When we speak of “lost films,” we never mean really lost. The significance of that phrase is to say that no copies are known to have been preserved in any archive , museum, or collection–and thus, the film in question hasn’t been seen publicly since around the time of its release. Lost films have been known to turn up in garage sales, warehouses, and even underground on construction sites.
Every now and then, a researcher or a museum curator gets the call of a lifetime, from an everyday citizen who, for example, might have been cleaning out his attic when he found a film reel that he thought might be worth something and upon inspection, the curator discovers that it’s a lost Buster Keaton film. Or a scene that was cut from the known version of an existing movie. This is an archivist’s dream, and news of the discovery frequently spreads like wildfire through the film world.
The Mary Pickford Foundation came across such a dream discovery in 2012, when they learned that a copy of Fanchon the Cricket, which Mary Pickford herself always thought was lost, actually existed at the Cinémathèque Française. Collaborating over the course of 6 years with the Cinémathèque, the British Film Institute (which held an incomplete nitrate print) and the Immagine Ritrovata in Bologna, Italy, the MPF has brought the 1915 film back to the public.
And what a beautiful restoration it is. The Immagine Ritrovata was responsible for the physical portions of the restoration, photochemically bringing the film up to standard, then scanning it onto 4K high definition. The painstaking work that went into Fanchon the Cricket at the Immagine Ritrovata is visible–it’s one of the most beautifully restored versions of a 1910s-era movie that I’ve ever seen. The print is clear, devoid of distracting cuts or water damage, and it has a “nitrate look” to it–with the shine and confidence that a nitrate print projects.
The film itself is quite interesting to watch, an adaptation of the novel by George Sand, with the scenario written by Frances Marion and director James Kirkwood. Mary Pickford shows her true versatility as an actress in the role of Fanchon, a wild child who later grows up and proves herself to be a strong woman with a conscience, refusing to marry a boy unless his father asks her and showing the town what it means to love. It’s pretty standard fare, plot-wise, for 1915, but Pickford plays both sides of Fanchon with great skill and nuance, with subtle facial expressions that show her to be an immensely gifted actress. The movie is notable for being the only one to feature all three Pickford siblings–Mary’s sister, Lottie, plays Madelon, the lover of the lead male character, and her brother Jack appears as a bully.
Mary Pickford with her best friend, co-writer of Fanchon the Cricket Frances Marion.
The Mary Pickford Foundation commissioned a new score for the movie by Julian Ducatenzeiler and Adam Gladbach, and the foundation’s resident scholar, Cari Beauchamp, wrote the liner notes for the release. The notes provide fascinating backstories on Pickford as well as the personalities behind the camera. Beauchamp is the pre-eminent expert on Frances Marion, who was also Mary Pickford’s best friend, and wrote Without Lying Down: Frances Marion and the Powerful Women of Early Hollywood, a book that has become required reading for anyone learning about this era of filmmaking. The liner notes are exquisitely accompanied by behind-the-scenes photos provided by the Mary Pickford Foundation and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
It is a stunning achievement, and I highly recommend this release to anyone interested in Mary Pickford, early Hollywood, or the process of restoring a film made more than 100 years ago. The DVD and BluRay combination can be purchased here at Flicker Alley, or here on Amazon.
Thank you to the Mary Pickford Foundation, the BFI, the Cinémathèque Française, and l’Immagine Ritrovata for making this film possible.
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