Pre-War German Cinema - the Hollywood That Might Have Been

The Eras Tour continues with...

Pre-War German Cinema: the Hollywood that Might have Been

Welcome to Babylon.

Before the rise of the Nazis, Germany was a place of wild imagination, unfettered hedonism, and pioneering artistry. And its culture blossomed in the movies. The Germany of the 1920s (and early 30s) produced some of the greatest, and most influential, films of all time. Directors and cinematographers were literally making up techniques, creating effects, and evolving the language of cinema in ways that are still current to this day. And the films they produced were both great art and big box office: vast epics, outrageous comedies, sci-fi spectaculars and haunting horrors.

This term, we’ll be watching some of the key films from pre-war Germany, and it promises to be one of our greatest seasons so far, including TWO movies with live musical accompaniment. If you thought old, silent films were inaccessible or boring, think again – and remember the Magdalen Monday Movies promise: we love every film we show.

Entry is COMPLETELY FREE, and each screening will include one of our by-now-legendary introductory talks.

And if you would like to be pre-warned of potentially distressing material, please visit our content warning page.

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This term we also have an assortment of very special events, including new talks from the OXFORD FILM STUDIES NETWORK. So join us for....

• Desert Island Movies with Stephen Fry.

• Hallowe’en Special: Häxan (1922). The original cult horror film, an unhinged history of witchcraft – with live musical accompaniment from Magdalen alumnus and professional film musician Hugo Max.

• A series of four extended intros from curator Peter Kessler on the lives and careers of Fritz Lang, Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau and Ernst Lubitsch.
• A collaboration with the Oxford LGBTQ+ History Network.

• Professor Erica Carter, Professor of German and Film at King’s College London, discussing Menschen am Sonntag (1930), a pivotal film in the development of German cinema and Hollywood – followed by a screening of the film.

• Professor Judith Buchanan, Master of St Peter’s College and a specialist in Shakespeare and Film Studies, discussing Asta Nielsen’s revolutionary German Expressionist / feminist reinterpretation of Hamlet (1920) – followed by a screening of the film, with live keyboard accompaniment from Magdalen’s own Seb Carrington.

• Issy Price, Film Studies graduate, discussing the Alien franchise.

• Rose Butler, Programmer for Picturehouse Cinemas, discussing early horror films and Fritz Lang’s M (1931) – followed by screening.

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Here is our full programme for the term – with handy IMDB links if you want to dig a little deeper.

Monday 13 Oct, 7pm

• Der Müde Tod (Eng: Destiny). Fritz Lang, 1921

Thrilling, dark, and at times outrageously funny, this tale of a young woman trying to thwart Death is Fritz Lang at his finest. Replete with Gothic cathedrals, eerie sky-scraping walls, oriental castles and never-ending staircases, it’s just a great movie. Plus talk on Fritz Lang’s early works.

Monday 20 Oct, 7pm

• Der Letzte Mann (Eng: The Last Laugh). F.W. Murnau, 1924

An apparently simple tale of an aging doorman getting fired from his job turns into one of the most daringly experimental films ever made. And it’s truly silent – doesn’t even have intertitles. Plus talk on the life of F.W. Murnau.

Sunday 26 Oct, 7pm

• Menschen am Sonntag (Eng: People on Sunday). Robert Siodmak, Edgar Ulmer, 1930

Subtitled ‘a film without actors’, Menschen am Sonntag featured amateurs whose normal day jobs meant they could only take part in filming on Sundays – hence the title. A groundbreaking film created by Robert Siodmak, Billy Wilder and Fred Zinnemann, all of whom went on to massive careers in the States. Plus lecture on the film by Professor Erica Carter.

Monday 27 Oct, 7pm

• Häxan (Eng: Witchcraft Through the Ages). Benjamin Christensen, 1922

It’s Hallowe’en, and our special event is one of the creepiest films ever made. Described by critic Mark Kermode as ‘the original cult movie’, it was also deemed so outrageous that it wasn’t even released in America until 1968. To be honest, it makes Nosferatu look like The Teletubbies. Plus, we welcome back the wonderful musical talent of Hugo Max, who will provide live improvised accompaniment on viola and percussion. What a treat.

Sunday 2 Nov, 7.15pm

• Desert Island Movies, with special guest Stephen Fry.

Stephen Fry is a GNT (Genuine National Treasure): comedian, actor, author, polymath and Oscar Wilde obsessive. And he’s here, live and in person! Come and find out which six films he would take to his desert island.

Monday 3 Nov, 7pm

• Trouble in Paradise. Ernst Lubitsch, 1932

OK, full disclosure: this isn’t a German movie. It was made by Ernst Lubitsch after he moved to the USA. But it perfectly illustrates the European influence on Hollywood – and it’s one of my all-time faves: a sophisticated love-triangle comedy about a pair of thieves and an heiress. Plus talk on the life of Ernst Lubitsch.

Monday 10 Nov, 7pm

• Metropolis. Fritz Lang, 1927

In every way, this is the big one: a futuristic dystopia with the largest budget ever spent on a film up to that date. Its visual style and special effects have been endlessly imitated, and its comments on social cohesion, class and consumerism are as telling today as in Weimar Germany. And to top it all, the missing 25 minutes were found in Buenos Aires in 2008, so now we can watch the whole thing. Plus talk on Fritz Lang’s mature German works.

Sunday 16 Nov, 7pm

• Hamlet. Svend Gade, Heinz Schall, 1920

It’s Hamlet, but not as you know it. Danish actress Asta Nielsen formed her own production company to make this astonishing film. She also played the main part, and portrayed Hamlet as a woman. More daring and original than most productions you’ll ever see on a stage. Plus lecture on the film by Professor Judith Buchanan and live musical accompaniment from Seb Carrington.

Monday 17 Nov, 7pm

• Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans. F.W. Murnau, 1927

The first film Murnau made after arriving in the States may also be his crowning achievement. Simultaneously tender and action-packed, it’s also visually stunning. The diametric opposite of Metropolis, but every bit as good.

Wednesday 19 Nov, 5.15pm – ONLINE EVENT

Issy Price lecture: The Alien franchise

Issy Price was awarded a First in Film Studies from Royal Holloway College, and has contributed to podcasts on Film as well as guest introducing for Magdalen Monday Movies. If you thought the Alien movies were just about Sigourney Weaver fighting monsters with too many teeth, prepare to see science fiction from a whole new perspective.

Monday 24 Nov, 7pm

• M. Fritz Lang, 1931

Lang’s first foray into sound is also the original serial killer film. Taut, tense and forming a historical bridge between German Expressionism and Film Noir, it’s also a breathless police investigation movie with a brilliant twist. Peter Lorre is unforgettable as the killer. Plus introduction and talk on early horror from Rose Butler of Picturehouse Cinemas.

Monday 1 Dec, 7pm

• Mädchen in Uniform (Eng: Girls in Uniform). Leontine Sagan, 1931

A gay classic. A social commentary on the end of the Weimar republic. A pioneering film. This story of life in a Prussian girls’ school featured one of the earliest lesbian kisses as well as an all-female cast. The Nazis tried to burn every copy. They failed. This event is in collaboration with the Oxford LGBTQ+ History Network.

Monday 8 Dec, 7pm

• Die Bergkatze (Eng: The Wildcat). Ernst Lubitsch, 1921

We end a packed term with our earliest film. Lubitsch’s madcap comedy about a Bandit Queen laying siege to a snowbound fortress before falling head-over-heels in lust with one of the officers is a smorgasbord of silliness, and as funny today as it was 104 years ago. It’s raunchy, farcical and absurd, and I can think of no better way to head into the festive season.