New, Restored Print!

Judith F. Rosenberg on Piano

(Sången om den eldröda blomman). In 1918, Stiller finally conformed to the Swedish Biograph Company's policy promoting the production of big–budget literary adaptations. Based on the novel Laulu tuipunaisesta kukasta by Finnish author Johannes Linnankoski, Song of the Scarlet Flower remains one of the classic examples of the pastoral morality film typical of silent Swedish cinema. Stiller earned international recognition and acclaim for his nuanced character development, impressive landscape photography, and most notably his skillful pre–Eisenstein montage sequence in which Olof runs the rapids on a log. While the ballad–like narration style does seem dated, this newly restored print has the original tinting used to convey moods amidst the dramatic natural setting.