The Golem

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Matthew B The Golem was arguably one of the first truly cinematic movies, where story, sets, camerawork and direction were all integrated together to create a fully cohesive story. The images may seem flickering and grainy now, but there is still something compelling and awe-inspiring about them. An early example of cinematic German Expressionism, the movie makes effective use of light and shadow to build atmosphere, and this is enhanced by the fantastical sets. The angles and buildings are crooked. An early image of stars and buildings is shot eerily, making it look like the shadow of a creature. The film's influence over later cinema is overlooked, since many of its imitators had not seen the original movie, and were choosing instead to take their ideas from other movies that had been influenced by The Golem. Certainly Paul Wegener's movie must have been one of the first to introduce filmgoers to images that would soon become familiar – the monster who carries off the girl in his arms, and the monster who is disarmed by an innocent child. The standing of The Golem is not as high as a number of other German horror movies of the time, such as The Cabinet of Dr Caligari or Nosferatu. However it is a film that will be remembered by anyone who wishes to study silent cinema, and its images continued to stay with me long after watching it. I wrote a longer appreciation of The Golem on my blog page if you would like to read more: https://themoviescreenscene.wordpress.com/2018/06/10/the-golem-1920/ Rated 4.5/5 Stars •  Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 08/24/23 Full Review Monsol E Absolutely fantastic! A great monster movie to watch, even over a century later. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/30/23 Full Review Alvise F I saw this film restored and scored with original music performed live during the Pre-opening event of the 75th Venice International Film Festival and I was literally astonished by the grotesque expressiveness of "The Golem". Cupafon, cellos and electronic instruments such as synthesizers helped to increase the creepiness and frightened the audience almost a hundred years after Wegener's work was made. Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 05/22/22 Full Review Audience Member When I was in Prague, I visited an alchemical museum where the tour guide told us the story of the golem. This is an adaption of that story. While not particularly scary, the film contains a lot of DNA that later Frankenstein films would seize upon, such as the way it makes you empathize with the monster who begins to gain consciousness of itself. The monster is only on a rampage because he wants to hold onto the life he has been given. scene where he smells the flower and holds the child are aching and powerful. It has great music. The social attitudes are certainly outdated; the main female character does nothing but swoon and scream, and the Jews are portrayed in a way that adheres to anti-semitic stereotypes, which is very troubling considering what would occur in Germany two decades later. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/22/23 Full Review Audience Member Henrik Galeen has a striking face and adds intensity to the Golem. A perfect character to represent this era. The story is a little slow Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/04/23 Full Review Audience Member Well, first of all, there aren't too many screams, but this Expressionistic film featured Paul Wegener (pronounced: Vayg-en-nar) both as the Golem and as co-director. The director of photography was Karl Freund, who would go to Hollywood to film so many classic movies, including Dracula and The Mummy (which he also directed). There were two other Golem films that Wegener made, but both are lost, except for brief portions of The Golem from 1915. Wegener appeared in many films with horror overtones, including one in Hollywood (The Magician), and the 1932 remake of Unheimliche Geschichten. Later, he became an actor of the Nazi state and appeared in propaganda films. However, he donated money to anti-Nazi resistance groups and even hid vulnerable individuals in his apartment. At the end of World War II, he helped in the rebuilding of Berlin. He was married six times, but his third (and also sixth) wife was Lyda Salmonova, who played the daughter of Rabbi Loew in this film. His fourth wife was Greta Schroder, who would be the female lead of Nosferatu – Eine Symphonie des Grauens. She also appeared in this film as one of the ladies of the court of the Emperor. The Golem: How He Came Into the World was shot at Tempelhof Studios in Berlin. It is extremely well-photographed, hinting at Karl Freund's future work. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/27/23 Full Review Read all reviews

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