Claudio Carvalho Emil Jannings is the doorman of the elegant Atlantic Hotel. He is proud of his uniform and function, and respected by his community. When he reaches the old age, he has difficulties to carry trucks and suitcases. The hotel manager decides to change his function to washroom attendant. This apparently simple action is enough to destroy him as a human being. He loses his self-respect and when his neighbor finds that he is janitor of the hotel, he loses the respect of his neighbors and friends. "Der letzte Mann", a.k.a. "The Last Laugh", is another masterpiece directed by F.W. Murnau. It is an authentic study of the vanity and cruelty of mankind. The gossip and lack of respect to the elders is also shown in this fantastic film. The performance of the great Emil Janning is top-notch and the plot is based on his character and corporal expressions. The talent of Murnau is impressive, since he changes the heartbreaking narrative and turns into a comedy, with the doorman receiving the inheritance of an America millionaire and becoming "the last laugh" of the title of the movie. My vote is ten.Title (Brazil): "A Última Gargalhada" ("The Last Laugh")

Jackson Booth-Millard From director F.W. Murnau (Nosferatu, a Symphony of Horrors, Sunrise), this German silent film was one in the book listing the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die, I knew nothing about the plot or title meaning, but I was keen. Basically this film tells the story of a respected, experienced and happy Hotel Doorman (Emil Jannings), he is proud of his position at the famous Atlantic Hotel, with his responsibilities, and dressed in his fancy decorated general-like uniform. One busy rainy night he takes a short break, having carried heavy a suitcase from the wet weather, and he is seen by his Manager (Hans Unterkircher) not performing his duties in that short time, so the next day the Doorman arrives for work and is surprised to see another man in his place, he has been replaced. The Doorman learns that he has been demoted and reassigned to the less strenuous but ultimately degrading position of washroom attendant, but this decision is also because he is considered too old and not the best image to represent the hotel. He tries to hide this demotion and new position from friends and family, but eventually he is discovered, he feels dire shame, his friends think he has been lying about having his former position the whole time, taunting him, while his family shun him due to their shame. The Doorman has no choice but to continue this job, despite feeling great grief, and he uses the bathroom he works in to sleep in, but he finds kindness in the Night Watchman (Georg John) who gives his a coat to cover himself with, but he continues to fall deeper into despair. The only title card that appears at this point says that in real life the story would end with the old man dying in sadness, but the story takes an improbable turn. The Doorman inherits a fortune from a Mexican millionaire, who died in his arms in the bathroom, he later returns to the hotel he worked a happy man to dine with great amounts of food, he is joined by the Night Watchman. The final moments of the film see The Doorman respected once again, now as a rich and valued man, he and the Night Watchman get ready to leave in their horse and carriage, and they are approached by a beggar who asks for money or food, and taking pity on him the men allow him to ride with them in the carriage. Also starring Maly Delschaft as The Doorman's Daughter, Max Hiller as the Daughter's Fiancé, Emilie Kurz as the Fiancé's Aunt, Olaf Storm as as Young Guest and Emmy Wyda as a Thin Neighbor. I suppose the title meaning is to do with the slightly unfathomable and not fully explained happy ending, this was put in on insistence by the producer, probably so audiences would not complain, this could easily be seen as a dream sequence. The film is filled with great black and white imagery, including city backgrounds and hotel interiors, good costumes, Jannings is a wonderful character to sympathise with, and there is no need for any written dialogue because all the visual emotions grab you, a fantastic classic silent drama. Very good!

zeebrite-321-220768 Yep. It's about a doorman. A fat, pompous doorman. A doorman that, because he's getting old, get's demoted to Washroom Attendent. Then he does washroom things. Sounds dry, but it's not.Emil Jannings play the lead (did I mention, doorman?). He carries the entire film in a masterful silent performance. Truly silent; not one dialog card in the entire movie.Direction, camera-work and lighting are all excellent.Could've been a masterpiece if not for a ridiculous deus ex machina ending. Not just a "didn't see that coming" ending, but a ending that is just absurd enough to ruin the integral mood of the first 80 minutes.If you like classic silents you should check this out. But you will leave unsatisfied if you want an emotional payoff.

wes-connors This classic silent film about the proud old "Atlantic" hotel doorman who is demoted to bathroom attendant due to his advancing years certainly lives up to its reputation as, "The crowning achievement of the German expressionist movement." Director F.W. Murnau and storyteller Carl Mayer "tell" the story in pure visual style - there are no "title cards" to help with dialogue, and none are necessary. Without language to translate, silent films were universally understood. The piece is superbly photographed by Karl Freund and equally superbly performed by lead actor Emil Jannings.The film was an immediate worldwide critical and financial success, with high placement in the 1925 "New York Times" and "Film Daily" polls, at #2 and #5 respectively. Moreover, the "Motion Picture Magazine" had "Der letzte Mann" (as "The Last Laugh") beat out its "Hollywood" competition as "Best Picture" of 1925, with Mr. Jannings receiving the equivalent "Best Actor" prize. The nightmare of growing old and unneeded is so forcefully conveyed, filmmakers included an inappropriate, theme-busting ending; but, even this arguable lapse in storytelling judgment is brilliantly done.********* Der letzte Mann (12/23/24) F.W. Murnau ~ Emil Jannings, Hans Unterkircher, Maly Delschaft, Georg John