The Haunted Castle (1921)
"Schloß Vogeloed" (original title)

In the castle Vogeloed, a few aristocrats are awaiting baroness Safferstätt. But first count Oetsch invites himself.. Everyone thinks he murdered his brother, baroness Safferstat's first ... See full summary »

Director:

F.W. Murnau

Writers:

Rudolf Stratz (novel), Carl Mayer (adaptation)

Stars:

Arnold Korff, Lulu Kyser-Korff, Lothar Mehnert

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Arnold Korff	...	von Vogelschrey, Schlossherr auf Vogeloed
Lulu Kyser-Korff	...	Centa V. Vogelschrey, Seine Frau (as L. Kyser-Korff)
Lothar Mehnert	...	Graf Johann Oetsch (as Lotar Mehnert)
Paul Hartmann	...	Graf Peter Paul Oetsch
Paul Bildt	...	Baron Safferstätt
Olga Tschechowa	...	Baronin Safferstätt
Victor Bluetner	...	Der Pater Faramund (as Victor Blütner)
Hermann Vallentin	...	Der Landgerichtsrat a.D.
Julius Falkenstein	...	Der ängstliche Herr
Robert Leffler	...	Der Haushofmeister
Walter Kurt Kuhle	...	Ein Diener (as Walter Kurt-Kuhle)

Storyline

In the castle Vogeloed, a few aristocrats are awaiting baroness Safferstätt. But first count Oetsch invites himself.. Everyone thinks he murdered his brother, baroness Safferstat's first husband, three years ago. So he is rather undesirable. But Oetsch stays; arguing he is not the murderer and will find the real one...

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Plot Keywords:

castle | disappearance | smoke | murder | prophecy | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Horror | Mystery

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Details

Country:

Germany

Language:

German

Release Date:

7 April 1921 (Germany)

Also Known As:

Vogelod Castle

Filming Locations:

Bioscop-Atelier, Neubabelsberg, Potsdam, Brandenburg, Germany

Company Credits

Production Co:

Uco-Film GmbH, Decla-Bioscop AG

Technical Specs

Runtime:

75 min 70 min 55 min (VHS) 81 min (DVD edition) 81 min (2002 restored)

Sound Mix:

Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The movie was shot in 16 days and released before the serialized novel's last chapter had been printed in the "Berliner Illustrierten".

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Connections

Featured in Die Sprache der Schatten: Murnau - Die frühen Werke (2008)

User Reviews

A strange but excellent prelude to Nosferatu

This very personal movie from Murnau sets the precedent for the author´s most notorious movie: Nosferatu the vampire.

Murnau demonstrates his superb command of the camera and the illumination while setting the bases of the expressionism.

The suspense distilled in Haunted Castle is well worth a Hitchcock´s movie and the plot is surprisingly complex for a silent.

Do make sure that you see it in a winter stormy night