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supposed "silent" speed, 18fps, and ran 75 minutes when projected at that speed; if shown at 24fps, however, the film runs only 60 minutes and the audio was created to accompany the film shown at 24fps. However, by 1929 almost all
American silent films were produced to be projected at 24 fps, and the silent versions of sound films distributed to "unwired" theatres not yet equipped for sound films were often shorter than their sound counterparts, sometimes drastically so (as in the case of Warner Bros.
31:
405:, Michael R. Pitts noted that most contemporary reviews stated the film had a 60 minute running time seemingly referring to the domestic sound version of the film. A silent version for theatres not yet wired for sound was produced but is no longer extant. The silent release is listed as 5,267 feet, 168 feet shorter than the sound release of 5,405 feet.
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under the name
Richard Bee. Initially overjoyed that his story would be adapted into a film, Merritt later spoke about the film in a 1933 interview, stating that he "sat through the picture and wept. The only similarity between the book and the picture was the title. The picture likewise killed the
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Jim and his fiancee Eve, a young society couple, are kidnapped on the eve of Jim's departure for Africa and brought to a mansion that is home to a strange and glamorous cult with a hooded leader called "Satan." Jim is put through a number of strange adventures in the old house and tries to maintain
389:
was made for export to non-English speaking audiences by edited the talking sequences and inserting intertitles in them. The rest of the film was left intact. This version survives in an
Italian archive (Cineteca Italiana) and although the title card declares it to be a synchronized film ("il film
411:
Pitts ignored the title card in extant print from
Cineteca Italiana which clearly states "il film sonoro" which translated that that the film is synchronized with sound. Arguing from an erroneous premise that the extant film is a silent version, he proposes that the film was originally shot at
258:
his courage. During the course of the film, Jim encounters an old witch, a dwarf, a gorilla and a strange shaggy creature called "The Spider". In the end, he is confronted by Satan himself who puts him to a final test.
421:
The 2022 Serial
Squadron Blu-Ray restoration, also under the premise that the extant print is a silent version, presented their version at the "silent" speed of 18fps thereby extending the runtime to 75 minutes.
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similarly called the film "all hokum", noting "another of those fright producers, wholly baffling from start to finish. An utterly moronic sound film appealing to all the passions." One reviewer in
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It is revealed to be a hoax played on Jim by his uncle Joe, Eve, and his uncle's employees to convince Jim to forget his adventure plans, stay at home, work for his uncle, and settle down with Eve.
241:. In addition to sequences with audible dialogue or talking sequences, the film features a synchronized musical score and sound effects along with English intertitles. The film survives at the
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commented that "People will no doubt enjoy this picture provided they don't take it seriously. It is one of the wildest mystery trapdoor melodramas that has been produced in many a moon."
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is one of the poorest. There is not a convincing situation in it, and the explanation of it all at the end takes the cake...no rhyme or reason." A review in
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opined that "Maybe we haven't seen all the so-called mystery-drama-thrillers so far released, but of those what we have seen, this
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soundtrack for the domestic version however will synchronize with the film in the non-dialogue scenes as these were left intact.
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Title card of
Italian print of "Seven Footprints To Satan" declaring it to be a Synchronized Sound Film ("il film sonoro")
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418:, in which the original all-dialogue sound version of 7,774 feet was also issued in a silent format of 5,443 feet).
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Christensen cast actor
Creighton Hale in the role of Jim in an attempt to capitalize on Hale's having starred in
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described the film as a "has of weird and wild doings in a mysterious house with a lot of phony thrills."
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sonoro") the print is mute. It is not known if the soundtrack discs for the foreign version survives. The
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The first title on the film states "il film sonoro" or synchronized sound film. Available online at:
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The first title on the film states "il film sonoro" or synchronized sound film. Available online at:
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The
American Film Institute Catalog of Motion Pictures Produced in the United States, Part 1
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stated that they loved the title of the film but found it "just a hodgepodge mystery story"
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booksale for people who saw the picture felt no impulse thereafter to read the book."
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Thrills
Untapped: Neglected Horror, Science Fiction and Fantasy Films, 1928-1936
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Thrills
Untapped: Neglected Horror, Science Fiction and Fantasy Films, 1928-1936
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249:. The sound disks for this foreign sound version are apparently not extant.
