Der heilige Berg (1926)

The dancer, Diotima, meets an engineer and skier, Karl, in his cottage in the mountains where they fall in love and have an affair. When Karl's young friend, Vigo, meets her she gives him ... See full summary »

Director:

Arnold Fanck

Writer:

Arnold Fanck

Stars:

Leni Riefenstahl, Luis Trenker, Ernst Petersen

Cast

Credited cast:
Leni Riefenstahl	...	Diotima
Luis Trenker	...	Karl
Ernst Petersen	...	Vigo
Frida Richard	...	Mother
Friedrich Schneider	...	Colli
Hannes Schneider	...	Mountain Guide
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Leontine Sagan

Storyline

The dancer, Diotima, meets an engineer and skier, Karl, in his cottage in the mountains where they fall in love and have an affair. When Karl's young friend, Vigo, meets her she gives him her scarf. The infatuated Vigo mistakenly believes she is in love with him. Karl sees Diotima innocently caressing Vigo and he believes that Diotima is betraying him with his friend.

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Plot Keywords:

hillside | love | mountain | dancer | dancing | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

Germany

Language:

German

Release Date:

November 1926 (Austria)

Also Known As:

The Holy Mountain

Filming Locations:

Atelier Staaken, Berlin, Germany

Company Credits

Production Co:

Berg- und Sportfilm,Universum Film (UFA)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

106 min (2001 restored)

Sound Mix:

Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The Ice Palace was 16 meters high and it took 4 weeks to build. Because the shootings where delayed and the temperature increased, it started melting and it had to be rebuilt again when the weather was cold enough to maintain it.

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Connections

Edited into Die Macht der Bilder: Leni Riefenstahl (1993)

User Reviews

The Dancer, the Skier and His Young Friend – A Melodramatic and Tragic Triangle of Love

The dancer Diotima (Leni Riefenstahl) meets the engineer and skier Karl (Luis Trenker) in his cottage in the mountains and they fall in love for each other and have a love affair. When Karl's young friend Vigo (Ernst Petersen) meets the dancer after a presentation and she gives her scarf with a smile to him, the infatuated Vigo mistakenly believes she is in love with him. Karl sees Diotima innocently caressing Vigo and he believes that Diotima is betraying him with his friend. Karl decides to commit suicide and invites Vigo to climb the dreadful Santo Mountain North face during the winter thaw with him. His best friend joins Karl in a tragic journey.

"Der Heilige Berg" is a melodramatic and tragic story of a triangle of love among a dancer that loves the sea; a skilled skier and engineer that loves the rock; and his young friend that loves the dancer. The plot is absolutely naive in 2010, but after all this is a 1926 film when the society had other moral concepts. The infamous Leni Riefenstahl, who directed the Third Reich's propaganda for Hitler one decade later, performs the dancer and pivot of the tragedy. Her dance is weird and clumsy but this is a silent movie and the viewer never knows what she was listening while dancing. If the romance is not interesting in the present days, the cinematography and the camera work are stunning considering the size, weight and technical resources of the equipment in this period. All shots outdoor were actually made in the mountains, including the ski race and the scene on the cliff, in the most beautiful parts of the Alps over the course of one and half years. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "A Montanha Sagrada" ("The Holy Mountain")