Big Parade
The Big Parade is a 1925 silent film. It tells the story of an idle rich boy who joins the US Army's Rainbow Division and is sent to France to fight in World War I, becomes friends with two working class men, experiences the horrors of trench warfare, and finds love with a French girl.The film was...
(1925), she decided that John Gilbert
John Gilbert (actor)
John Gilbert was an American actor and a major star of the silent film era.Known as "the great lover," he rivaled even Rudolph Valentino as a box office draw...
and Renée Adorée
Renée Adorée
Renée Adorée was a French actress who had appeared in Hollywood silent movies during the 1920s.-Early life:...
were most suited as her co-stars. When she first arrived at the studio for filming, Gish was treated as 'a queen'. Co-stars said she was acting very arrogant, with Marion Davies
Marion Davies
Marion Davies was an American film actress. Davies is best remembered for her relationship with newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst, as her high-profile social life often obscured her professional career....
telling she brushed off Gilbert and didn't want to give director King Vidor
King Vidor
King Wallis Vidor was an American film director, film producer, and screenwriter whose career spanned nearly seven decades...
a hand. However, it was reported that Gilbert was infatuated with her regardless, and deliberately flubbed love scenes to kiss her as many times as possible.
To prepare herself for the role, Gish allowed no liquid touch her lips to make her death scene believable. She also learned how to breathe without visible movement. She also visited hospitals to learn about several stages of tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
. Shooting lasted from August 19 to November 5, 1925.