Berlin: Symphony of a Great City (1927)
"Berlin: Die Sinfonie der Grosstadt" (original title)

This movie shows us one day in Berlin, the rhythm of that time, starting at the earliest morning and ends in the deepest night.

Director:

Walter Ruttmann

Writers:

Karl Freund (screenplay), Carl Mayer (idea),

Stars:

Paul von Hindenburg

Cast

Uncredited cast:
Paul von Hindenburg	...	Himself (uncredited)

Storyline

A train speeds through the country on its way to Berlin, then gradually slows down as it pulls into the station. It is very early in the morning, about 5:00 AM, and the great city is mostly quiet. But before long there are some signs of activity, and a few early risers are to be seen on the streets. Soon the new day is well underway - it's just a typical day in Berlin, but a day full of life and energy.

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Plot Keywords:

street | train | crowd | working man | car driver | 

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Genres:

Documentary

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Details

Country:

Germany

Release Date:

13 May 1928 (USA)

Also Known As:

Berlin: Symphony of a Great City

Filming Locations:

Berlin, Germany

Company Credits

Production Co:

Deutsche Vereins-Film, Les Productions Fox Europa

Technical Specs

Runtime:

65 min 74 min (restored)

Sound Mix:

Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

After the movie, Arte TV showed 3 short trick films previously made by Ruttmann, whose motives had been used as transitions in the movie (air date: 1 Dec 2007).

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Connections

Featured in Auge in Auge - Eine deutsche Filmgeschichte (2008)

User Reviews

Incredible historical document of a lost city.

Berlin, Symphony of a City is a remarkable historical document of the mighty city before its Wagnerian capitulation within less than twenty years of its filming. Along with Paris, Berlin was the epicenter of a Europe emerging from World War 1 into the Roaring Twenties and director Walter Ruttman for the most part captures the energy and pace of the 20th century metropolis.

Moving from morning to night Symphony emphasizes the cities industrial muscle but also divides evenly portraits of the have and have nots of Berlin, the grime as well as the glitter. It is a city on the move and move it does from the crowded sidewalks to the congested avenues and its varied populace . It is in the faces of these Berliners that the film holds its greatest fascination for me watching children playing and youth sporting events with the knowledge that most of them will be of draft age for the oncoming conflagration that will reduce this city to rubble.

The documentary does have problems with some scenes clearly staged (in one case a suicide filmed in close-up) and a roller coaster scene is overlong but overall when put into historical context this is a valuable visual document of a city that is extinct as Atlantis.