6.2/10
1,119
10 user 6 critic

Symphonie diaganale (1924)

Symphonie diagonale (original title)
| Animation , Short , Music | 5 November 1924 (Germany)
Symphonie diaganale Poster
A tilted figure, consisting largely of right angles at the beginning, grows by accretion, with the addition of short straight lines and curves which sprout from the existing design. The ... See full summary »

Director:

Viking Eggeling
Reviews

Photos

Add Image Add an image

Do you have any images for this title?
Learn more

More Like This 













◄ Prev 6 Next 6 ►

Next »
Rhythmus 21 (1923)
Animation | Short
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 5.7/10 X  

Black and white rectangular images fade in and out of the screen. Their movement make them sometimes look like they're panning from side to side. Their movement also make the black and ... See full summary »

Director: Hans Richter

Next »
Lichtspiel Opus 1. (1921)
Animation | Short
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.3/10 X  

Against a dark background, several bright, curved or rounded shapes pulse towards the center of the screen, one at a time. They are followed by many other shapes, some irregular, some ... See full summary »

Director: Walter Ruttmann

Next »
Ghosts Before Breakfast (1928)
Short
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.3/10 X  

Hans Richter, noted for his abstract shorts, has everyday objects rebelling against their daily routine.

Director: Hans Richter
Stars: Werner Graeff, Walter Gronostay, Paul Hindemith
Next »
Anemic Cinema (1926)
Short
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.1/10 X  

A spiral design spins dizzily. It's replaced by a spinning disk. These two continue in perfect alternation until the end: a spiral design, a disk. Each disk is labelled and can be read as ... See full summary »

Director: Marcel Duchamp

Next »
Entr'acte (1924)
Short
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.5/10 X  

An absolute dada movie. Somebody gets killed, his coffin gets out of control and after a chase it stops. The person gets out of it and let everybody who followed the coffin dissapear.

Director: René Clair
Stars: Jean Börlin, Inge Frïss, Francis Picabia
Next »
Opus II (1921)
Animation | Short
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.2/10 X  
Director: Walter Ruttmann

Next »
Ballet mécanique (1924)
Short
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.8/10 X  

A pulsing, kaleidoscope of images set to an energetic soundtrack. A young women swings in a garden; a woman's face smiles. The rest is spinning cylinders, pistons, gears and turbines, ... See full summary »

Directors: Fernand Léger, Dudley Murphy
Stars: Kiki of Montparnasse, Fernand Léger, Dudley Murphy
Next »
Opus III (1924)
Animation | Short
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.5/10 X  
Director: Walter Ruttmann

Next »
Return to Reason (1923)
Short
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.5/10 X  

Experimental film, white specks and shapes gyrating over a black background, a light-striped torso, a gyrating eggcrate. One of the first Dadaist films.

Director: Man Ray
Stars: Kiki of Montparnasse
Next »
Emak-Bakia (1927)
Short
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.1/10 X  

A long series of unrelated images, revolving, often distorted: lights, flowers, nails. A lightboard appears from time to time carrying the news of the day. Then, an eye. A woman in a car ... See full summary »

Director: Man Ray
Stars: Kiki of Montparnasse, Jacques Rigaut
Next »
The Cameraman's Revenge (1912)
Animation | Short | Comedy
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.8/10 X  

A jilted husband takes his revenge by filming his wife and her lover and showing the result at the local cinema. This was one of Starewicz' first animated films, and stars very realistic ... See full summary »

Director: Wladyslaw Starewicz

Next »
Begone Dull Care (1949)
Animation | Short | Music
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.4/10 X  

Abstract images drawn directly onto the film are accompanied by three pieces of jazz performed by the Oscar Peterson trio.

Directors: Evelyn Lambart, Norman McLaren
Edit

Storyline

A tilted figure, consisting largely of right angles at the beginning, grows by accretion, with the addition of short straight lines and curves which sprout from the existing design. The figure vanishes and the process begins again with a new pattern, each cycle lasting one or two seconds. The complete figures are drawn in a vaguely Art Deco style and could be said to resemble any number of things, an ear, a harp, panpipes, a grand piano with trombones, and so on, only highly stylized. The tone is playful and hypnotic. Written by David Carless

Plot Summary | Add Synopsis

Plot Keywords:

art | avant garde | experimental film | surrealism | dada | See All (6) »

Genres:

Animation | Short | Music

Parents Guide:

View content advisory »
Edit

Details

Official Sites:

DVD

Country:

Germany

Release Date:

5 November 1924 (Germany) See more »

Also Known As:

Symphonie diaganale See more »

Company Credits

Show more on IMDbPro »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1
See full technical specs »
Edit

Did You Know?

Connections

Featured in Animated Century (2003) See more »

Frequently Asked Questions

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.

User Reviews

"...it is the best abstract film yet conceived."
1 January 2011 | by MartinHafer – See all my reviews

While this film practically defies description and is practically impossible to review, I decided to take this on simply because the opening made me laugh. There is a blurb that appears on the screen and indicates that this film by Viking Eggeling is simply a work of genius!! The summary above is taken from this self-congratulatory praise!! Never have a seen a film so quick to pat itself on the back!!

The entire silent film consists of art deco-style black & white shapes appearing and moving about--all with diagonals or with diagonals superimposed on it. Set to music this might have been mesmerizing, but as a silent it lacks a lot. I won't give it a score but would beg to differ that it is the best abstract yet conceived (at least by 1924)--something better must surely exist--something worth seeing to the average Joe.
2 of 5 people found this review helpful.  Was this review helpful to you? | Report this
Review this title | See all 10 user reviews »
Getting Started | Contributor Zone »

Contribute to This Page

Stream Popular Action and Adventure Titles With Prime Video

Explore popular action and adventure titles available to stream with Prime Video.

Start your free trial


Clear your history

Recently Viewed