Fucina, La Iron Foundry, The(1910) Director: Luigi Maggi –
Director of photography: Giovanni Vitrotti –
Production: Società Anonima Ambrosio, Torino –
Original lenght: 265m –
Intertitles: German –
Cast: Mary Cléo Tarlarini (la moglie del conte / Count's Wife), Alberto A. Capozzi (il conte di Saverno / Count of Saverno), Romilde Nigra (il paggio / page), Luigi Maggi (il conte Roberto / Count Roberto), Serafino Vité, Paolo Azzurri, Leo Ragusi (uomini della fucina / Iron foundry men’s)
The film:
Medieval Age. Count Saverno is consumed with jealousy after the hunter Roberto, a new Jago, has lead him to suspect that the young page Fridolin is having a relationship with the Countess. The Count, in order to avenge the imaginary injustice, orchestrates an intricate plan: he orders the rough blacksmiths of the forge to throw into the fire the first man who shows up at the door on behalf of him. Soon after he sends his supposed rival to the forge.
Cheats never prosper, or better, as the program of the theater tells “ often the evils are trapped into the spider web that they have woven for the others with infernal craft”. The providential stop to pray at the chapel saves the life of the young Fridolin while Roberto, clouded by the thrill of revenge, to make sure of the death of the page, shows up at the forge where he will suffer the same fate he had reserved to him.
The film, coming from a ballade by Schiller, adapted with the usual strength by Arrigo Frusta, was interpreted by the golden couple of the Italian Silent era, Alberto Capozzi and Mary Cleo Tarlarini and the director Luigi Maggi, who plays the role which he used to set aside for himself, the one of the cruel antagonist.
The film restoration:
La fucina was restored by Fondazione Cineteca di Bologna and Museo Nazionale del Cinema di Torino from a tinted nitrate copy with German intertitles, preserved at BFI- National Archive and belonging to the Joye collection. Restoration works were carried out at L’Immagine Ritrovata laboratory in Bologna in 2018.
