Die Nibelungen: Kriemhilds Rache (1924)

User Rating:

8.0/10   

Director:

Fritz Lang

Writer:

Thea von Harbou (writer)

Release Date:

1924 (Poland)

Genre:

Drama | Adventure | Fantasy

Plot:

After Siegfried's dead, Kriemhild marries Etzel, the King of the Huns. She gives birth to a child, and invites her brothers for a party...

Plot Keywords:

Attila | King | Hun | Siegfried | Battle

Cast

Margarete Schön	...	Kriemhild
Gertrud Arnold	...	Königin Ute
Theodor Loos	...	König Gunther
Hans Carl Mueller	...	Gernot
Erwin Biswanger	...	Giselher
Bernhard Goetzke	...	Volker von Alzey
Hans Adalbert Schlettow	...	Hagen Tronje
Hardy von Francois	...	Dankwart
Yuri Yurovsky	...	Der Priester (as Georg Jurowski)
Iris Roberts	...	Der Edelknabe
Rudolf Klein-Rogge	...	König Etzel
Georg John	...	Slaodel, sein Bruder
Hubert Heinrich	...	Werbel, der Spielmann
Rudolf Rittner	...	Rüdiger von Bechlarn
Aenne Roettgen	...	Dietlind, seine Tochter

Also Known As:

Die Nibelungen: Kriemhild's Revenge
Kriemhild's Revenge
Kriemhilds Rache

Runtime:

129 min | Canada:147 min | Germany:144 min (restored integral version) | Germany:97 min

Country:

Germany

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Silent

Certification:

Germany:o.Al. | Germany:6 (one part version)

Filming Locations:

Berliner Union-Film Studio, Tempelhof, Berlin, Germany

Company:

Decla-Bioscop AG

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Sass (2001)

a breathtaking silent film

I saw this film last night at a special movie theater showing in Nürnberg, and it was superb. I do have to admit that the original music composition of the cello player and percussion/xylophone player influenced the mood of the film, but the film itself also had force in its portrayal of the tragic Nibelungen saga.

If you are interested in silent films or in the Nibelungenlied, I highly recommend this film. The costumes were fantastic and creative, the sets were opulent and exotic, and the acting was dramatic and breathtaking (as is typical of silent film "tragedies") Unfortunately, I have not seen the first part of this film duo that concerns Siegfried. The story of this second film begins after Siegfried's death, when Kremhild (Gudrun in the Norse versions of the story) begins to plan her revenge against her brothers.

Also, I watched this film in German; I am a native English speaker and have a basic German knowledge. It was difficult to read the ?subtitles (what do you call that in silent films?) at first because of the old style German script, so I advise that if you watch it in German that you make sure you can differentiate your "k's", "f's", and "s's" in the old script. :)