The improbably famous André Deed, known mainly for his farcical character of Boireau(in French) or Cretinetti(in Italian)in split-reel comedies in 1910, became a director once the craze for silly burlesque film had died away and led to the more artistic wave of feature-length works that most European filmmakers were prone to create during the teens. He was, in Italy mostly, considered as a Melies-influenced artist and it is very easy to speculate, imagine or fancy anything about his films since they are all, or most of all, lost. So the DVD edition of the Mechanical Man comes as a very interesting treat for any historian, any science fiction fan, or even any person interested in the silent film, even if it is in a much truncated form. Once the viewer gets accustomed to the poor quality of the transfer, and to the fact that 55 minutes of the work are now gone forever, what stands out is the incredible uniqueness of the film: it starts(in the current form) as any proper serial would do, with suspense, a criminal fire, a daring escape, masks and chases... then we move to the romantic subplot, involving an awkward and rather self-consciously Ugly Deed, who can't pass for a Valentino, nor a Fairbanks. We are directed next to scenes in which the robot is introduced, triggering much Nosferatu-like suspense(To protect themselves against the giant robot, the characters close doors behind them, and feel safe, but they-and we-all know that the robot will keep on moving forward and of course will dispose of the door in his own sweet way, rendering any action against him useless)and the finale is very much in the somewhat excitingly scary mold of a Méliès-meets-Feuillade-meets-L'Herbier type of work: dazzlingly original, eccentric, suspenseful and highly visual. At the end, the heroes learn of the identity of the villain: she is one of the supposed victims of the robot, and the director has so blatantly stripped and exposed her in the last robot scenes that we feel her true identity was probably the only missing piece of the puzzle as far as she was concerned... this erotic undercurrent is one of the bases for the artwork for posters that were long the only extant material concerning this film. 3 years before Aelita, 6 before Metropolis, this film invents a typically European science fiction and does so with such vitality , fun and pace that the vision of this museum artifact, however painful the prints makes it, is really a pleasant experience.
11 Reviews
Seriously Strange Silent Sci-Fi
movingpicturegal9 May 2006
Warning: Spoilers
This is only fragments of the film and was a bit hard to follow the story, especially since the tinted print of this is on the edge of *extremely* poor quality, but it seems like it would be a really interesting film to see if restored and whole. The music that accompanies this was not very good and a bit distracting too, but all in all, I definitely found this worth a look.
About a mad scientist who has invented the plans for a giant "mechanical man" and a bad gang, led by a woman named Mado, kills him and steals the plans (none of this is here, just told via intertitle card). Mado ends up actually creating this mechanical man and operates him via remote-controlled electrical switches and wheels (and watches what's going on with him on this giant "silver screen"). The man is sent to wreak havoc on a house party, ripping the wall safe full of jewels out of the wall, etc. Later he arrives at a big masked ball, but the guests are under the mistaken notion that he is a party guest, amusingly costumed as the famed "mechanical man" - wrong, he starts after them, ripping the dress off one woman, but luckily the scientist's brother has meanwhile created ANOTHER mechanical man and sends him to fight the "bad" mechanical man. Pretty amusing - watching these two absurd looking actors in giant robot suits duke it out - quite funny (I'm not sure if that was intentional)!
About a mad scientist who has invented the plans for a giant "mechanical man" and a bad gang, led by a woman named Mado, kills him and steals the plans (none of this is here, just told via intertitle card). Mado ends up actually creating this mechanical man and operates him via remote-controlled electrical switches and wheels (and watches what's going on with him on this giant "silver screen"). The man is sent to wreak havoc on a house party, ripping the wall safe full of jewels out of the wall, etc. Later he arrives at a big masked ball, but the guests are under the mistaken notion that he is a party guest, amusingly costumed as the famed "mechanical man" - wrong, he starts after them, ripping the dress off one woman, but luckily the scientist's brother has meanwhile created ANOTHER mechanical man and sends him to fight the "bad" mechanical man. Pretty amusing - watching these two absurd looking actors in giant robot suits duke it out - quite funny (I'm not sure if that was intentional)!
