The Dryden will screen La Souriante Madame Beudet (Germaine Dulac, France 1923, 23 min., 16mm), and CÅ"ur fidèle (Jean Epstein, France 1923, 87 min., 16mm) with live piano accompaniment by Dr. Philip C. Carli.

Although cinema was born in France in the 1890s, the French film industry was decimated after World War I, leading to decreased production as the country rebuilt and capital was restored. It began its resurgence in the 1920s thanks, in part, to the impressionist movement and filmmakers such as Dulac and Epstein. Considered by many to be one of the first truly feminist films, La Souriante Madame Beudet is the story of a man, his wife who has grown tired of his practical jokes, and an unloaded gun. CÅ"ur fidèle tells the tale of a tragic love triangle played against the port city of Marseille.

[source: George Eastman Museum website, 2019-Nov-11]