February 19 - Louis Feuillade

Happy Birthday, Louis Feuillade (pronounced "Foo-yaad")! Born today in 1873, this poet, journalist, screenwriter, film producer and prolific and prominent French film director from the silent era had, between 1906 and 1924, made over six hundred and thirty films! 

  

Feuillade is primarily known for his serials. These include the five and a half hour 1913 French silent black and white crime film 'Fantômas', the seven-hour 1915–16 French silent black and white action/adventure/crime film 'Les Vampires' and the five-hour 1916 French silent black and white/independent film 'Judex'. 

  

Of these, Feuillade is best known for writing and directing 'Les Vampires'. Set in 1915 Paris, France, the serial stars French silent film actor Édouard Mathé, French film actor Marcel Lévesque and French actress, film director and writer Jeanne Roques (professionally known as Musidora) as Irma Vep (an anagram of "vampire"). 

  

Told in ten episodes, the film has since come under re-evaluation and is considered by many to be Feuillade's magnum opus and a cinematic masterpiece. 

It is also recognized for developing thriller techniques, adopted by Alfred Hitchcock and Fritz Lang and avant-garde cinema, inspiring Luis Buñuel as well as others. 

  

Feuillade had been active from 1905–1925. 

  

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February 19 - František Vláčil

Happy Birthday, František Vláčil! Born today in 1924, this Czech painter, graphic artist, actor, screenwriter and film director studied esthetics and art history at Masaryk University in Brno between 1945 and 1950. 

  

After this, he worked in various groups and ateliers, but his main area became played film. Today, his features are well known for extraordinarily high art quality. 

  

Vláči is best known for co-writing and directing the acclaimed 1967 Czechoslovak black and white epic historical drama film 'Marketa Lazarová'.  

  

Based off of the eponymous 1931 Czech historical fiction novel by an important Bohemian (Czech) writer named Vladislav Vančura, Vláčil's film is considered by some critics to be the best Czech film ever made. 

  

With a runtime of almost three hours,'Marketa Lazarová' is set during the transition from paganism to Christianity during the 13th century. The film focuses on the Kozlik family, a clan of brutal and superstitious pillagers who ravage the bleak medieval countryside on horseback.  

  

One-armed Adam (Ivan Palúch) and his brother Mikolás (Frantisek Velecký) violently abduct the titular virginal Marketa Lazarová (Magda Vasaryova), the daughter of a Kozlik rival. They both hold her hostage, which eventually leads to a monumental battle as well as an unlikely romance. 

  

In 1998, Vláčil was voted the greatest Czech director of all time by a poll of Czech film critics. 

  

Vláčil had been active from 1951–1987. 

  

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February 19 - John Frankenheimer

Happy Birthday, John Frankenheimer! Born today in 1930 as John Michael Frankenheimer, this American film and television director is known for his social dramas and action/suspense films. 

  

Among his credits, Frankenheimer is best known for directing the 1962 American black and white neo-noir psychological political thriller/drama film 'The Manchurian Candidate' and the 1966 American black and white science-fiction drama film 'Seconds'. 

  

Frankenheimer's thirty feature films and over fifty plays for television were notable for their influence on contemporary thought. He became a pioneer of the "modern-day political thriller", having begun his career at the peak of the Cold War. 

  

American film critic, film historian and author Leonard Maltin wrote that "in his time [1960s]... Frankenheimer worked with the top writers, producers and actors in a series of films that dealt with issues that were just on top of the moment—things that were facing us all." 

  

Frankenheimer had been active from 1948–2002. 

  

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