Strictly a Curiosity
Hitchcoc19 May 2015
Warning: Spoilers
There is little to review here. It is comparable to looking at a series of still photos and describing their contents. As a movie, it is strictly a chance to look at an effort to use a robot (mechanical man) in various settings. Though they make no sense, his efforts are as a thief, a possible assassin, a party animal, but always controlled by an unbalanced woman. One could extrapolate a plot from the conclusion where another mechanical man confronts the first and the consequences are deadly and destructive. But there is not enough obvious motivation for the acts of this figure to impress us. If the other eighty percent of the film were ever found (unlikely, because it has probably met the fate of nitrate based products) there might be some order to all of this. It is about 26 minutes of interesting footage and we get to see a creative approach to film. As for the title character, he's pretty stiff. There is one scene where he is able to move at high speeds as he chases a car, but he is still taking those little steps. Visually, it quite funny.
THE MECHANICAL MAN (Andre' Deed, 1921) {Incomplete} **
Bunuel197614 April 2006
After re-reading Mike's comments and especially this enthusiastic write-up (http://www.mjsimpson.co.uk/reviews/mechanicalman.html), I had high hopes for this early (Italian, no less!) science-fiction film. While that review does mention a lot of what I disliked about the film, the author seemed a great deal more forgiving of them than me.
I didn't mind so much that I couldn't follow the plot due to the loss of about two-thirds of the film's original length but, really, there's nothing remotely interesting going on here (even if I concede the novelty value it must have had back in '21). The comic relief provided by Saltarello aka Andre' Deed (the director himself!) is so pathetically archaic that I was rolling my eyes every time he turned up (which is enough to almost make me glad the film didn't survive in its entirety)! The various exploits perpetrated by the villainess (so many thrillers of the era present women as master criminals; see the infinitely superior Louis Feuillade serials, for instance) didn't generate a reaction from me one way or the other - though her ingenious escape from a hospital/prison by causing a fire was, admittedly, nicely done. As for the robot, well, it's a lumbering and rather unattractive creation and, indeed, just about the only scene where it's put to any good use at all is when it suddenly picks up speed in order to chase the fleeing heroes' motor-car. What about the long-awaited showdown between the two robots, then? Their "fiercesome battle" consists of the two holding one another and going around in circles, almost as if they were engaged in a dance!! By the way, the tinting was effective but the accompanying electronic score, while appropriately ominous at times, is simply too 'modern' to fit the impossibly primitive images.
I guess one should be grateful to the Cineteca di Bologna for making an effort to restore the film in the best way it could and to Alpha Video for making it available on DVD but it's lasting value, as both entertainment and a landmark in science-fiction cinema, is quite minimal.
I didn't mind so much that I couldn't follow the plot due to the loss of about two-thirds of the film's original length but, really, there's nothing remotely interesting going on here (even if I concede the novelty value it must have had back in '21). The comic relief provided by Saltarello aka Andre' Deed (the director himself!) is so pathetically archaic that I was rolling my eyes every time he turned up (which is enough to almost make me glad the film didn't survive in its entirety)! The various exploits perpetrated by the villainess (so many thrillers of the era present women as master criminals; see the infinitely superior Louis Feuillade serials, for instance) didn't generate a reaction from me one way or the other - though her ingenious escape from a hospital/prison by causing a fire was, admittedly, nicely done. As for the robot, well, it's a lumbering and rather unattractive creation and, indeed, just about the only scene where it's put to any good use at all is when it suddenly picks up speed in order to chase the fleeing heroes' motor-car. What about the long-awaited showdown between the two robots, then? Their "fiercesome battle" consists of the two holding one another and going around in circles, almost as if they were engaged in a dance!! By the way, the tinting was effective but the accompanying electronic score, while appropriately ominous at times, is simply too 'modern' to fit the impossibly primitive images.
I guess one should be grateful to the Cineteca di Bologna for making an effort to restore the film in the best way it could and to Alpha Video for making it available on DVD but it's lasting value, as both entertainment and a landmark in science-fiction cinema, is quite minimal.
