From Caligari to Hitler
                        

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In German with subtitles


One thing that speaks to the power and resiliency of cinema is how it emerged out of the ashes of World War I in Germany. With close to two million dead, four million wounded, a devastated economy and violent political movements on the left and right tearing it apart, the film industry was soon back on its feet producing some of the most innovative and startling films still to date. This 2-hour documentary traces this and how much of the cinema reflected the events - and in some cases predicted the dark future - of what was taking place. These films from the post War to the rise of Hitler in 1933 are termed Weimar films after the establishment of a short-lived democratic republic.  I think most of us are familiar with the Expressionistic films that looked at everything through a lens of the absurd and fantastic, but this documentary explores other film genres as well - from the great spectacles to working class films to the musical comedies once sound came in.

 

It is an era of film that has been percolating in my brain lately - as well as film during the Hitler years - as something I should see more of, but access is always an issue. After watching this I want to see some even more. The talent that was making films was extraordinary. The list of names remarkable - Lubitsch, Sirk, Curtiz, Haas, Robert and Curt Siodmak, Billy Wilder, Koster, Dieterle, Joe May, Freund, Murnau, von Sternberg, Ulmer, Fred Zinnemann, Lang, Wiene, Pabst as well as famous actors like Lorre, Lamarr and Dietrich. Nearly all of these were either Jewish or on the political left and emigrated or escaped to America. Their influence on American film is enormous. This does a fine job of spotlighting most of these directors and some of their most famous films. Lots of clips and a few talking heads.

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