“A spectacular, fanatically ornamental, yet harrowing masterwork of erotic ecstasies and horrors.” – Richard Brody, The New Yorker
“In the long history of Hollywood excess, there is no tale as torrid as that of Queen Kelly… an outlandish saga of illicit love in sordid surroundings – Pamela Hutchinson, The Guardian
“A glorious celebration of film culture.” – Chris Vogner, Boston Globe
Opens February 6 | With a storied production almost as dramatic as its plot, this lavish late silent epic almost never appeared on an American movie screen. Director Erich von Stroheim was dismissed from the set by star Gloria Swanson before the film was completed and would not direct solo again. QUEEN KELLY opens in the imaginary European country of Cobourg-Nassau, sometime before the first World War, where the vain and cruel Queen Regina V (Seena Owen) obsesses over her feckless fiancé (Walter Byron), Prince “Wild” Wolfram. When the dissolute prince encounters an innocent but flirtatious convent girl, Patricia Kelly (Gloria Swanson), he falls in love. Desperate to see her before his upcoming wedding to the Queen, he kidnaps Kelly and brings her to his rooms in the palace. When the Queen discovers the lovers, she whips the nightgowned girl and throws her out into the night. Thanks to the reconstruction of the film helmed by Dennis Doros, Amy Heller, and Milestone Films, audiences can finally luxuriate in the world of this lush melodrama. Features new orchestral score by Eli Denson.
Awards & Nominations
Official Selection: New York Film Festival, Venice Film Festival
The Film Center is ADA accessible. This presentation will be projected without open captions. The theater is hearing-loop equipped. For accessibility requests, please email filmcenter@saic.edu