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Siren of the Tropics

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Siren of the Tropics (DVD)

Directed by : Mario Nalpas, Henri Etievant
Available Date : 06/21/2005
Release Year : 1927
Running Time : 86
UPC : 738329039929
Country : France
Language: Silent w/English intertitles
Subject : Music, French Cinema & Culture, Film and Media Studies - Classic Cinema
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$17.97 (DVD)
MSRP: $29.95
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Description

Available only as a fragment for decades, Siren of the Tropics is Josephine Baker’s feature film debut. Made in 1927, around the time Josephine was making a Paris splash as a Folies Bergère star, Siren establishes the rags to riches, fairy tale template from which her subsequent films would be cut.

Josephine plays Papitou, a free-spirited, animal-loving native girl who falls in love with Andre, a sophisticated young man who has been sent to the Parisian Antilles as a prospector. She is unaware that he is betrothed to another, or that his work assignment is actually a perilous ruse concocted by his scheming boss. As the truth becomes known, Papitou finds herself pursuing Andre back to Paris, where fate intervenes. Will Papitou's new job as a music hall performer (a natural role for La Baker) bring the romantic resolution she so desperately desires?

Though silent, Siren of the Tropics abounds with musical energy, aided in no small part by Josephine Baker's innate screen magnetism. The film contains perhaps her greatest dance work on celluloid, the frenetic "Charleston."

The supplemental material on this DVD contains scenes of nudity. Viewer discretion is advised.

Music Composed and Performed by Donald Sosin

Licensed by Lobster Films

Product Extras :
  • "Josephine Baker: The Performer" (2005, 18 min.) Includes interviews with Lynn Whitfield (actress, The Josephine Baker Story), Margo Jefferson (The New York Times theatre critic), Elizabeth Kendall (dance critic and historian) and Josephine Baker’s adopted son, Jean-Claude Baker.

  • "Oh, Papitou" - NY cabaret impresario Steve Ross performs a musical number written for Siren of the Tropics

  • Josephine at the Folies Bergère
    - "The Fireman of the Folies Bergère" (8 min.) A rare silent comedy that features Josephine Baker’s first appearance on film.
    - "The Charleston," song and performance
    - A Folies Bergère Stills Gallery

  • The Memoirs of Josephine Baker
    - A rare behind-the-scenes video clip
    - The Memoir Illustrations: A Stills Gallery
UV Canada Link : https://unobstructedview.com/siren-of-the-tropics-kin039929-web.html

Cast

  • Mario Nalpas - Director
  • Henri Etievant - Director
  • Josephine Baker - Actor
  • Pierre Batcheff - Actor
  • Régina Dalthy - Actor
  • Colette Borelli - Actor

Press

For press and publicity inquiries, please email press@kinolorber.com. A selection of press materials for this title may be available for download here.