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Filibus: The Mysterious Air Pirate
(Mario Roncoroni, 1915, 70 min, Italy, Silent, B&W, DCP)
— Introduced by Tom Whiteside (AMI/Duke)
Flying high above the clouds in her dirigible, Filibus, the mysterious cross-dressing sky pirate, is a master of disguise and the scourge of millionaires, banks, and the police. Lowered in a gondola by her henchmen, Filibus steals from the rich and then mysteriously vanishes into the clouds. Newly restored to reveal the marvelous range of Desmet tinting and toning in the original nitrate print.
“In an era when cross-dressing and transgenderism are becoming more common, the gender fluidity that lies at the heart of Filibus demonstrates that, more than 100 years ago, women were taking advantage of conventional gender roles (even in crime capers). Indeed, the program book for the Dortmund Cologne International Women’s Film Festival hailed Filibus as ‘probably one of the first lesbian characters in the history of film’.” — The Huffington Post
