August 27, 2001

Quote of the day:

“In Hollywood, the camera lights the star; in Germany, the camera lights the set.”

Today’s featured film clips from:

German Silent Film (1918-29)     

A.  “The Student of Prague” (Paul Wegener, 1913)

B.  “The Student of Prague” (Henrik Galeen, 1926)

C.  “Cinema Europe—‘The Other Hollywood’”

      1.  “The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari”

2. “Nibelungen” (parts I and II)
3. “The Last Laugh”

Background of German History during this film era:

1918   The silent film era began at this time because WWI ended with the German’s defeat; consequently, their economy is in shambles, political unrest is widespread, unemployment and disease are rampant and the general survival of the population is at stake.  At times inflation was so immense that the average German citizen had to be paid two times a day in order to provide the evening’s meal.  The film industry was seen as way to earn much needed hard currency.

 *These issues are reflected in today’s film clips.

1919   The soviet style Revolutions begin in cities in Germany and temporary Soviet puppet governments are set up in and around Germany. 

1924   Until this year, the floundering Germans received no edge of mercy from the allies for the reparation payment spelled out under the Treaty of Versailles.  However, it eventually became necessary for the allies to ease their harsh verdict and as a result, the situation in Germany began to look up.

*Mid-decade, this move sparked a change in the social questions addressed in German films.  The style became decidedly more realistic and often times presented a theme based on the idea of the “haves” and “have-nots”.

*Late-decade, the German film industry produced visual extravaganzas in nature on such themes as mountain climbing.  These films were often shot on location and held the ideals of being fit and strong.   In fact, this is how Leni Riefenstrahl got her start.

“The Student of Prague”

            The student, Baldwin, sells his soul to the evil Scapioli to get the girl he loves, but in the end, realizes that he has made a grave mistake in sacrificing his image.  He wants it returned to him and strangely enough, the mirror image of himself is revealed to him.  Out of fright and consternation, Baldwin kills his mirror image and in so doing, kills himself.  Briefly speaking, this film addresses part of the movement of expressionism of the theme or the philosophy of looking inward.  In other words, it tries to show us that there is a side to us that we do not understand—a dual nature or doppelganger—a monster.   

Main observations of the 1913 version

The static camera throughout the entirety of the film, and the melodramatic nature of the acting, closely parallels the feel of a stage play, save for the limited space the camera allows to be visible to the viewer at any one time.

Main observations of the 1926 version

The camera is not static and perhaps for this reason, the camera work appears to be more creative and symbolic.  (As an aside, some time during the mid-20s, the Germans were actually the first ones to free the camera from a static position in order that it then could tell the story.  An early example of this innovation is “The Last Laugh”.)  The action sequence and story line is much more fluid than the 1913 version.  For instance, there is no true resolution in the end of the 1913 version as to whether or not Baldwin gets his image back before dying, but in this 1926 version it seems more clear that he does—only at the expense of his life, of course—when he looks into the shattered mirror’s reflection of himself.  

*Sigfried Kracauer wrote a book on the psychological profile of the German people to analyze how Hitler came to power based on the films from the twenties.

“Cinema Europe—‘The Other Hollywood’”

            This documentary based its content on the era of German film prior to the time when Hollywood gained hegemony over the film industry.  During this time, the artists of the film industry expressed their disgust with society through expressionism in which scenes are distorted and unrealistic and the acting strange and obscure.  Basically, nothing is normal in these films, and in fact, this is just the means by which the industry meant to compete with a rising Hollywood.  Such horrific creations as the Golum—a monstrous creature who comes alive when the Star of David is placed upon his chest—are examples of this distorted representation of society within the films.

The Cabinet of Dr. Calligari—planned version as seen in screenplay I

Dr. Calligari symbolizes the autocratic government of the time—“murder or be murdered”.  With tired, wounded men returning from the war, the film showed that in real life not only the Allies without, but also the Germans within were responsible for the state’s destruction.       

The Cabinet of Dr. Calligari—filmed version

In this version, with help of a narrative frame authority is shown to be good in many ways and necessary. Misunderstanding of the system is merely in perception.

Nibelungen (Fritz Lang, 1924)

A defeated Germany was humiliated, so some films were made to restore their pride—Nibelungen was one of them.  This film was actually the beginning of the Nazi style and happened to be one of Hitler’s personal favorites.