This charming film is practically unknown, but it is one of Klein-Rogge's best performances, as he plays a romantic lead with a dash of villainy. Klein-Rogge is the feared Master who lives in a bleak castle on top of a mountain, and the villagers in the valley below dread his ill-omened arrival at every wedding. The story concerns one couple who marries despite the master's baleful influence, only to have him crash their wedding party and bring about the death of the bride. The bride's sister, seeking revenge, tries to kill the Master but instead they fall in love, as she realizes that he is not really evil, but blighted by a loveless existence. Their love is ill-starred, however, as the Master kills an insolent guest at their wedding who takes liberties with his bride, and this is followed by a peasants' revolt, where the castle is stormed and the Master captured. In the end, the lovers escape, but their love is finally doomed. The year before this film, Klein-Rogge had his great triumph as the evil Dr. Mabuse in Fritz Lang's 'Dr. Mabuse, Der Spieler', and his most memorable roles have been as villains. This movie demonstrates what a really wide range he had as an actor - he starts off with his very characteristic glowering villain, but once the girl enters his life he demonstrates both joy and tenderness, as well as grief and pain when he thinks he has lost everything. I don't know if such an obscure film could be a candidate for restoration, but it would be a worthy project, as the sets, costumes and many of the performances are as classic examples of expressionism as one could hope to see.
3 Reviews
Superb Expressionist Touches
FerdinandVonGalitzien6 January 2008
In a distant Teutonic village, people dance and drink merrily celebrating a wedding feast. However, an elderly man tells the villagers that the valley where they live wasn't always happy but sorrowful. This was due to the tyranny of the master of the mountains ( Herr Rudolf Klein-Rogge as wild as his hairdo ) who ruled the valley despotically.
He lived in a Schloss up the mountains, whipped his servants for any reason (Sound familiar?) and when a wedding was going to be celebrated, he descended into the valley asking for his "droit de seigneur".
During one such encounter, a young bride is accidentally killed by the groom who was trying to protect her from the claws of the master of the mountains. The girl's sister vows revenge and journeys to the Schloss with the intention of killing the tyrant.
It is very strange that this remarkable film, "Der Steinerne Reiter", directed by Herr Fritz Wendhausen, has not received the attention its many merits deserve, especially considering its Expressionist touches.
Outstanding are the settings included in this film, particularly the gloomy Schloss carved out of the mountains contrasting with the idyllic village that lies below. The sense of constant menace is pervasive, exemplified by the superb shot when the master of the mountains approaches the village and his shadow as a rider darkens the town. And of course there are quaint customs to observe( presumed typical but at the same time extravagant, perfect for Expressionism mode ), and there's a fantastic and supernatural ending which fits the pitch dark mood perfectly, all put together in a script by the well known Dame Thea von Harbou
Another interesting aspect of the story is a twist in the middle of the oeuvre; the master is redeemed by love but his serfs turn cruel when they take justice into their own hands blurring the thin line between good and evil.
And now, if you'll allow me, I must temporarily take my leave because this German Count must complain to his imitator, the master of the mountains, about copyright infringement.
Herr Graf Ferdinand Von Galitzien http://ferdinandvongalitzien.blogspot.com/
He lived in a Schloss up the mountains, whipped his servants for any reason (Sound familiar?) and when a wedding was going to be celebrated, he descended into the valley asking for his "droit de seigneur".
During one such encounter, a young bride is accidentally killed by the groom who was trying to protect her from the claws of the master of the mountains. The girl's sister vows revenge and journeys to the Schloss with the intention of killing the tyrant.
It is very strange that this remarkable film, "Der Steinerne Reiter", directed by Herr Fritz Wendhausen, has not received the attention its many merits deserve, especially considering its Expressionist touches.
Outstanding are the settings included in this film, particularly the gloomy Schloss carved out of the mountains contrasting with the idyllic village that lies below. The sense of constant menace is pervasive, exemplified by the superb shot when the master of the mountains approaches the village and his shadow as a rider darkens the town. And of course there are quaint customs to observe( presumed typical but at the same time extravagant, perfect for Expressionism mode ), and there's a fantastic and supernatural ending which fits the pitch dark mood perfectly, all put together in a script by the well known Dame Thea von Harbou
Another interesting aspect of the story is a twist in the middle of the oeuvre; the master is redeemed by love but his serfs turn cruel when they take justice into their own hands blurring the thin line between good and evil.
And now, if you'll allow me, I must temporarily take my leave because this German Count must complain to his imitator, the master of the mountains, about copyright infringement.
Herr Graf Ferdinand Von Galitzien http://ferdinandvongalitzien.blogspot.com/
Touching Expressionist fairy tale (moderate spoilers ahead)
mastergundam10 September 2004
Warning: Spoilers
This film surprised me when I first saw it, as I was not at all expecting such moving scenes from this fairly unknown masterpiece. Thea von Harbou wrote the screenplay, and obviously she wrote the main part for her ex-husband, Rudolf Klein-Rogge, as no one else could have played this role with such suffering nobility as he did.
The Rider lives on a mountaintop overlooking the village that he rules over with cruelty. The very thought of him making a visit to the village stirs the most absolute dread and hatred. But if the people could see beyond his wild, brutish exterior, they would see that he is actually very lonely and miserable with the place he was given in life. His mother died when he was born, and his father hated him all of his life. Because of his wretched existence, the Rider lives spitefully, purposely stirring up trouble just to make a sensation of himself.
But when his antics get an innocent young bride killed, he seriously begins to contemplate how evil he is becoming. The bride's vengeful sister soon comes for the Rider at his mountain fortress, intent on driving a blade through his wicked heart. However, when she finds him broken and tearful in repentance for the unintentional murder he had brought about, she cannot find the strength to kill him. Through time, they come to grow attached to each other, as she sees that he is in fact a courteous lord who treats his servants well. Although timid and afraid of his advances at first, she soon falls deeply in love with him...
The rest of the story I won't give away. You just have to see it. This film is very much an Expressionistic piece, but it has a healthy dose of German Romanticism that fits it just perfectly. Worth the effort of finding if just to see the kinder, gentler side of Klein-Rogge's acting.
The Rider lives on a mountaintop overlooking the village that he rules over with cruelty. The very thought of him making a visit to the village stirs the most absolute dread and hatred. But if the people could see beyond his wild, brutish exterior, they would see that he is actually very lonely and miserable with the place he was given in life. His mother died when he was born, and his father hated him all of his life. Because of his wretched existence, the Rider lives spitefully, purposely stirring up trouble just to make a sensation of himself.
But when his antics get an innocent young bride killed, he seriously begins to contemplate how evil he is becoming. The bride's vengeful sister soon comes for the Rider at his mountain fortress, intent on driving a blade through his wicked heart. However, when she finds him broken and tearful in repentance for the unintentional murder he had brought about, she cannot find the strength to kill him. Through time, they come to grow attached to each other, as she sees that he is in fact a courteous lord who treats his servants well. Although timid and afraid of his advances at first, she soon falls deeply in love with him...
The rest of the story I won't give away. You just have to see it. This film is very much an Expressionistic piece, but it has a healthy dose of German Romanticism that fits it just perfectly. Worth the effort of finding if just to see the kinder, gentler side of Klein-Rogge's acting.
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
