The Golem (1920) Der Golem, wie er in die Welt kam (original title)

Directors:

Carl Boese
Paul Wegener

Writers:

Henrik Galeen
Paul Wegener

Release Date:

19 June 1921 (USA)

Genre:

Fantasy | Horror

Tagline:

The 1920 Horror Masterpiece.

Plot:

In 16th-century Prague, a Jewish rabbi creates a giant creature from clay, called the Golem, and using sorcery, brings the creature to life in order to protect the Jews of Prague from persecution. |

Plot Keywords:

Rabbi | Jewish | Golem | Court | Emperor

Cast

Paul Wegener	...	Der Golem / The Golem
Albert Steinrück	...	Der Rabbi Löw / Rabbi Loew
Lyda Salmonova	...	Miriam, des Rabbi Tochter
Ernst Deutsch	...	Der Rabbi Famulus
Hans Stürm	...	Der Rabbi Jehuda, der Älteste der Gemeinde (as Hanns Sturm)
Max Kronert	...	Der Tempeldiener / Temple Servant
Otto Gebühr	...	Der Kaiser / Emperor Luhois
Dore Paetzold	...	Des Kaisers Kebse
Lothar Müthel	...	Der Junker Florian / Knight Florian
Greta Schröder	...	Ein Mägdelein mit der Rose / Little Girl with Rose
Loni Nest	...	Ein kleines Mädchen / Little Girl
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Carl Ebert	...	Temple Servant (uncredited)
Fritz Feld	...	Jester (uncredited)

Directed by
Carl Boese
Paul Wegener

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Henrik Galeen
Paul Wegener

Produced by
Paul Davidson	....	producer

Original Music by
Hans Landsberger
Karl-Ernst Sasse		(1977)
Aljoscha Zimmermann		(2000)

Cinematography by
Karl Freund
Guido Seeber

Art Direction by
Hans Poelzig
Kurt Richter

Costume Design by
Rochus Gliese

Art Department
Edgar G. Ulmer	....	set designer (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Robert Baberske	....	assistant camera

Music Department
Douglas M. Protsik	....	musician: piano (Hypercube restored version)

Production Companies

• Projektions-AG Union (PAGU)

Distributors

• Universum Film (UFA) (1920) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Famous Players-Lasky Corporation (1921) (USA) (theatrical)
• Elite Entertainment (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• Divisa Home Video (2002) (Spain) (DVD)
• Alpha Video Distributors (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Continental Home Vídeo (????) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Grapevine Video (????) (USA) (VHS) (VCD)
• LS Video (????) (USA) (VHS)
• National Film Museum (????) (USA) (TV)
• Nostalgia Video (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Transit Film (????) (Germany) (VHS)
• Video Yesteryear (????) (USA) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Hypercube  digital restoration

Also Known As:

"Der Golem, wie er in die Welt kam" - Germany (original title)
"The Golem: How He Came Into the World" - USA

Runtime:

Germany:85 min (20 fps) | USA:91 min

Country:

Germany

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Silent

Certification:

Australia:M | Germany:o.Al. | Spain:13 | USA:Unrated

Filming Locations:

Berliner Union-Film Studio, Tempelhof, Berlin, Germany

Company:

Projektions-AG Union (PAGU)

Trivia:

Debut of Fritz Feld.

Goofs:

Continuity: The golem's position relative to the beam when pulling the chain to stoke the fire.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Zombies: A Living History (2011) (TV)

Decent example of the period

Like all German expressionistic films of the era, Der Golem benefits greatly from it's style. The sets, the lighting, the atmosphere, the music and everything make sure that the film always has a nice setting to work it's story from and as a big of fan of atmosphere anyway, I found this to be a very favourable aspect of the movie. However, for a movie to truly work it must find a happy medium between it's style and it's substance, and although the story behind Der Golem certainly has some meaning and a message behind it, it is not portrayed in a way that is interesting enough to keep itself afloat, and that is the film's primary downfall. The plot follows a Rabbi who creates a giant figure out of clay (the Golem), which he plans to breathe life into by way of an evil god. However, the Rabbi's assistant has other plans for the Golem, and sets about ordering it to carry out criminal acts, including the kidnapping of it's creator's daughter; Miriam.

I'm sure you'll agree that the plot line gives the film a nice base to work from, and it's certainly intriguing enough to ensure that The Golem will always be an interesting film; but the film runs too long, and there isn't enough of the plot to stretch for the full running time. It's a shame because with a little bit more meat on the plot, the film could have been really great. One thing that you will notice about The Golem is the music, which plays almost throughout the film; and presents it with a very nice style, that sets just the right atmosphere for the movie. The lighting is another prime aspect of the movie, and it is a good example of the style of film-making at the time that this movie was produced. Acting in silent movies is rather hard to judge, but I didn't notice any problems with it and it's about what you'd expect from a film made in the era that The Golem was made. The Golem itself looks a little silly, but come on; the film is eighty-five years old! On the whole, I recommend this movie for people who like this sort of film; but I'd certainly recommend Faust, Nosferatu and Das Kabinett before it.