Stylish but barely mediocre overall

Let's be realistic.

It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.

an ambitious but ultimately ineffective debut endeavor.

What marks the European cinema on the teens and twenties is the explosion of intellectual and cultural influences by which it is powered - naturalism on the one hand and impressionism (a sort of extended naturalism) and a galaxy of non-realist movements on the other - dada and surrealism (especially in France, expressionism (especially in Russia and Germany), futurism (especially in Italy) and then, common to nearly all those non-realist traditions, the post-Romantic movement that embraced art nouveau (later art deco), the pre-Raphaelite movement, the legend-film, the fantastique and the so-called "decadent movement" that converges with symbolism.It is a very heady mixture and, in terms of cinema history, provided the intellectual motor that, with relatively few subsequent additions, has powered cinema, sometimes weakly, sometimes with renewed force, from that day to this.Italy in the teens was at the crux of all developments, pioneering the epic film, but playing an equally important role in the areas of naturalistic and non-realist cinema. Febo Mari, about whom one would wish to know so much more, is proof, if proof were needed, of the way all these different streams of sensibility could mix and mingle, combine and alternate. As both actor (Assunta Spina, Cenere) and director (L'Emigrante) he was associated with naturalism. L'Emigrante unfortunately only survives in part but it is one of the most powerfully naturalistic films of the decade (more truly a forerunner of neo-realismo than either Assunta Spina or Cenere).In this film, on the other hand, and in several others (to judge by the titles), he is much closer to the decadent movement (particularly strong in Italy because of its association with the novelist Gabriel d'Annunzio) and to symbolism. Allegory, fantastique, legend, myth and fairy tale on the one hand, a powerful sensuality on the other.In fact naturalism and what we can conveniently bundle together as non-realist modes did not preclude each other. This is one of the delightful paradoxes of the cinema of this period. In this film for instance contrast the stylisation of the scenes between the faun and the model and the almost squirm-making naturalism of the scenes where all four members of the love-trapezium are present together in the studio. Compare the evident symbolism of some of the imagery with the scenes at closing-time in the casino where the staff are cleaning the floors for the new day as the last "guests" depart.. I have frequently stated in reviews that the Renaissance of early film we are lucky enough to be living through is a constant voyage of discovery. Febo Mari is a name that all aficionadi should add to their list.

The sculptor Herr Mariotti is working in his studio with his lover and model, and also having an affair with Frau Elena, Prince Mierbo's wife. In Herr Mariotti's studio there is a sculpture of a faun, that mythological creature that represents the first and pure love. One night, when Mariotti leaves his "piccola amica" alone in the studio to go have fun with his other lover as well as playing cards in a den of bourgeoisie vice, the faun comes to life. Soon, thanks to his charms and philosophical thoughts ( after all that's his speciality; that is to say, playing tricks and chasing lovely maidens… ), that mythological creature -half man half goat- will fascinate Herr Mariotti's model who will fall in love with him/it and will run away with him/it to his particular kingdom. Frau Elena is also interested in the amorous creature and Herr Mariotti's gambling debts are also part of the plot."Il Fauno" (1917) is a very odd silent film even for a German count who has watched a lot of strange silents since the cinema were invented. Italian film directors of that time had a strong interest in the Arts and that is demonstrated in a rather eccentric way in "Il Fauno", a peculiar mixture of the "fantastique" and romanticism.The film is introduced by the director, Herr Febo Mari himself (who also plays the faun in the film) in a theatrical way with a kind of preface wherein the director explains his artistic aims to the audience before the curtain is up. The director thus sets forth his intentions which include a great deal of symbolism, the various characters representing different virtues or weaknesses. Theatrical it may be but it is also very cinematic and uses techniques that were new in the 10's of the last century.Herr Mari uses the fantastic and mythological elements together with symbolism and philosophy, in a very clever and entertaining way, sometimes naïf certainly but not at all pedantic. "Il Fauno" is also an interesting portrait of the decadent Italian bourgeoisie who were not very different from their other European counterparts. Obviously the most bizarre and original part of the film is the fantastic one when the satire comes to life and enthralled Herr Mariotti's model. It is certainly a strange love affair but at its heart not so different from a fully human love encounter because, as the faun explains to the young girl, every man has a heart like a faun. The film has a mystical oneiric atmosphere that combines the real and the unreal and modernity with classicism. What makes the film even more enjoyable is that it has recently been restored complete with the original tints that highlight Herr Febo Mari's artistic intentionsAnd now, if you'll allow me, I must temporarily take my leave because one of his fat Teutonic heiresses is getting this German Count's goat.