Leofwine_draca Another German classic from the golden period of silent horror, THE GOLEM sees actor/director Paul Wegener returning to the ancient story of a man made out of clay for its third, final and definitive film appearance. THE GOLEM is a film focusing on plot and characters over action or intrigue, and as such it remains an extremely slow-moving film, especially when the running time clocks in at close to two hours. Even I was pushed to the limit. The film is not without its pleasures, however; a surprisingly-done Satanic ritual about halfway through had me sitting up straight in my chair, especially when devilish faces began to appear from the sky. The expressionist sets of tilted, warped buildings and use of shadows recalls the famous set design in THE CABINET OF DR CALIGARI, although the art design isn't quite as striking this time around.The straightforward story culminates in a nice fire and brimstone conclusion, in which the Golem rebels and turns against mankind, seeking love from a prone maiden in the process. These final sequences of man battling monster are pretty exciting, and there's an amusing death-by-falling-from-high-tower sequence which had me chuckling to myself. The Golem itself is played well by Paul Wegener as a stony-faced serving creature, and the makeup and costume used are put to good effect. It's impossible to watch the creature go about its business without remembering Karloff in FRANKENSTEIN, so there's a possible influence there. An interesting story, relatively subtle performances for a change and a memorable creature mark THE GOLEM as something special from the silent film period; only fans need apply, however, as that first hour and a half really does take some sitting through.

Martin Bradley Looked at in an historical context "The Golem" is a remarkable film. Made in Germany in 1920 it is about the persecution of the Jewish people but centuries earlier. Was it popular with Hitler and the Nazi High Command? Perhaps, since this is about the creation of a giant creature called The Golem whose initial purpose is to help the Jews but whose activities turn nefarious as the film progresses. It is, therefore, one of the first monster movies and while in no way frightening is as much as genre classic as James Whale's "Frankenstein", (the similarities are manifold).The Golem is played by Paul Wegener, who co-directed the film with Carl Boese, and visually this is one of the great medieval pictures, (the DoP was the great Karl Freund). It is designed in a fairy-tale fashion, each image looking as if it was conjured from the pages of a very old book. Yes, it does have a touch of the 'Penny Dreadfuls' about it but that only adds to its strange charm. Seldom revived, it is, nevertheless, a classic that really ought to be seen.

calvinnme "The Golem" lays the cinematic groundwork for the 1931 motion picture version of "Frankenstein" . In character design, wardrobe, and interaction with its creator and the world around it, the two monsters do resemble one another. In this case, "The Golem", is a monster created from clay and magic rather than from spare body parts and science, and the monster's creator is a Rabbi. I think I was more shocked to see a Rabbi portrayed as someone who openly dabbled in the black arts and astrology than anything else the film offered. The Rabbi is even shown conjuring up a "god" - Asteroth - and forcing him to produce the life-giving word to bring "The Golem" to life. Any casual reader of the Old Testament will see that the Jews were repeatedly warned against having anything to do with the occult - it was considered blasphemy and worthy of the death penalty under Jewish law. If this is how Germans perceived the practice of the Jewish religion in 1920, fifteen years before the Holocaust began, it might explain a great deal, but nothing about this aspect of the film is mentioned in the extra features of the Kino set in which I saw it, "German Horror Classics".One more interesting parallel to the 1931 film "Frankenstein" is in how the Golem, originally created to protect the Jews but now on a rampage, is destroyed. It is a twist on a similar innocent act in "Frankenstein", one so horrific in its effect that the scene was exorcised from prints of Frankenstein throughout the production code era. I suggest you watch both films and see what I'm talking about.

rdjeffers Monday January 26, 7:00pm, The Paramount, SeattleIn sixteenth century Prague, the Emperor declares that all Jews will be banished from the city. A rabbi using magical powers creates a man made of earth to protect his people and summons a demon to give the ‘Golem’ (Paul Wegener) life. When the Emperor is saved by the creature, he rescinds his edict, but the Golem is abused by the rabbi’s assistant and embarks on a rampage of terror in the ghetto.Told in the manner of a folk tale, The Golem: How He Came Into the World (1920) features an abundant use of complex lighting, dramatic composition and striking design elements with Gothic overtones. Remade from a story Wegener brought to the screen in 1914 which is now considered lost, The Golem was a recognizable influence on Hollywood, while it offered proof of his skill as a filmmaker and established Wegener’s role in the development of German Expressionism.