The Golem: How He Came Into the World (original
German title:
Der Golem, wie er in die Welt kam) is a 1920
silent horror film by
Paul Wegener. It was directed by
Carl Boese and Wegener, written by Wegener and
Henrik Galeen, and starred Wegener as the
golem. The script was adapted from the 1915 novel
The Golem by
Gustav Meyrink.Noah William Isenberg,
Weimar cinema: an essential guide to classic films of the era, p.332Douglas Kellner,
Passion and rebellion: the expressionist heritage, p.384 Dietrich Scheunemann,
Expressionist film: new perspectives, p.273 The film was the third of three films that Wegener made featuring the golem, the other two being
The Golem (1915) and the short comedy
The Golem and the Dancing Girl (1917), in which Wegener dons the Golem make-up in order to frighten a young lady he is infatuated with. It is a
prequel to
The Golem and is today the most widely known of the series.
Plot
The film concerns itself with the legendary creation of the Golem, which had appeared in the earlier film, by
Rabbi Judah Loew ben Bezalel. In the 16th century, the
Jews of
Prague face persecution. Rabbi Loew creates a giant Golem out of
clay to protect the people. Unfortunately, the creature rebels, setting fire to the ghetto, and wreaks deadly havoc. In the end, a small girl stops the Golem by removing the
amulet (magic 5-pointed star) from its chest.
Production
Architect
Hans Poelzig designed the...
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