Rent Die Nibelungen (1924)
4.0 of 5 from 76 ratings
2h 30min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
Perhaps the most stately of Fritz Lang's two-part epics, the five-hour Die Nibelungen (The Nibelungen) is a courageous and hallucinatory work, a film in which every single shot might alone endure as an exemplar of visual art. Its extraordinary set-pieces, archetypal themes, and unrestrained ambition have proven an inspiration for nearly every fantasy cycle that has emerged on-screen since - from 'Star Wars' to 'The Lord of the Rings'. In Part One, 'Siegfried', the film's eponymous hero acquires the power of invincibility after slaying a dragon and bathing in the creature's blood. Later, an alliance through marriage between the hero and the royal clan of the Nibelungen turns treacherous, with Siegfried's sole weakness exploited. Adapted from the myth that served as the basis for Wagner's Ring cycle (though not an adaptation of the operas themselves), Lang's picture employs its own counterpoint through a systematic, viral series of deranged geometrical patterns and the arresting, kabuki-like quality of the actors' performances. The result is a film of startling expressionistic power, and a summit of Fritz Lang's artistry. - Actors:
- Paul Richter, Margarete Schön, Theodor Loos, Gertrud Arnold, Hanna Ralph, Hans Carl Mueller, Erwin Biswanger, Bernhard Goetzke, Hans Adalbert Schlettow, Hardy von Francois, Georg John, Frida Richard, Yuri Yurovsky, Iris Roberts, Fritz Alberti, Grete Berger, Hubert Heinrich, Rudolf Klein-Rogge, Georg August Koch, Rudolf Rittner
- Directors:
- Fritz Lang
- Producers:
- Erich Pommer
- Writers:
- Fritz Lang, Thea von Harbou
- Aka:
- Die Nibelungen: Siegfried
- Studio:
- Eureka
- Genres:
- Action & Adventure, Classics, Drama, Sci-Fi & Fantasy
- Collections:
- 100 Years of German Expressionism, A Brief History of Disney Heroines, A History of Cinemas in Films, A History of The Classical World In Cinema, Cinema Paradiso's 2024 Centenary Club: Part 1, Film History, Masters of Cinema, People of the Pictures, Remembering Julian Sands and Frederic Forrest, A Brief History of Film..., The Last Laugh: The Film That Changed Cinema, Top 10 Best Last Films: World Cinema, Top Films
- Countries:
- Germany
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 29/10/2012
- Run Time:
- 150 minutes
- Languages:
- German DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, German LPCM Stereo, Silent
- Subtitles:
- English
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Full Screen 1.37:1
- Colour:
- Colour and B & W
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- New adaptation and recording of Gottfried Huppertz's score
- New 72-minute documentary on the restoration of the film
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Reviews (2) of Die Nibelungen
fantastic set design - Die Nibelungen review by sb
A great series of films- a little slow for todays audiences.
But the set designs are mind-blowing- wow a blockbuster of its day!!
If you are interested in mythology and like Tolkien and especially Wagner's Ring Cycle - you may find this movie, series of movies, fascinating and clarify what can be a confusing story...
Not for everyones taste- but it definitely has merit..
1 out of 1 members found this review helpful.
Origin Story (spoiler). - Die Nibelungen review by Steve
This adaptation of an epic medieval saga supposes an origin story for the German people. And it's easy to understand why it engaged the emergent Nazi party with its dynasties of Aryan warriors and implication of a superior race. It's the same story as Wagner's Ring, stretched over a challenging 280 minutes!
Though it breaks into two parts. The more interesting is Siegfried, where a low born swordsman with mythic powers (Paul Richter) survives multiple challenges to become a player in the treacherous intrigue of court, and then murdered... In the second part, his widow Kriemhild (Margarete Schön) exerts her monumental revenge, which lead to many extensive battle scenes.
The narrative can be difficult to follow. The unruly script is poorly edited, and scenes are allowed to spool on without purpose. The cutting is baggy and by the fifth hour, even the most scholarly may feel discouraged. However the action scenes are ambitious, and the artistic impression of Germany in the middle ages is awesome. Plus the costumes.
Though the magical effects are no more than standard for the period. It will be of interest to students of German Romanticism more than admirers of Fritz Lang. The actors look perfect, but the performances are limited. Schön has many long close ups, but registers a single emotion, of imperious obsession. This isn't about nuance, but epic scale, and national myth-making.
0 out of 0 members found this review helpful.