Bruce Loeb on Piano

Lubitsch transposed Oscar Wilde's comedy of manners to the twenties, replacing Wilde's memorable epigrams with his own visual wit. Irene Rich is the errant Mrs. Erlynne, who attempts to return to her long-abandoned place in high society with an entrance at the birthday party of her daughter, Lady Windermere (May McAvoy), who is ignorant of her parentage. Meanwhile, Ronald Colman, as Lord Darlington, Lady W's biggest fan, contrives to lure her away from her husband. The great film theorist Jean Mitry called Lady Windermere's Fan “one of the most subtle films in the entire history of the cinema. Nothing, or practically nothing, is said; everything is inferred, suggested by little details, incisive, percussive, rich with an incessant corrosive humor. To all those who . . . still ask: So what is cinema? What is ‘filmic expression'? I would be tempted to reply: See Lubitsch's film.”