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American Silent Horror, Science Fiction and Fantasy Feature Films, 1913-1929
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Pitts described that contemporary critics were overall "not impressed" with
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Pitts described the film as a "box office flop", with a gross of $ 129,950.
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An Illustrated History of Horror and Science-fiction Films
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Soister, John T.; Nicolella, Henry; Joyce, Steve (2014).
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1929 American mystery film directed by Danish filmmaker
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385:The film was released on February 17, 1929. An
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221:. Based on the 1928 story of the same name by
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477:List of early sound feature films (1926–1929)
780:Workman, Christopher; Howarth, Troy (2016).
369:, an earlier similar "old dark house" film.
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482:List of incomplete or partially lost films
245:in an alternate sound version known as an
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718:. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company.
355:. The screenplay was written by director
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666:https://www.cinetecamilano.it/film/1958
574:https://www.cinetecamilano.it/film/1958
1052:Films directed by Benjamin Christensen
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1057:Films based on American horror novels
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612:Soister, Nicolella & Joyce 2014
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727:. University of California Press.
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716:The Life and Death of Thelma Todd
347:was adapted from the 1928 novel
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1062:American black-and-white films
723:Munden, Kenneth White (1997).
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1:
1067:First National Pictures films
1042:American silent feature films
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401:is in question. In his book
397:The original running time of
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153:First National Pictures, Inc.
144:First National Pictures, Inc.
814:AFI Catalog of Feature Films
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7:
534:"Seven Footprints to Satan"
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387:International Sound Version
247:International Sound Version
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1009:Lady with the Light Gloves
784:. Midnight Marquee Press.
761:Pitts, Michael R. (2018).
588:Workman & Howarth 2016
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166:January 27, 1929
16:1929 American mystery film
969:Seven Footprints to Satan
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1047:American mystery films
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366:The Cat and the Canary
316:as Professor Von Viede
921:His Wife, The Unknown
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349:7 Footprints to Satan
68:7 Footprints to Satan
1077:Silent mystery films
1072:1920s American films
885:Benjamin Christensen
357:Benjamin Christensen
219:Benjamin Christensen
59:Benjamin Christensen
51:Benjamin Christensen
42:Benjamin Christensen
985:Children of Divorce
298:as Satan's Mistress
194:English Intertitles
192:Sound (Part-Talkie)
1037:1929 mystery films
937:The Devil's Circus
883:Films directed by
837:TCM Movie Database
464:Harrison's Reports
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322:as Eve's chauffeur
1082:Part-talkie films
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1001:Come Home with Me
961:The Haunted House
929:The Woman Who Did
714:Donati, William.
705:Clarens, Carlos.
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243:Cineteca Italiana
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328:as The Old Lady
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290:William V. Mong
286:as "The Spider"
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223:Abraham Merritt
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304:as Uncle Joe
296:Laska Winter
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159:Release date
67:
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624:Munden 1997
543:January 13,
314:Kalla Pasha
272:Thelma Todd
227:Thelma Todd
225:, it stars
215:part-talkie
213:is a sound
99:Thelma Todd
82:Wid Gunning
79:Produced by
38:Directed by
1032:1929 films
1026:Categories
734:0520209699
688:Pitts 2018
653:Pitts 2018
641:Pitts 2018
514:Pitts 2018
488:References
437:Film Daily
415:The Terror
340:Production
308:Nora Cecil
199:Box office
170:1929-01-27
137:Production
131:Frank Ware
122:Sol Polito
993:The Child
709:. Putnam.
698:Footnotes
456:Photoplay
442:Movie Age
392:Vitaphone
202:$ 129,950
189:Languages
139:companies
128:Edited by
848:AllMovie
471:See also
87:Starring
64:Based on
56:Story by
945:Mockery
835:at the
811:at the
451:Variety
373:Release
181:Country
168: (
1012:(1942)
1004:(1941)
996:(1940)
988:(1939)
980:(1929)
972:(1929)
964:(1928)
956:(1928)
948:(1927)
940:(1926)
932:(1925)
924:(1923)
916:(1922)
908:(1916)
900:(1914)
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769:
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561:Donati
280:as Jim
274:as Eve
913:Häxan
826:IMDb
786:ISBN
767:ISBN
748:ISBN
729:ISBN
545:2020
265:Cast
253:Plot
237:and
846:at
824:at
351:by
71:by
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
