Review of Cabiria (1914) by Greg W — 28 Sep 2012

"Cabiria," made in Italy in 1914 by Giovanni Pastrone, had a huge impact on cinema, encouraging countless directors worldwide (among them America's D.W. Griffith) to take their craft more seriously and create longer, more artistically ambitious films.

Unfortunately, I found the film a bore. I couldn't watch it for more than an hour. Set during ancient Roman times, it tells the story of a young girl named Cabiria born at the foot of Mount Etna in Sicily. After a volcano wipes out her home, she is sold to a Carthaginian priest seeking children to sacrifice in his religious rituals. The only gripping scenes were those in the Temple of Moloch, where naked children are sacrificed one by one as frenzied dancers cheer the priest on.

Cabiria is rescued and ends up on the run under the protection of a fellow Roman and his slave. That's when the boredom really sets in.