What do you love about it?: The film’s heroine, Filibus, is an amazing jewel thief/sky pirate, using her airship to commit daring robberies! When Detective Kutt-Hendy declares his intention to catch her, she cheerfully decides to frame him for her next heist, a complicated scheme involving--among other things--faked fingerprints, secret cameras, airship abductions, and, oh yes, dressing up as a man in order to court the detective's sister Leonora. It's a really fun caper movie, and Filibus is a terrific villain protagonist--competent and charismatic, full of clever plans and gadgets, and unrepentantly enjoying every minute of it. And of course she gets away at the end, leaving lots of space for her to complicate Kutt-Hendy and Leonora's lives again, or just have more exciting airship thievery adventures.
Filibus
Media: Movie
Approx length: 79 minutes
Where to find it: A restored version of the film can be rented/purchased for streaming here, or a DVD/Blu-ray can be purchased here or on Amazon.
What is it, in summary?: Filibus is a 1915 Italian silent film accurately described by its current distributor as a “feminist cross-dressing steampunk jewel thief aviatrix thriller.” (Link goes to their trailer for the movie.)
What do you love about it?: The film’s heroine, Filibus, is an amazing jewel thief/sky pirate, using her airship to commit daring robberies! When Detective Kutt-Hendy declares his intention to catch her, she cheerfully decides to frame him for her next heist, a complicated scheme involving--among other things--faked fingerprints, secret cameras, airship abductions, and, oh yes, dressing up as a man in order to court the detective's sister Leonora. It's a really fun caper movie, and Filibus is a terrific villain protagonist--competent and charismatic, full of clever plans and gadgets, and unrepentantly enjoying every minute of it. And of course she gets away at the end, leaving lots of space for her to complicate Kutt-Hendy and Leonora's lives again, or just have more exciting airship thievery adventures.