The Haunted Screen: Expressionism in the German Cinema and the Influence of Max Reinhardt
by Lotte H. Eisner
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The Golden Age of German cinema began at the end of the First World War and ended shortly after the coming of sound. From The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari onwards the principal films of this period were characterized by two influences: literary Expressionism, and the innovations of the theatre directors of this period, in particular Max Reinhardt. This book demonstrates the connection between German Romanticism and the cinema through Expressionist writings. It discusses the influence of the show more theatre: the handling of crowds; the use of different levels, and of selective lighting on a predominately dark stage; the reliance on formalized gesture; the innovation of the intimate theatre. Against this background the principal films of the period are examined in detail. The author explains the key critical concepts of the time, and surveys not only the work of the great directors, such as Fritz Lang and F. W. Murnau, but also the contribution of their writers, cameramen, and designers. As The Times Literary Supplement wrote, 'Mme. Eisner is first and foremost a film critic, and one of the best in the world. She has all the necessary gifts.' And it described the original French edition of this book as 'one of the very few classics of writing on the film and arguably the best book on the cinema yet written.' show lessTags
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Very good on expressionist German cinema.
Inhalt:
Die Prädisposition zum Expressionismus
Die Geburt der expressionistischen Filmkunst
Die Magie des Lichts - Das Halbdunkel
Lubitsch und die Kostümfilme
Das stilisiert Phantastischen - die "feerie de laboratoire"
Symphonien des Grauens
Dekorativer Expressionismus
Die Welt der Spiegel und Schatten
Atelier-Landschft und Atelier- Architektur
Expressionistisches Debüt eines "realistischen" Regisseurs
Der Kammerspielfilm und die Stimmung
Murnau und der Kammerspielfilm
Geometrie der Massen
Fritz Langs Abenteuerfilm
Tragödien der Straße
Die Entwicklng des Kostümfilms
Das Kamera- Auge E.A. Duponts
Höhepunkt des Helldunkels
Pabst und das Mirakel von Louise Brooks
Verfall der deutschen Filmkunst - Ein kurzer Ausblick
Die Prädisposition zum Expressionismus
Die Geburt der expressionistischen Filmkunst
Die Magie des Lichts - Das Halbdunkel
Lubitsch und die Kostümfilme
Das stilisiert Phantastischen - die "feerie de laboratoire"
Symphonien des Grauens
Dekorativer Expressionismus
Die Welt der Spiegel und Schatten
Atelier-Landschft und Atelier- Architektur
Expressionistisches Debüt eines "realistischen" Regisseurs
Der Kammerspielfilm und die Stimmung
Murnau und der Kammerspielfilm
Geometrie der Massen
Fritz Langs Abenteuerfilm
Tragödien der Straße
Die Entwicklng des Kostümfilms
Das Kamera- Auge E.A. Duponts
Höhepunkt des Helldunkels
Pabst und das Mirakel von Louise Brooks
Verfall der deutschen Filmkunst - Ein kurzer Ausblick
Oct 22, 2009German
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Common Knowledge
- Original title
- L'ecrain démoniaque
- Original publication date
- 1952 (French original) (French original); 1965 (French - revised) (French - revised); 1969 (English) (English)
- People/Characters
- Max Reinhardt
- Epigraph
- 'German man is the supreme example of demoniac man. Demoniac indeed seems the abyss which cannot be filled, the yearning which cannot be assuaged, the thirst which cannot be slaked...'
Leopold Ziegler: Das Heilige Reich... (show all) der Deutschen, 1925 - First words
- [Foreword to the English language edition]
The German film got off to a comparatively late start.
Classifications
- Genres
- Nonfiction, General Nonfiction, Art & Design, History
- DDC/MDS
- 791.430943 — Arts & recreation Recreation, sports, and performing arts Public performances Motion pictures, radio, television, podcasting Motion pictures Standard subdivisions History, geographic treatment, biography; description, critical appraisal of specific companies and studios {for specific films see 791.437} Europe Germany
- LCC
- PN1993.5 .G3 .E513 — Language and Literature Literature (General) Literature (General) Drama Motion pictures
- BISAC
Statistics
- Members
- 308
- Popularity
- 103,809
- Reviews
- 2
- Rating
- (4.10)
- Languages
- 9 — English, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 15
- ASINs
- 10
