The surviving fragment and film record
The feature is largely lost. Edition Filmmuseum 105 includes a surviving fragment listed at 4 minutes; the 80-minute catalogue figure describes the feature, not that fragment. Josef von Sternberg’s largely lost film survives chiefly through a recovered fragment and documentation. That fragment is valued for its force, but it cannot stand in for the missing feature.
About the surviving fragment
Approach the surviving material as a fragment. Concentrate on what its framing and movement actually show, then use documentation only to mark the absent narrative around it. The Austrian Film Museum lists the fragment at 4 minutes in its 2016 DVD edition. This is not a complete presentation of the feature. Playback, current stock and shipping have not been checked.
Heads-up
Open the note ↓ Close the note ↑
A recovered scene can be complete as an experience and incomplete as evidence. I want to feel its pressure without pretending that intensity restores the film around it.
— Momo
Credits & versions
Version map
Where to go next
A surviving fragment is documented; it is not a complete presentation of the feature. Explore other film records →
