Pola Negri: Life Is a Dream (2006)

The legendary film star Pola Negri makes her triumphant return to screen in Life is a Dream in Cinema: Pola Negri, a feature-length documentary examining the life and work of the celebrated actress. Pola Negri's place in cinema history cannot be underestimated, as she was the beginning of many firsts in the movies, including popularizing European films in the United States, opening the way for international film artists in Hollywood, popularizing fashions that are with us to this day, and broadening the expression of sex on the screen. Yet, few people today are aware of this magnificent actress or the dramatic events of her life, including her engagements to Charlie Chaplin and Rudolph Valentino. Life is a Dream in Cinema: Pola Negri brings the story of this great actress back to life with clips of her films, photographs of the star from throughout her life, recollections of the people who knew her, and interviews with people who have made a study of her life and times.Actors Hayley Mills and Eli Wallach, both well-known film stars in their own right, performed with Pola in The Moon-spinners (1963), her final film, and appear in the documentary. Many other experts in their fields shared a wealth of knowledge and insights about Pola, including: Professor Jeanine Basinger, author of Silent Stars; A.C. Lyles, producer for Paramount Pictures; Alfred Allan Lewis, ghostwriter of Memoirs of a Star, Pola's autobiography; Emily Leider, author of Rudolph Valentino biography Dark Lover; Anthony Slide, film historian; David Gasten, webmaster of The Pola Negri Appreciation Site; and Scott Eyman, author of Beyond Laughter: Ernst Lubitsch.Life is a Dream in Cinema: Pola Negri makes its World Premiere at Laemmle's Sunset 5 theatre in Los Angeles as a featured entry in the highly esteemed Polish Film Festival of Los Angeles on Saturday, April 29, 2006, and will follow with festival and theatrical screenings all over the world. -- © Official Site