Home
search
more | tips
IMDb > Michael (1924)
Photos (see all 2 | slideshow)

Overview

User Rating:
7.2/10   451 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 12% in popularity this week. See rank & trends on IMDbPro.
Writers:
Herman Bang (novel)
Thea von Harbou (adaptation) ...
more
Contact:
View company contact information for Chained on IMDbPro.
Genre:
Drama | Romance more
Plot:
Triangle story: painter, his young male model, unscrupulous princess. full summary | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
more
User Comments:
Walter Slezak In His Salad Days more

Cast

  (Credited cast)
Walter Slezak ... Michael
Max Auzinger ... Jules - Majordomo
Nora Gregor ... Princess Lucia Zamikoff
Robert Garrison ... Charles Switt - Journalist
Benjamin Christensen ... Claude Zoret
Didier Aslan ... Duc de Monthieu
Alexander Murski ... Mr. Adelsskjold
Grete Mosheim ... Mrs. Alice Adelsskjold
Karl Freund ... LeBlanc - Art Dealer
Wilhelmine Sandrock ... Widow de Monthieu
more
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Also Known As:
Chained (USA)
Chained: The Story of the Third Sex (USA)
Heart's Desire (UK)
more
Runtime:
Canada:93 min | USA:86 min (2004 alternate version) | 90 min (20 fps, 2006 restored version)
Country:
Germany
Aspect Ratio:
1.33 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Silent
Certification:
USA:TV-14 (TV rating) | Finland:S

Fun Stuff

Goofs:
Continuity: When the painter Claude Zoret is talking to Mikael's creditor he switches from standing up to sitting down back to standing up between shots. more
Quotes:
[first lines]
Motto (titlecard): Motto: Now I can die in peace for I have known a great love.
more
Movie Connections:
Version of Vingarne (1916) more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
2 out of 2 people found the following comment useful:-
Walter Slezak In His Salad Days, 20 April 2008
8/10
Author: bkoganbing from Buffalo, New York

It is sometimes fascinating the subject matter for films before the infamous Code was put in Hollywood. Of course this is a German silent film and in those days when movies didn't talk all one had to do was change the subtitles and film was really universal. Such is the case with Michael, a romantic triangle the apex of which was Walter Slezak in his salad days. He was beloved by both an aristocratic artist and one carnal princess.

In less than a decade when the Nazis took over and made the UFA Studio their personal propaganda reserve such homoerotic work like Michael would not see the light of day for years. I'm really surprised that a print existed and that TCM obtained one. I would have thought Josef Goebbels would have burned all he could find.

Without a kiss, without an embrace, but with a look of love that tells all, we know exactly what the relationship Benjamin Christiansen has with Slezak. Slezak plays the title role, a callow youth a willing user of the affections of all in the same manner Murray Head was in Sunday Bloody Sunday. Slezak was quite the hunk in his youth to those of us who remember him from Hollywood in the Forties.

Nora Gregor plays the princess who eyes Slezak like a side of beef on the meat rack at the Playgirl Club. He's getting tired of Christiansen anyway so he's hot to trot as his she.

Christiansen is a sad and lonely old man and his performance really drives the film. His and Slezak's relationship also reminds me a bit of the famous relationship played out in the tabloids of Scott Thorson and Liberace. Another young cutie who was showered with everything, but just wanted his own space.

It's a good thing this gay themed story did survive and is available now for home viewing on DVD. A great piece of gay cinematic history.

Was the above comment useful to you?
more

Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Michael (1924)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Which version... WillBarks
good photographyy ksf-2
'Mikael' A great find.... ellisisle
more

Recommendations

If you enjoyed this title, our database also recommends:
- - - - -
Candy Love Is the Devil: Study for a Portrait of Francis Bacon Orlando The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse Chris & Don. A Love Story
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
Show more recommendations

Related Links

Full cast and crew Company credits External reviews
IMDb Drama section IMDb Germany section Add this title to MyMovies

You may report errors and omissions on this page to the IMDb database managers. They will be examined and if approved will be included in a future update. Clicking the 'Update' button will take you through a step-by-step process.