Paracelsus (1943)

Director:

Georg Wilhelm Pabst

Writer:

Kurt Heuser

Stars:

Werner Krauss, Harry Langewisch, Annelies Reinhold

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Werner Krauss	...	Paracelsus
Harry Langewisch	...	Pfefferkorn - der Reiche
Annelies Reinhold	...	Renata Pfefferkorn - seine Tochter
Mathias Wieman	...	Ulrich von Hutten
Fritz Rasp	...	Der Magister
Peter Martin Urtel	...	Johannes - Famulus (as Martin Urtel)
Herbert Hübner	...	Count von Hohenreid
Josef Sieber	...	Bilse, Paracelsus's sevant
Rudolf Blümner	...	Froben - der Buchdrucker
Harald Kreutzberg	...	Der Gaukler Fliegenbein
Hilde Sessak	...	Waitress
Franz Schafheitlin	...	Erasmus von Rotterdam
Victor Janson	...	Mayor
Karl Skraup	...	Surgeon
Erich Dunskus	...	Innkeeper

Storyline

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Genres:

Biography | Drama

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Details

Country:

Germany

Language:

German

Release Date:

12 March 1943 (Germany)

Also Known As:

Paracelse

Filming Locations:

Bavaria Filmstudios, Geiselgasteig, Grünwald, Bavaria, Germany

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bavaria Film, Bavaria-Filmkunst

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

User Reviews

16th Century German doctor upsets the status quo with new "German" methods of treating illness.

G. W. (PANDORA'S BOX) Pabst's celebratory film about the "revolutionary" 16th century German philosopher/doctor (known as Paracelsus and actually born in Switzerland) holds more than just historical interest as a Nazi approved subject. Though Pabst's sound films never achieved the prominence of his silent work, this is a well produced biopic with real surprises, especially when Paracelsus gives credit to Gypsy (!) folk remedies or when an Expressionist dance number symbolizes the entry of the plague (St. Vitus' Dance) into the closed town. Suddenly we're in Powell/Pressburger territory. Often obvious and slow, but certainly worth investigation, and not all that different from similar Hollywood produced biopics on ZOLA and LOUIS PASTEUR by director William (Wilhelm) Dieterle, a former colleague from Pabst's early UFA days. In fact, Dieterle's 1939 HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME has many visual and thematic similarities. The romantic subplot, straight out of Die Meistersinger, only adds to the usual discomfort of watching a Goebbels approved Nazi era production.