lasttimeisaw
At the age of 34, Fritz Lang astonished the world with his grandiose silent adaptation of THE SONG OF THE NIBELUNGS, a monumental poem written around AD 1200, is extolled as the pioneer of epic cinema, divided into two parts, each comprises 7 cantos and runs over 2 hours in their integral restored versions, it is an awestruck experience to behold early cinema's most enterprising saga compounded heroism and romance with deception, jealousy, undiminished hatred and bloodletting revenge.The first part SIEGFRIED starts as a myth-abounded adventure of our hero Siegfried (Richter), who masters the art of sword-forging and is misguided to a dangerous route to win the heart of Kriemhild (Schön), the princess of Burgundy, en route he slays a dragon (a prototype puppet model looks formidable but moves too ungainly to call it as a monster) and acquires the invincibility from bathing in its blood (save for one spot, his Achilles heel); defeats Alberich (John), king of the dwarfs, takes possession of a magic net powered with invisibility and transformation, as well as the Nibelungs treasure. Sequently, a quid pro quo is achieved between Siegfried and King Gunther (Loos), Kriemhild's brother, Siegfried uses his mighty strength and the little help of his invincibility, to help Gunther conquers Brunhild (Ralph), the powerful queen of Iceland, in a threefold strength competition, and we are pleasantly to see a double-wedding, Gunther and Brunhild, Siegfried and Kriemhild. This is where the surreal side of the tale reaches its crest with Lang's groundbreaking cinematic wizardry.From then on, an inauspicious plot of Greek tragedy looms large, our hero will unwittingly succumb to his demise owing to the coalescence of a pompous queen's vengeful lie, a weak king's low self- esteem and blind enviousness, and a wide-eyed wife's inconceivable gullibility, the first half of the tale finishes with a big bang of pathos.In KRIEMHILD'S REVENGE, the fantasy element has been completely abandoned, it focuses on Kriemhild's iron-willed commitment to avenge Siegfried, she agrees to marry the Hunnish King Etzel (Klein-Rogge), and gives birth to a boy, then invites Gunther and co. to celebrate summer solstice in King Etzel's hall, meanwhile secretly plots the ultimate revenge on Hagen of Tronje (Schlettow), Gunther's adviser who personally sets up the ambush and dispatches Siegfried. In sharping contrast between Burgundian's fantastically make-believe Celtic fashion and Huns' barbarian style with grotesque garments and unsightly makeup, a tangy whiff of racial supremacy is self-evident, King Etzel is dutifully portrayed as a weakling, wailing over his infant son, but cannot fight in the front-line, a shocking contradiction to his savage appearance. The battle is elongated in spite of the multitude of Huns, Gunther and his brothers refuse to give up on Hagen in exchange of their lives, subconsciously they are all guilty for the conspiracy, they are willing to fight until the last man standing. Besieged in the king's hall, the remaining Burgundians will face their doom in a staggering conflagration, tremendous manpower has been deployed for the arduous ending, no wonder it was such a mammoth sensation when it came out!In retrospective, these two films are par excellence in its imposing production design and advanced special effect grandeur, Huppertz's guiding score is a masterwork of its own vitality, yet, the laggard pace can unfortunately hold many contemporary audience at bay, which cannot be rescued for the archaic and stilted performance, although Margarete Schön is excellent in the second part where her facial expressions fully take charge in the lengthy narrative. Among Fritz Lang's superlative filmography, a defining note is that DIE NIBELUNGEN saga opportunely prefigures his most stylish endeavour METROPOLIS (1927), and his most well-grounded masterpiece M (1931), while its own heritage should also be set in stone, even just for historical reasons.
OttoVonB
Upon completing his epic crime film "Dr Mabuse", Fritz Lang embarked on a quest to bring Germanic legend Das Niebelungenlied to the screen. So colossal was the undertaking that it required two films, of which "Siegfried" is the first.Young heroic Siegfried kills a dragon and bathes in its blood, gaining immortality (save for a fatal weak spot). His quests make him into a powerful figure and allow him to court the beautiful princess Kriemhield. But her weakling brother only approves the lovers' union if Siegfried agrees to help him deceive the beautiful Valkyrie Brunhield into falling in love with him. When she eventually discovers this treachery, the humiliated amazon vows sets forth a cycle of revenge that will create tragedy on an epic scale.There's no way to avoid comparisons: "Die Niebelungen" is the Lord of the Rings of its day, and easily one of the most staggering epics in the history of movies. The scale, extras and the pioneering dragon-slaying scene all make for enduring cinema. Fritz Lang's alluring visuals push it even further: his awesome depiction of the rigid codes of honor that are the undoing of his characters imbues the film with a mood and atmosphere whose influences are incalculable. "Die Niebelungen" can also be read as one chooses, tribute to German heroism or to the trappings and tragedy of "honor". Hitler for one was so impressed with the film that he used an alternate edit of the film as propaganda, playing to Wagner's Niebelungen opera (which Lang actually loathed!). To be fair, though the original score can not hope to reach the mythical heights of Wagner's opera, it is still a considerable achievement.Though he would revisit the crime genre with the slick "Spies" and practically invent modern science-fiction with "Metropolis", none of Lang's silent films would reach this level of excellence. "Siegfried" of course can only fairly be judged when seen right before the second half of the saga: "Kriemhield's Revenge", in which formality makes way for chaos and petty jealousy and revenge turn to violence on a biblical scale.Anyone with even a passing interest in the silent era or film as a whole should avidly seek this out. Kino on Video have a very decent double DVD edition. I wholeheartedly recommend it.Edit (October 2010): As I add these words, Eureka have released a stellar BluRay of this saga which is just mind-blowing (reviewed by dvdbeaver, for the curious). If you've never seen this film yet, lucky you. Go straight to HD!
The_Void
It has to be said that, technically, the first part of Fritz Lang's epic fantasy adventure is an absolutely stunning piece of cinema, especially given the time in which it was made. However, over eight decades on, the film hasn't aged all that well...but that's a criticism that doesn't bear much weight. The film is almost two and a half hours long, and this running time becomes even more astounding when you consider that there's another equally long segment to follow! Die Nibelungen is adapted from Nordic legend and works from a screenplay written by the genius Fritz Lang and his wife at the time, Thea von Harbou; who also worked with Lang on his most famous works; M and Metropolis. The plot follows the heroic Siegfried, who travels to Worms after hearing of the beautiful sister of the King, Kriemhild. However, in order to marry the beautiful Kriemhild, Siegfreud must first win a bride for her brother. The main reason why the film works is because, much like Metropolis; it's so astounding to look at. Lang gives the film a real sense of wonder by way of fantasy elements such as dwarfs and magic powers, and it's amazing that such a piece of cinema could have been made in 1924. The standout of the 143 minute running time is the section that sees our valiant hero slaying a dragon. The effects here are better than those that can be seen in some modern films today, and the fact that the director had the audacity to show a man fighting a dragon deserves respect. On a personal level, this film didn't do a great deal for me; but fans of classic art cinema won't be disappointed.
