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by Various Authors
grade: 7
Eine Fahrt mit der Bernina-Bahn seems to us a quite exceptional film, which in a little less than four minutes gives us a fairly comprehensive idea of a small reality in the Alps. A precious historical and artistic document, one of the oldest railway films from the origins of (Austrian and world) cinema.
A merry journey through the Alps
From St. Moritz, Switzerland, via the Canton of Graubünden, to the small town of Tirano, in Lombardy. In 1908, a special railway line was built to connect the two tourist destinations, for an exciting and evocative journey through the Alps. A unique experience for tourists from all over the world, no doubt. And, considering such an extraordinary event, could the cinema ever simply stand by and watch? Absolutely not. And so, in 1914, Eine Fahrt mit der Bernina-Bahn was born, produced by Sascha-Film, one of the first Austrian production companies specialised in making short tourist documentaries.
Eine Fahrt mit der Bernina-Bahn, therefore, shows us almost in its entirety the journey of a locomotive through the Alps, right up to the moment when the final destination is reached. It was not uncommon in the early 20th century for the camera to be placed on a moving vehicle. On the contrary, as early as the end of the 19th century, it was a cameraman working for the Lumière brothers who first placed his camera on board a Venetian vaporetto, in order to shoot evocative pan shots of the city.
And if we think that, especially at the time, the shots were almost all made with a static camera, we realise that this must have been an extraordinary event. In time, however, this became normal. And by the time Eine Fahrt mit der Berlina-Bahn was made, this practice had become very popular.
What is most interesting, however, within this documentary, is the special attention given to the railway network itself. In order to present this new, precious reality in the best way possible, in fact, next to the numerous shots dedicated to the landscapes each time visited, there are frequent – if not constant – moments in which we see parts of the locomotive peeping out from one side of the screen, complete with train drivers and railwaymen intent on their usual activities.
And if we think that most of the tourist documentaries made in those years only focused on the landscapes, towns and small villages visited, then immediately Eine Fahrt mit der Bernina-Bahn Eine Fahrt mit der Bernina-Bahn seems to us a quite exceptional film, which in just under four minutes gives us a fairly comprehensive idea of this small reality in the Alps. Just as Österreichische Alpenbahnen – Eine Fahrt nach Mariazell did just three years earlier.
All this makes for a precious historical and artistic document, among the oldest railway films of the origins of (Austrian and world) cinema. In the decades to come, numerous short tourist documentaries would be made. Yet, whenever we happen to watch a work made in the early years of cinema, emotions are always particularly strong.
Original title: Eine Fahrt mit der Bernina-Bahn
Directed by: Various Authors
Country/year: Austria / 1914
Running time: 4’
Genre: documentary
Screenplay: Various Authors
Cinematography: Various Authors
Produced by: Sascha-Film