Decent
Michael_Elliott12 March 2008
Mechanical Man, The (1921)
** 1/2 (out of 4)
Incomplete
Seven hundred meters of this film are now lost but twenty minutes worth of footage of recently found so that's what this is. A scientist creates a mechanical man but thieves steal it and send it out to kill and destroy a city. The only way to stop the creature is by creating another mechanical man to destroy it. This Italian horror film seems to have had an influence on Fritz Lang's Metropolis, at least in the look of the robots. It's hard to really judge the film since so much of it is missing but they did a good job at taking the current length and adding enough background so that we know what's going on.
** 1/2 (out of 4)
Incomplete
Seven hundred meters of this film are now lost but twenty minutes worth of footage of recently found so that's what this is. A scientist creates a mechanical man but thieves steal it and send it out to kill and destroy a city. The only way to stop the creature is by creating another mechanical man to destroy it. This Italian horror film seems to have had an influence on Fritz Lang's Metropolis, at least in the look of the robots. It's hard to really judge the film since so much of it is missing but they did a good job at taking the current length and adding enough background so that we know what's going on.
They probably shouldn't have bothered to put this on DVD
planktonrules13 September 2008
THE MECHANICAL MAN was a silent film that was assumed lost. However, recently about 40% of the film was discovered and released on DVD along with a really bad copy of Will Rogers' HEADLESS HORSEMAN. Since most of the film is still lost, the company that released the film used a long written explanation of the plot and cards were used to explain missing sequences. However, the film still turned out to be extremely confusing and rather pointless--so much so that I really wished they hadn't bothered to release it--just conserve it until one day when (hopefully) the rest can be found. Sure, the robot fighting sequences were pretty cool for 1921, but this couldn't save this confusing mess of a "restoration". Save your money and buy a DVD that is complete--or at least more than half complete.
It is the Mechanical Man!
the_mysteriousx29 October 2005
This DVD was a bit of surprise from Alpha Video. They release many old, public domain films, but I had never heard of this one. For 6 dollars you get this and the 1922 Headless Horseman film. All I can say is "No Brainer" for fans of silent horror/SF.
It was to supposedly originally run a little over an hour, but only 26 minutes of this previously lost Italian film are here. A narrative overview is given at the beginning to let viewers understand the overall plot to make up for the missing. It's a big help as a lot of the gaps are scattered throughout, and this pulp story wouldn't make much sense otherwise. The Mechanical Man is a lot of fun, though and the film feels pretty complete, which is a minor miracle.
The plot involves an evil woman who steals a robot from a scientist. She programs it to destroy to serve her wishes. A young man tries to save his girlfriend with help from the scientist who invented the mechanical man. In the end he sends out a second mechanical man to dispose of the original. It has a Feuillade-like pace to it.
One interesting thing about Alpha is they seem to afford opportunities to up and coming composers. The score is very satisfying and brings some modern ideas to the antique film. Their work on last year's "Student of Prague" (1913) is equally good. In my opinion, Alpha does not have to do this at the low prices they ask for their films. No, their films are not re-mastered or restored, but they show that they care about fans by going the extra mile. The new English inter-titles are designed in an appropriate style. A fun surprise for silent film fans.
It was to supposedly originally run a little over an hour, but only 26 minutes of this previously lost Italian film are here. A narrative overview is given at the beginning to let viewers understand the overall plot to make up for the missing. It's a big help as a lot of the gaps are scattered throughout, and this pulp story wouldn't make much sense otherwise. The Mechanical Man is a lot of fun, though and the film feels pretty complete, which is a minor miracle.
The plot involves an evil woman who steals a robot from a scientist. She programs it to destroy to serve her wishes. A young man tries to save his girlfriend with help from the scientist who invented the mechanical man. In the end he sends out a second mechanical man to dispose of the original. It has a Feuillade-like pace to it.
One interesting thing about Alpha is they seem to afford opportunities to up and coming composers. The score is very satisfying and brings some modern ideas to the antique film. Their work on last year's "Student of Prague" (1913) is equally good. In my opinion, Alpha does not have to do this at the low prices they ask for their films. No, their films are not re-mastered or restored, but they show that they care about fans by going the extra mile. The new English inter-titles are designed in an appropriate style. A fun surprise for silent film fans.
