The President (Præsidenten)

Part of the BAMcinematek series DREYER

Mon, Mar 16 at 7pm*
*Live piano accompaniment by Donald Sosin

Directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer
With Richard Christensen

(1919) 89min

“…probably his most aggressive and socially pointed work, attaining an astonishing maturity for a first film.” –Senses of Cinema

The austere set-design and emotional nuance that Dreyer brought to his later works were already on display in his first film. Tackling a then controversial issue, Dreyer works to dismantle the stigma attached to unwed mothers and their children by creating a humanizing portrait of women trapped in a repressive society. As Dreyer was a child allegedly born out of wedlock, The President is also one of his most personal and revealing films. Live piano accompaniment by Donald Sosin. Archival print.

Senses of Cinema on The President
"Carl Theodor Dreyer’s debut feature, The President, is probably his most aggressive and socially pointed work, attaining an astonishing maturity for a first film." More