Before Pyotr Tchaikovsky turned it into a famous opera in 1890, Queen of Spades was a no-less-famous story written by Aleksandr Pushkin in 1833. Protazanov’s film snubs the bombastic opera version and is demonstratively faithful to the subtleties of Pushkin’s prose. Hermann, a young military engineer, falls for a story about an old countess and three winning cards—a secret allegedly bestowed on her by occult wizard Count St. Germain in the time when, as a young lady, the countess used to gamble in Versailles. One night, under the cover of having a tryst with the old woman’s companion, Hermann gains access to the old countess’ house. His visit and the question he asks her lead Hermann down a macabre, labyrinthine path where the differences between truth and fiction, dream and reality, are murky and misleading. Ivan Mosjoukine, a major Russian (later French) film star, is a perfect match for Hermann: the immobile intensity of his fixed and steely stare combines calculation with obsession—exactly the mix to drive a person mad.

Live Musical Accompaniment by Jeff Rapsis