蹀躞灯影:中国最早电影放映的影片考证

A Textual-critical Study on Film Titles of China’s Earliest Film Screenings

仔细勘察中英文原始报刊与世界早期电影拷贝可以发现在上海最早放映的23部电影的片名、内容及源流。这些影片涵盖人物、时事、景观、交通、军事等题材,内容涉及孩童戏水、船厂放工、园丁烧草、泅水海浴、化妆比赛、渡船马车、陆操走阵、骑兵炮队等形形色色的世界景象。从片源看,多数影片来源于英国,其次是法国和美国。考证中国最早放映的影片内容及源流,能为深入理解世界早期跨国电影放映的观众感受、文化环境和社会反响奠定坚实基础。

This article intends to identify the film titles and programs shown in Shanghai in 1897,as the earliest exhibition record in China.By virtue of the comparison between newspapers reports and original film prints,this article identifies 23 films shown by Henry Edwards.The topics varies from people,news,scenes,transportation and military.Majority of these films were from Britain,and the others were from France and the United States.A textual-critical study on the film programs could further our understanding about China’s spectatorship including audience experience,cultural environment,and social reactions.Without these fundamental studies,one could not have sound and solid perception about grand theories like visual modernity and vernacular modernity.