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4.0 out of 5 stars
One of the Silent Era's Most Influential Films, Jul 18 2004
Although this 1920 German silent does not really rank alongside the truly great silent films, it remains a fascinating oddity. Based on European Jewish folklore, it tells the story a Jewish community in Prague which is threatened with explusion from the city. In an effort to protect his people, Rabbi Loew creates a man-like creature made of clay and uses it to impress the Emperor. Unfortunately, the magic backfires, and when the Golem falls into the hands of the Rabbi's perfidious assistant disaster results.Much of the film's charm is in its visual style. The sets by Hans Poelzig are a strange but cohesive mixture of mediaeval, nouveau, and surrealism, and the cinematography by legendary photography Karl Freund uses high contrast black and white to truly remarkable effect. The Poelzig-Freund combition would cast an extremely long shadow, and THE GOLEM would influence not only such German films as Fitz Lang's METROPOLIS but the entire cycle of 1930s American horror films that began with the 1931 Bela Lugosi DRACULA. Several plot devices and the look of the Golem, as played by Paul Wegener, would also prove particularly influential for director James Whale's famous 1932 FRANKENSTEIN. Whether or not Boris Karloff or make-up artist Jack Pierce knew the film is uncertain--but Whale, who was fond of German cinema, certainly did, and traces of THE GOLEM can be seen throughout his most famous works. Over the past several decades a number of film historians have attempted to reinterpret THE GOLEM in light of the Holocaust. There may actually be a certain validity to this, for although the Jews are portrayed sympathetically they are very clearly outsiders, and their religion seems less like religion than witchcraft--and indeed Rabbi Loew might be said to practice black magic in bringing the Golem to life. This sense of social estrangement and religious stigmatism does seem indicative of the antisemitism that will ultimately explode into furnaces of Nazi Germany. All the same, it is worth noting that THE GOLEM is a fundamentally Jewish story to begin with, and it is perhaps best to think of it in those terms instead of using hindsight to impose modern meanings upon the film. There are several home market releases of the film. While I have not seen it, I am told the Timeless Studios VHS release is weak; I have, however, seen the Gotham DVD release, and although there are some quality issues this inexpensive DVD is not at all bad. Still, my preference and recommendation is the Kino DVD. Unlike many Kino editions, it does not have anything significant in the way of bonuses, but the overall presentation is very fine and likely represents a best-possible presentation short of full digital restoration. GFT, Amazon Reviewer
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4.0 out of 5 stars
The Golem, April 25 2004
Wow.
Even on budget dvd (spotty print quality, meaningless background music) watching Paul Wegener's 1920 THE GOLEM is quite an experience.
It's 16th century Prague and the stars imply, and the Emperor impels, an eviction of the ghetto Jews. Their crimes - practicing the black arts, despising Holy Christian ceremonies, etc. In desperation Rabbi Loew, nominal leader of the ghetto, invokes the dread spirit Astaroth to reveal the magic word that will bring the Golem to life.
The Golem is a large clay figure in the form of a man. This faithful servant of Rabbi Loew's possesses superhuman strength and seems invulnerable - daggers bend and break rather than penetrate its skin. It accompanies Rabbi Loew to the Emperor's palace on a mission to have the edict revoked, and the Golem is instrumental in accomplishing that goal.
Of course, the movie reminds us of the dictum that should be engraved on the hearts of all mad scientists everywhere - "If you have brought the dead to life through magic, beware that life." The last third of the movie shows what happens when Man's creation stop obeying the will of their creators.
For me, the big hurdle to clear when watching silent movies is to realize they're NOT over acting. Without sound, emotions have to be expressed with some exaggeration. If you're afraid, eyes pop and mouth gapes and curled fingers cover your face. With sound that type of acting looks ridiculous. This is the second silent movie I've watched recently, and it's getting easier. The acting here is fine.
It's amazing how familiar everything looks. The sets, with walls cantered at weird angles and their organic architecture (there's a spiral stone staircase that seems to have been carved from standing rock), would fit comfortably in a Tim Burton movie. I've seen the painted starscape and arched gables in Charles Laughton's NIGHT OF THE HUNTER. The Golem busts down the ghetto gate just like King Kong, and confronts the little blonde girl in the same manner as Karloff did in THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN.
I imagine all this was a lot scarier then than it is now, but it's still well worth everyone's time. If the score and print quality had been higher, I would have given this one five stars.
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4.0 out of 5 stars
Yet another fine DVD release from Kino, Jun 13 2003
The Golem is a terrific film from the silent era. The story is compelling, the setting is marvellous, and the look of the film overall is perfect for a story such as this. I won't bore everyone with a summary, but merely say that this film is for anyone who likes gothic horrors/thillers and maybe has an interest in reliogious issues.
Kino's DVD is the finest version of the film yet. Not all films are given the treatment that Metropilis recently got, but the restoration done of The Golem is quite nice. I can't say I care much for the colour tinting, but that's a small quibble. The music composed for the film is appropriate, but not great. Certainly not as good as the very fine scores written by Timothy Brock for Kino's releases of Faust and The Last Laugh - I wonder what he could have done.
In any case, The Golem is worth adding to your collection if you like silent classics and supernatural thillers. I wouldn't rank it as high as Lang or Murnau's work, but it IS a terrific film.
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