Italian postcard by Ed. Ballerini & Fratini, Firenze, no. 231. Photo: Alba Film. Publicity still for L'ombra (Mario Almirante, 1923). Caption: "In the garden of the villa of Gerardo and Berta".
Italian postcard by Ed. Ballerini & Fratini, Firenze, no. 232. Photo: Alba Film. Italia Almirante Manzini as Berta, Alberto Collo as Gerardo and Vittorio Pieri as Berta's godfather Michele in L'ombra (Mario Almirante, 1923). Caption: "Berta: Don't look, godfather! These are matters which don't concern you."
Italian postcard by Ed. Ballerini & Fratini, Firenze, no. 233. Photo: Alba Film. Publicity still for L'ombra (Mario Almirante). Caption: Morning strolls.
Italian postcard by Ed. Ballerini & Fratini, Firenze, no. 23?. Photo: Alba Film. Publicity still for L'ombra (Mario Almirante, 1923) with Liliana Ardea as Elena and Alberto Collo as Gerardo. Caption: "Berta's little friend and the daily painting lesson".
Italian postcard by Ed. Ballerini & Fratini, Firenze, no. 235. Photo: Alba Film. Publicity still for L'ombra (Mario Almirante, 1923), with Italia Almirante Manzini as Berta and Vittorio Pieri as Berta's godfather Michele. Caption: "Berta: Beware of the thorns, but don't ruin my roses".
Italian postcard by Ed. Ballerini & Fratini, Firenze, no. 236. Photo: Alba Film. Publicity still for L'ombra (Mario Almirante, 1923) with Italia Almirante as Berta and Liliana Ardea as Elena. Caption: "Confidential matters".
Life between enduring her misfortune and the illusion of love
Italia Almirante Manzini plays in L'ombra/The Shadow (1923) the beautiful young Berta Trégner. In an accident, Berta is paralysed. She then spends her life between enduring her misfortune and the illusion that her husband Gerardo (Alberto Collo) continues to love her.
After six years, however, almost miraculously, she recovers and discovers that Gerardo has created another family with Elena (Liliana Ardea), her best friend and that they also have a child.
Distraught, she runs away from home. The situation is saved by Michele (Vittorio Pieri), Berta's godfather, who manages to discover that Elena has reconnected with her ex-husband Alberto, and informs Gerardo, who, having rejected the unworthy Elena, can return to Berta to find love again.
L'ombra/The Shadow (1923) was scripted by director Mario Almirante himself. It is an adaptation of the 1915 play of the same name written by Dario Niccodemi. It was first performed at Milan's Teatro Manzoni in 1916 by the Compagnia Giannina Chiantoni, Irma Gramatica and Ernesto Sabbatini.
The first film adaptation was L'ombra/The Shadow (1917) by Mario Caserini starring Vittoria Lepanto. In 1954, a new adaptation was made by Giorgio Bianchi, L'ombra/The Shadow, starring Märta Torén and Pierre Cressoy.
Italian postcard by Ed. Ballerini & Fratini, Firenze, no. 238. Photo: Alba Film. Publicity still for L'ombra (Mario Almirante, 1923). Caption: "Struck by paralysis, Berta (Italia Almirante) passed her days in tranquillity and suffering." The nurse was played by Rita D'Harcourt.
Italian postcard by Ed. Ballerini & Fratini, Firenze, no. 239. Photo: Alba Film. Publicity still for L'ombra (Mario Almirante, 1923). Caption: "Berta: Why, Gerardo, don't you recognize Elena? My little Elena?" Italia Almirante as Berta, Alberto Collo as Gerardo and Liliana Ardea as Elena.
Italian postcard by Ed. Ballerini & Fratini, Firenze, no. 240. Photo: Alba Film. Alberto Collo and Italia Almirante in L'ombra (Mario Almirante, 1923). Caption: "Berta: Gerardo, I am no more than a shadow in your life...."
Italian postcard by Ed. Ballerini & Fratini, Firenze, no. 241. Photo: Alba Film. Publicity still for L'ombra (Mario Almirante, 1923). Caption: "The sudden healing. Berta: Doctor! It seems as if I am tall... tall. My head spins! I am afraid!" The doctor was played by Domenico Marverti.
Italian postcard by Ed. Ballerini & Fratini, Firenze, no. 242. Photo: Alba Film. Alberto Collo as Gerardo and Liliana Ardea as Elena in L'ombra (Mario Almirante, 1923). Caption: "In the new house of Gerardo. Elena: He is your real masterpiece!".
A titanic struggle between opposing feelings and erupting passions
How did the critics judge the film hundred years ago? In La rivista cinematografica, 'Gulliver' writes on 25 April 1924: "The drama unfolds intensely and collectedly in the soul of the protagonist. Everything is contained within her, a titanic struggle between opposing feelings and erupting passions, without, however, addressing ideological and moral problems. If these erupt suddenly and vehemently, without preparation and almost without entanglement, it is because of that strange game that an author sometimes enjoys for a sense of acrobatic and theatrical virtuosity [...]. The theatrical intricacy, which in many works extends from the first to the last scene with progressive potential, here is muted and only appears in the evolution of the woman's consequent soul, in its passages, nuances and, we would say, in the foreboding of the obscure immanence of destiny [...].