The comic invention of André Deed, pioner of the surreal
kekseksa11 October 2017
André Deed was a pioneer comic star who made films in both France and Italy (originally as Boireau/Cretinetti) and whose career paved the way for all the comic stars who came after. His reputation has always suffered particularly amongst anglophone critics from the usual tendency to try and read history backwards and portray the earlier comic stars as simply primitive versions of Charlie Chaplin. So amongst the English critics, on the basis usually of very little acquaintance with the actual films, he has always passed for nothing but an eyeball-rolling, face-pulling farceur and one sees the sad evidence of that oft-repeated caricature in some of the review here.
In fact, even if Deed's comic style was broad, his films often contain very interesting elements of the surreal that is part of a Franco-Italian tradition quite different from the later US comics )even Keaton, whose surrealism is of a rather different kind). In the later part of his career he himself acted less and less, preferring to concentrate on directing and writing and promoting the career of his wife Valeria Frascaroli, who is splendid as the masked villainess in this film.
It is a great shame that this film does not survive in a fuller and more continuous form because it introduces some very good ideas. It is not by any means the first appearance in films of automata (the word "robot" had yet to be coined) or mechanical men (the Houdini serial Man of Mystery of the previous year features a very similar automaton) but it is notable in presenting the robot in more believable science-fiction manner (the Houdini automaton turns out to be a fake), particularly by introducing the notion of "remote control". It also plays very nicely on the idea of the automaton - by having the automaton pass as a guest at a fancy dress ball and by having two rival automata fighting it out.
Stylistically Deed follows Feuillade quite closely and could not have had a better model. All in all it is an important early piece of science fiction that deserves considerable respect. I believe my description of Deed in the summary is a more accurate one than usually sees.
In fact, even if Deed's comic style was broad, his films often contain very interesting elements of the surreal that is part of a Franco-Italian tradition quite different from the later US comics )even Keaton, whose surrealism is of a rather different kind). In the later part of his career he himself acted less and less, preferring to concentrate on directing and writing and promoting the career of his wife Valeria Frascaroli, who is splendid as the masked villainess in this film.
It is a great shame that this film does not survive in a fuller and more continuous form because it introduces some very good ideas. It is not by any means the first appearance in films of automata (the word "robot" had yet to be coined) or mechanical men (the Houdini serial Man of Mystery of the previous year features a very similar automaton) but it is notable in presenting the robot in more believable science-fiction manner (the Houdini automaton turns out to be a fake), particularly by introducing the notion of "remote control". It also plays very nicely on the idea of the automaton - by having the automaton pass as a guest at a fancy dress ball and by having two rival automata fighting it out.
Stylistically Deed follows Feuillade quite closely and could not have had a better model. All in all it is an important early piece of science fiction that deserves considerable respect. I believe my description of Deed in the summary is a more accurate one than usually sees.
Amazing artifact...
poe42620 March 2014
Warning: Spoilers
THE MECHANICAL MAN came as quite a surprise, as I'd heard absolutely nothing about it anywhere before I saw it. Super-heroic science fiction would probably be the best way to describe it. There's a masked villainess, Mada, and the hero(es) who want her behind bars- but the real draw here is The Mechanical Man, himself: he's a remarkable achievement- a practical effect, fully 8 feet tall (if not taller), that can actually walk and perform amazing feats of strength (like hammering his way through doors and walls and iron gates). The big surprise- that there's a SECOND Mechanical Man waiting in the wings to deal with the first- is a neat little twist (and, if the big battle comes across as little more than a waltz between the two, it can be forgiven because this has to be the first time two giant robots duked it out on screen). The missing scenes may well be a blessing in disguise: THE MECHANICAL MAN as it now exists is a tight science fiction story with super-heroics overtones. Recommended.
Italy's finest sci-fi!
GreenOrMikeTyson3 April 2024
Warning: Spoilers
L'uomo meccanio has always reminded me of that one spongebob episode where that giant robot chases that guy, obviously this film would be seen as cheesy today, but this is one of the very first robot films, ever! So it has a very special place in my life. Who knows, if this film was never made maybe films like I, Robot or even a game along the lines of Five Nights at Freddy's would have never existed, just because a film seems to outdated doesn't mean it's bad, theres a difference between old-school and outdated, old-school is an old thing thats fun to come back to, think Atari! Outdated is something you never want to come back to, so if you like silent film, you'll enjoy this one!
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