The Aerial Anarchists
(from the Catalogue of Kineto Film Subjects)
Hartmann the Anarchist
This is he third and final film of Walter Booth's futuristic and prophetic "aerial warfare" series. Unfortunately with each film in the series, the chances of seeing one of them decreases. The first, Aerial Torpedo, could be found on Grapevine's Early Cinema Volume II. The second, Aerial Submarine, exists in archives only. However, 1911's Aerial Anarchists is nowhere to be seen at all.
But,... here's the original catalog synopsis:
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"THE AERIAL ANARCHISTS"
This thrilling and amazing film depicts with far more realism than could be conveyed by the pen of the imaginative novelist, the horrors of warfare upon society if carried on by means of the latest development of mechanics - Aviation.
The picture is a series of thrills from beginning to end, but the most extra-ordinary and vivid incidents are the bombardment of St. Paul's Cathedral from an Aeroplane and a Railway Accident, in which a train leaps into a chasm.
These exciting scenes are so magnificent and realistically staged that they will fill audiences with amazement and mystification.
SYNOPSIS
1-A hut in a remote spot. The haunt of the Anarchists. Preparations for building an aeroplane.
2-The Anarchists start on their evil career. The aeroplane in mid air.
3-In the path of a search light from a fort. A remarkable and effective scene.
4-A Bomb falls from the aeroplane! The explosion breaks the fort into ruins.
5-Another bomb blows up a railway bridge! One train narrowly escapes, but another rushes full speed into the chasm.
6-The Anarchists pursue their destructive course. A bomb thrown in the path of a train causes a terrible disaster.
7-The rescue scene! The train on fire!
8-The Anarchists pass over the Metropolis. St. Paul's Cathedral, London, is seen, and the aeroplane circling it.
9-A piece of wanton destruction! A bomb is dropped upon the Dome of St. Paul's, which is sadly damaged and soon in flames.
10-A church, from which a wedding party is emerging, is blown up and the clergy narrowly escape with their lives.
11-The bridegroom gives chase, accompanied by the bride. They get in a motor car, hoping to keep the miscreants in sight.
12-The Anarchists damage the car which careers over an embankment and is smashed.
13-War in the air! The pursuers, escaping unharmed, give chase in an aeroplane and a thrilling encounter in mid-air takes place.
14-Shots are exchanged and ultimately the Anarchists' machine is fired. They descend and try to escape by land.
15-Firing upon their pursuers and wounding several, they succeed in reaching their headquarters.
16-One of their own bombs works their destruction. It explodes, and the hut is in flames.
17-Firemen endeavour to bring out the occupants, but the flames have gained too great a hold.
18-The miscreants perish miserably, sharing the terrible death of so many of their victims.
No. K 754
Code "ANARCHIST"
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I've come across a reference or two that has stated The Aerial Anarchists was suggested by E. Douglas Fawcett's novel, Hartmann the Anarchist. While maybe difficult or impossible to prove, this seems a plausible premise. Without giving too much away of the novel (I highly recommend you read it yourself), there are similarities. The nihilist inventor Hartmann invents a lighter-than-air vessel which he uses to cause destruction and chaos. London is the point of his attack including St. Paul's. It's also possible that the protagonist of the Hartmann novel (married in the end to the female interest) was rewritten as the "bridegroom" character in this short film. Finally, the anarchists do defeat themselves in Fawcett's story thus thwarting the bombardment.
written: 10/17/2002
revised: 7/26/2003
