Società Anonima Ambrosio

An adaptation of Balzac's La Grande Bretêche

The newly-settled city of Venice in the Sixth Century AD: A wandering people struggle to establish Christian Theocracy. Basiliola Faledro, an exotic dancer, wicked and cunning, arrives from faraway lands seeking to avenge her pagan lineage; Her father and brothers blinded and humilated by frenzied zealots. Her primary targets are the brothers Gràtico, both newly-elected to positions of power: One, Marco, an arbiter and tribune, the other, Sergio, a bishop. The title refers to a bold pronouncement made by Deaconess Ema Gràtico to her subjects the Venetians, a seafaring and desperate tribe-- That their native homeland is aboard a ship.

The model Fede loves the writer Arte, but he is enmeshed by the beautiful Femmina. Fede takes comfort in the Faun, a mythological creature who becomes animated from the stone sculpted by Arte. The love story with the Faun represents a return to a dreamt wildness impossible by now, for the modern man, to reach and maintain.

A young man sentenced to death manages to postpone his execution because of the impending wedding of his poor sister, who is to be married off. His best friend vouches for his return. After taking care of his sister, the young man hurries back, but is delayed by numerous unexpected obstacles. Nevertheless, he continues the journey, determined to join his now-presumably dead friend.

Fricot finds his father asleep and takes advantage of the opportunity to pour down his parent's hack a handful of itching powder. The poor man's antics in attempting to relieve himself of his distress are ludicrous and finally result in incurring the wrath of his wife and her mother, who set upon him and beat him until exhausted. To his amazement he discovers that the blows have a salutary effect and he submits to the thrashing. When the women finally leave him alone he arises well pleased, as his affliction has been overcome.

Robinet, the lead in this Italian slapstick comedy, wants to be an aviator in the worst way, and this being an Italian slapstick, that's how he does it. Italian slapstick in this period was absolutely bone-breaking, so much so that it makes Keystone slapstick look like drawing-room comedy by contrast.

Robinet wants to try out to be a jockey, but has to go through a lot of exercise to reach the weight needed.

Scientist Galileo Galilei was engaged in his studies, but a servant of his attempts to seduce his daughter, and denounces Galilei to the Holy Office.

The mighty King of Babylon falls in love with a beautiful girl, ruthlessly tears her away from her lover, who is left wounded upon the ground, and carries her to his palace, where he seeks to will her affections, showering her with gifts of precious stones from his treasure chests. The heart-broken girl repulses all his overtures and dashes the jewels to the floor, and the infuriated monarch, incensed at her refusal to share his throne, orders her cast into the lions' den. An immense throng of his court followers are invited to witness the execution, but the expectant throng is dumbfounded when the ferocious beasts, instead of rending the victim to pieces, fawn upon her. A wave of superstitious awe sweeps through the gathering, who regard the incident as a miracle and believe that the girl is under the protection of the gods. The King's guards are overpowered and the girl released, and the monarch, by this time imbued with fear, pays homage to the maiden, who is restored to her lover.

Robinet gets punched by a boxer in the ring and decides to challenge him for a match. To win, he needs to train as much as he can.

A fantasy film about the knight Parsifal, who has to protect the Holy Grail from wizards.

A man goes out on New Year's Day and is greeted by everyone with "Happy New Year", in the hope of getting a tip. The fellow is so annoyed that he runs into trouble with the law and almost loses his mind.

Robinet is challenged to a duel, but owing to an overpowering fear, ludicrously depictd, the weapons are discarded, one by one, and two bottles of champagne subistituted. (Moving Picture world Synopsis)

Pompeii 79AD, mere days before the Vesuvian eruption. Glaucus and Jone are in love with each other. Arbaces, the Egyptian High Priest, is determined to conquer Jone. Glaucus purchases Nydia, the blind and long-suffering slave. Nydia falls in love with Glaucus and asks Arbaces for his help. He gives her a potion to make Glaucus fall in love with her-- In fact, a poison which will cause violent insanity.

The city of Naples is in the grasp of the plague, and the terrified people are mowed down by the awful disease. The king with his court flees to a distant castle, where death is mockingly defied, behind locked doors. Death, a shadowy specter, carrying his scythe, stalks into the castle, presenting a weird and awe-inspiring sight, and casts the plague upon all except a poor woman and her two little children, whose pleadings moved the king to take them along, and who, alone, prayed to be spared.

Robinet disguises himself as a woman to get away from his girlfriend’s husband, and discovers the unexpected pleasures of public drag amidst mobs of flirtatious men. (MoMA)

In this play on the symmetry of black and white, Robinet leaves home in his bright new suit for a stroll through a blackening industrial landscape. (MoMA)

Pisa, 11th century. Spina, a young priestess daughter of Peter, is devoted to keeping a flame burning that illuminates the way back for those returning from the Crusade. But the Florentine knight Lamberto falls in love with her and the two young men fail in the vow of chastity that Spina committed. The shame for having betrayed the promise of purity made pushes Spina to suicide and Lamberto kills himself with her.

Italian silent film.