The Golem • Der Golem, wie er in die Welt kam (1920)
Genre: Horror
Director: Peter Wegener, Carl Boese
Starring: Paul Wegener, Albert Steinrück, Lyda Salmonova, Lothar Müthel
Language: Silent with German intertitles.
Duration: 85 min.
Summary:
In 16th-century Prague, a rabbi creates a giant creature from
clay, and using sorcery, brings the creature to life
in order to protect the Jews of Prague from persecution.
The Golem, also known as, The Golem: How He Came Into The World, is a film directed by Carl Boese and former Berlin stage actor Paul Wegener. It was written by Wegener and Henrik Galeen, and stars Wegener as the title monster.
This influential German silent horror classic, set in the 16th-century, and told in five separate chapters, tells of an old mystic rabbi (Albert Steinrück), who uses black magic to create a golem in order to protect his community. At first the Golem does the job and saves the Jews from the Holy Roman Emperor's wrath, but soon enough the rabbi loses control of his creation, and it leads to a fiery and bloody rampage.
Right off the bat, the first impression is that this is a visually compelling film. With it's expressionistic set design and crooked city-scapes, and fantastic use of light and shadow from a variety of different sources. Flickering flames from candles, torches, and braziers; tinted artificial stage lights, as well as the stylized glow of sun and moon light, create a fascinating visual contrast captured with great skill by cinematographer Karl Freund.
The monster itself, though not the least bit frightening from a modern perspective, is still played wonderfully by Wegener with a cold menace and just enough of a hint of humanity, to make him interesting. With his massive physical presence, stilted lumbering movements, and delayed exaggerated expressions, he makes an unmistakable precursor for James Whale's Frankenstein.
The story doesn't really hold up, there's an entirely unconvincing silly romantic side-plot between the Knight of Flowers (Lothar Müthel) and the rabbi's daughter (Lyda Salmonova), and the action lacks dramatic suspense, ending up far more comical than scary; but its portrayal of the historical rift between Christians and Jews does provide an interesting social political message that seems to echo the tensions beginning to form in the post Great War Weimar Republic.
Ultimately, it's a curiosity piece that can be enjoyed for its historical importance and its influential visual style which surely must have been impressive to audiences in its day, but it isn't an essential one like its contemporaries, Nosferatu or The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari.
This influential German silent horror classic, set in the 16th-century, and told in five separate chapters, tells of an old mystic rabbi (Albert Steinrück), who uses black magic to create a golem in order to protect his community. At first the Golem does the job and saves the Jews from the Holy Roman Emperor's wrath, but soon enough the rabbi loses control of his creation, and it leads to a fiery and bloody rampage.
Right off the bat, the first impression is that this is a visually compelling film. With it's expressionistic set design and crooked city-scapes, and fantastic use of light and shadow from a variety of different sources. Flickering flames from candles, torches, and braziers; tinted artificial stage lights, as well as the stylized glow of sun and moon light, create a fascinating visual contrast captured with great skill by cinematographer Karl Freund.
The monster itself, though not the least bit frightening from a modern perspective, is still played wonderfully by Wegener with a cold menace and just enough of a hint of humanity, to make him interesting. With his massive physical presence, stilted lumbering movements, and delayed exaggerated expressions, he makes an unmistakable precursor for James Whale's Frankenstein.
The story doesn't really hold up, there's an entirely unconvincing silly romantic side-plot between the Knight of Flowers (Lothar Müthel) and the rabbi's daughter (Lyda Salmonova), and the action lacks dramatic suspense, ending up far more comical than scary; but its portrayal of the historical rift between Christians and Jews does provide an interesting social political message that seems to echo the tensions beginning to form in the post Great War Weimar Republic.
Ultimately, it's a curiosity piece that can be enjoyed for its historical importance and its influential visual style which surely must have been impressive to audiences in its day, but it isn't an essential one like its contemporaries, Nosferatu or The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari.
— Bonjour Tristesse
9 comments:
Hi, Bonjour:
I caught 'Der Golem' on a Turner Classic Movies Silent Sunday night. Intriguing piece of cinema with several ahead of their time special effects.
I think I now know where Michael Mann got his idea for the trapped evil creature kept within the silver adorned vault in his film, 'The Keep'. Even some of the later film's swirling mist and fog seem to have originated with 'Der Golem'.
Great catch and clip!
I've seen this and I liked it!
It is one of the few "true" Expresionnist films with The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. In film classes of the "movement" we learn that few films were made in the true spirit of Total Art.
Nice review!
Hm, sounds interesting, if only for it's distinct socio-political themes. I will have to put this one on my list.
Well.. but I've got the whole thing right there.. I might give it a watch later. With time.
Good catch indeed, I think there is a lot of this film's influence in The Keep.
I was not aware of that. It's difficult for me to get into this style of silent. I do love the overall visual style, but can't come to terms with the acting and storytelling.
It is interesting from a film history perspective, and I'm glad I watched it, but it's not the type of film I'm generally a fan of.
Thanks for stopping by Margaret.
Yep, it's old enough to be available in the public domain.
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