Underplayed Gems

Borderline (1930)

Borderline poster
Directed by
Kenneth Macpherson
Genre
drama film, silent film, LGBTQ-related film
Country
United Kingdom
Runtime
1h 03m
Rating
6.0 of 10 from 24 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
The 3D catalogue: film cases on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalogue in 3D

The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

This silent film uses avant-garde techniques to explore interracial relationships. It features Paul Robeson and was thought lost until resurfacing in the 1980s.

experimentalsilentslow-pacedthought-provokingatmosphericstarkseriousunsettling

What happens

Borderline is a 1930 film, written and directed by Kenneth Macpherson and produced by the Pool Group in Territet, Switzerland. The silent film, with English title cards, is primarily noted for its handling of the contentious issue of interracial relationships, using avant-garde experimental film-making techniques. The film, which features Paul Robeson, Eslanda Robeson, and H.D., was originally believed to have been lost, but was discovered, by chance, in Switzerland in 1983. An original 16mm copy of this film is now held in the Donnell Media Center, New York City Public Library. In 2006, the British Film Institute sponsored the film's restoration by The George Eastman House and eventual DVD release with a soundtrack composed by Courtney Pine. Its premiere at the Tate Modern gallery in London attracted 2,000 people. In 2010, the film was released with a soundtrack composed by Mallory Johns, performed by the Southern Connecticut State University Creative Music Orchestra. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

More like this

This page is from Underplayed Gems. Not quite it? You can browse by genre, country and year, or take this one into the 3D catalogue and ask the Catbot for something closer.