This looks like a first film, and, of course, it's the directorial début of Benjamin Christensen, whose place in film history rests mostly upon "Häxan" ("Witchcraft Through the Ages"), his third motion picture. This one does not have a distinctive style, not as "Häxan" or "Blind Justice" (Hævnens nat), his second picture, would. Yet, this is common; most filmmakers begin not with their own designs and ideas, but rather copy (to greater extent than usual and to less effect) from those who came before them. What Christensen copies, then, is where this shows promise.
At this time, in the early 1910s before "The Birth of a Nation", Danish cinema was perhaps the best in the world, so Christensen had much to work with. From what I've seen, mise-en-scène was especially developed. From a historical perspective, the lighting effects in Danish cinema were remarkable, influencing Weimar cinema and, thus, American film noir. There are such examples here. None of it seems especially original, but represents the best that others had previously used: low-key lighting for dramatic effect, stunning silhouettes and diegetic, or seemingly diegetic, lighting. Some scenes are only lit by the sunlight coming through a widow or door, or from a flashlight. Others seem as though they're lit by diegetic sources, such as a lamp or from turning on a light switch. Generally, this was done by stopping filming after a character flipped a switch, then the lighting scheme for the scene was setup and filming resumed, to later be touched up by editing. Objects often partially hide the characters, and the original darkness also helps to cover this effect, but if you look closely, you can sometimes notice the cut.
Furthermore, mirrors figure prominently in some scenes, as they do elsewhere in Danish pictures. Early on, Danish filmmakers weren't too concerned with narratives, but by the time of this one, they were becoming more complex. "Häxan" is something of a pinnacle. "Sealed Orders", or "Orders Under Seal", "The Mysterious X" (Det Hemmelighedsfulde X)--whatever you want to call this film--has a more-traditionally-engaging story. It takes from the sensational genre, a uniquely Scandinavian type of picture, with the cheating wife, scandals, being trapped in a cellar and the convoluted suspense. It was sold as such (see the tagline), but it's also simply a melodrama. The last-minute rescue might even owe something to the American director D.W. Griffith.
This isn't entirely promising stuff to work with, but it's a fine beginning, and Christensen would go on to demonstrate his skill. "Sealed Orders" contains plenty of errors: jump cuts, theatrical long shots and the obvious daytime photography near the end for what's supposed to be nighttime in the story. Perhaps the tinting or something was lost for the print I saw, but Griffith and Bitzer rectified this problem in "The Birth of a Nation" by filming at night, and Christensen would do the same for "Häxan". Still, this is a promising début.
