The Wings (film) explained

The Wings
Director:Mauritz Stiller
Starring:Nils Asther
Egil Eide
Lars Hanson
Lili Bech
Julius Hälsig
Cinematography:Julius Jaenzon
Distributor:Svenska Biografteatern
Runtime:69 minutes
Country:Sweden
Language:Silent (Swedish intertitles)

The Wings (Swedish: '''Vingarne''') is a 1916 Swedish silent film directed by Mauritz Stiller, starring Nils Asther, Egil Eide, Lars Hanson, Lili Bech, and . It was based on Herman Bang's 1902 novel Mikaël, which was the same source Carl Theodor Dreyer used for his 1924 film Michael.

Besides being an early gay-themed film, it is also notable for its innovative use of a framing story and telling the plot primarily through the use of flashbacks.

Plot

The story is that of a conniving countess (played by Lili Bech) coming between a gay sculptor, Claude Zoret (Egil Eide), and his bisexual model and lover, Mikaël (Lars Hanson), ultimately leading to Zoret's death in a raging storm at the base of a statue of Mikaël as the mythological Icarus.

Preservation status

The film is largely lost, with only half an hour surviving of the original 69-minute film. A restoration was made using still photos and title cards to bridge the missing sections in 1987.