''The Mechanical Man'' (

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

: ''L'uomo meccanico'') is a 1921

science fiction film Science fiction (or sci-fi) is a film genre that uses speculative, fictional science-based depictions of phenomena that are not fully accepted by mainstream science, such as extraterrestrial lifeforms, spacecraft, robots, cyborgs, interstel ...

directed by André Deed (who also starred in the film as the comedic character Saltarello). It was produced in 1920 and released in November 1921. It is one of the first science fiction films produced in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

, and the first film showing a battle between two

robot A robot is a machine—especially one programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the control may be embedded within. Robots may be ...

s. The cinematographer was Alberto Chentrens. For many years, the original film, about 80 minutes in length, was regarded as lost until some reels of the Portuguese version were discovered at the Cinemateca Brasileira in Brazil. About 26 minutes (740 meters) remains lost. The DVD release by

Alpha Video Alpha Video (also known as Alpha Home Entertainment) is an entertainment company, based near Philadelphia, that specializes in the manufacturing and marketing of public domain movies and TV shows on DVD. Alpha Video releases approximately 30 ...

uses the incomplete Brazilian print, with new English

intertitle In films, an intertitle, also known as a title card, is a piece of filmed, printed text edited into the midst of (i.e., ''inter-'') the photographed action at various points. Intertitles used to convey character dialogue are referred to as "dialo ...

s. Film critic Christopher Workman has theorized that the film influenced Fritz Lang's ''

Metropolis A metropolis () is a large city or conurbation which is a significant economic, political, and cultural center for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections, commerce, and communications. A big c ...

'' (1927). Director Deed began his acting career in France, then moved to Italy where he continued his slapstick style of acting. After finishing ''The Mechanical Man'', he returned to France, where his acting career slightly declined in popularity. He did, however, direct around 40 films, and acted in over 200, before he died in 1940.Workman, Christopher; Howarth, Troy (2016). "Tome of Terror: Horror Films of the Silent Era". Midnight Marquee Press. p. 240..

Plot

The story begins with a scientist creating a device shaped like a man that can be remote-controlled by a machine. The mechanical man possesses super-human speed and strength. The scientist is killed however by a gang of criminals, led by a woman named Mado, who wish to obtain his secret of building a mechanical man. The criminals are captured before they are able to get them, and are brought to trial and condemned. Mado manages to escape and kidnaps the scientist's niece, forcing her to give her the blueprints which she uses to build a mechanical man. The mechanical man is used to commit a variety of crimes including murder, all controlled by Mado. The scientist's brother (Gabriel Moreau) however is successful in creating a second mechanical man which he uses to combat the original. The two mechanical men fight each other in an opera house and end up destroying each other as well as the opera house. During the final battle, Mado frantically attempts to control the mechanical man and is electrocuted at the control panel by a short circuit.

Cast

* André Deed: Modestino D'Ara, or Saltarello * Valentina Frascaroli: Margherita Donadieff, or Mado * Mathilde Lambert: Elena D'Ara *

Gabriel Moreau In Abrahamic religions ( Judaism, Christianity and Islam), Gabriel (); Greek: grc, Γαβριήλ, translit=Gabriḗl, label=none; Latin: ''Gabriel''; Coptic: cop, Ⲅⲁⲃⲣⲓⲏⲗ, translit=Gabriêl, label=none; Amharic: am, ገብ ...

: Professor D'Ara * Ferdinando Vivas-May * Giulia Costa

Lost footage

Most of the lost footage consists of the beginning third of the film. Also lost are the cast credits, so some characters are unidentifiable.

Gallery

File:AndreDeed.jpg, André Deed File:L'uomo meccanico 1.png, The Mechanical Man File:L'uomo meccanico 2.png, The Mechanical Man serving champagne File:L'uomo meccanico 3.png, Mado watches the duel between the two robots on the screen in his laboratory

References

Information is referenced from the DVD release by

. * *

External links