This having wanted to develop a superior concept evidently creates imbalances between the idea, abstraction and reality, matter: imbalances that remain in the cinema, even though it possesses greater means of implementation and greater possibilities so that the realistic event suffocates the symbolic meaning that we, unlike other writers, wanted to emphasise for a greater understanding and penetration of the work, also because we followed the comments of the public that crowded Ghersi, comments based on exteriority and impression. Instead, how much understanding would be needed and how much less levity of judgement, for a just appreciation of art. If the public reads us, they can profit well from these notes."
In the catalogue of Il Cinema Ritrovato 2023, Ivo Blom writes: "The film partly re-enacts the silent parable of people suffering from paralysis who regain their strength in a miraculous way, as in The Home Maker (King Baggot, 1925) or Lucky Star (Frank Borzage, 1929). Even more, the film follows the parables of silent films about the blind who, once they regain their sight, discover a bitter reality, e.g. that their friend, husband or wife no longer feels love for them, as for instance in the French film, Mieux valait la nuit (Éclair, 1911) with Cécile Guyon, or the Danish film Hjertestorme (August Blom, 1916) with Clara Wieth."
In another article, 'Italia Almirante e le arti', Blom observes: "While Niccodemi's text begins in medias res. Berta is already paralysed, 'in a statue-like immobility' (again a statuesque, sculptural quality, as in another film with Italia Almirante: La statua di carne), the film instead shows what precedes Berta's paralysis. [...] In the prologue, we see the happiness of Gerardo and Berta. He is an accomplished painter, and she is a tennis player, living in an elegant house. In a close-up, we see Gerardo in front of Berta's painted portrait. The portrait expresses the man's love for his wife, but it is also the face of the film's star, Italia Almirante Manzini, who thus confirms her status, as with the portrait in La statua di carne.
We see the latter only in passing, briefly, but it stands in contrast to the later portraits in the film. We then witness Gerardo's painting lesson to Elena, Berta's coquettish young niece. In the film, the camera pans from left to right, while in the film's promotional postcard depicting this scene, we have a visual synthesis. The captions ironise Elena's crush on Gerardo. Later, Elena marries her young lover and goes on a trip. It is then that Berta suffers from paralysis. Very beautiful at this point in the film is the play with a large mirror, raised so that Berta can no longer observe herself. At first, Gerardo takes care of his wife and feels guilty. Berta says she now feels like a shadow, thus establishing an explicit reference to the film's title. As soon as Elena returns, tired of the groom, Gerardo secretly starts an affair with her. From the two a child is born: the son Berta could not give him."
Italian postcard by Ed. Ballerini & Fratini, Firenze, no. 243. Photo: Alba Film. Italia Almirante as Berta in L'ombra (Mario Almirante, 1923). Caption: "Berta: I am a friend, a relative of His Lordship. I want to give him a surprise."
Italian postcard by Ed. Ballerini & Fratini, Firenze, no. 244. Photo: Alba Film. Italia Almirante as Berta, Liliana Ardea as Elena and Alberto Collo as Gerardo in L'ombra (Mario Almirante, 1923). Caption: "Berta [to Gerardo]: You shouldn't have done this! Raise another family... another home!".
Italian postcard by Ed. Ballerini & Fratini, Firenze, no. 245. Photo: Alba Film. Publicity still for L'ombra (Mario Almirante, 1923). Caption: "Berta: Lord... return me my illness! Return me my cross, it felt so good, so good!"
Italian postcard by Ed. Ballerini & Fratini, Firenze, no. 246. Photo: Alba Film. Publicity still for L'ombra (Mario Almirante, 1923). Caption: "Berta: Doctor, this is a new case, very strange! A sick person who dies of her own healing." Italia Almirante as Berta, in the back Alberto Collo as Gerardo, who repents his bigamy. Extreme left godfather Michele (Vittorio Pieri), and next to him was the doctor (Domenico Marverti).
Italian postcard by Ed. Ballerini & Fratini, Firenze, no. 247. Photo: Alba Film. Italia Almirante as Berta and Alberto Collo as Gerardo in L'ombra (Mario Almirante, 1923). Caption: Berta: "The shadow is receding... disappearing from your life."
Italian postcard by Ed. Ballerini & Fratini, Firenze, no. 248. Photo: Alba Film. Publicity still for L'ombra (Mario Almirante, 1923), with Italia Almirante as Berta and Alberto Collo as Gerardo. Caption: "Berta: Poor little one! He won't realize to have changed mother." This image represents the final scene of the film.
Sources: Ivo Blom (Italia Almirante e le arti: Relazioni pittoriche, scultoree e teatrali in Femmina, La statua di carne e L’ombra‘, in: Alessandro Faccioli, Elena Mosconi eds., Divine. Nuove prospettive sul cinema muto italiano), Il Cinema Ritrovato, Wikipedia (Italian) and IMDb.
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