Heinrich George Movies

This epic German production was said to have had a cast of 100,000. Whether there was any truth to this claim is extremely questionable, and there were but three really important roles in the film: Conrad Veidt as Lord Nelson, Werner Kraus as Sir William Hamilton, and Liane Haid in the role of a lifetime as Lady Hamilton. The film covers Lady Hamilton's life, including her beginnings as Emma Lyon, a blacksmith's daughter. Young Emma learns how to fend for herself by becoming the mistress to many men before marrying Sir William Hamilton, the uncle of her lover, Charles Greville. Then she meets and falls for Lord Nelson, the famed English Admiral. She helps Nelson achieve his first great naval victory, along with becoming his lover and bearing his child out of wedlock. Although both Hamilton and Nelson's wife appear to accept the scandalous relationship, when Hamilton dies, Emma is virtually cut out of his will. Emma lives a poverty-stricken life that is only brightened by the knowledge that Nelson will return -- but he doesn't. Nelson dies in the Battle of Trafalgar. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

Previously filmed no fewer than six times, H. Rider Haggard's fantasy adventure She was committed to celluloid a seventh time in 1925. The story begins as three intrepid explorers venture into the heart of Libya in hopes of finding the fabled "Pillar of Fire," which, legend has it, provides eternal life. Stumbling into a hidden city, the expedition comes face to face with "She-Who-Must-Be-Obeyed" (Betty Blythe, repeating her role from the 1921 version), an ageless beauty who rules the region with an iron hand. Recognizing explorer Carlyle Blackwell Sr. as the reincarnation of her long-dead lover Kallikrates, "She" demands that Blackwell accompany her as she walks into the Pillar of Fire. As the men look on in horror, She is literally consumed by the flames, withering and aging some 2,000 years before their eyes. The special effects in She are rather lame, but Betty Blythe is a formidable screen presence, especially when dressed in her ancient regal garb. She would continue to be remade well into the sound era, most memorably by Lansing C. Holden in 1935. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The biggest-budgeted movie ever produced at Germany's UFA, Fritz Lang's gargantuan Metropolis consumed resources that would have yielded upwards of 20 conventional features, more than half the studio's entire annual production budget. And if it didn't make a profit at the time -- indeed, it nearly bankrupted the studio -- the film added an indelible array of images and ideas to cinema, and has endured across the many decades since its release. Metropolis had many sources of inspiration, including a novel by the director's wife, Thea von Harbou -- who drew on numerous existing science fiction and speculative fiction sources -- and Lang's own reaction to seeing the Manhattan skyline at night for the very first time. There are some obvious debts to H.G. Wells (who felt it "the silliest of films"), but the array of ideas and images can truly be credited to Lang and von Harbou.

In the somewhat distant future (some editions say the year 2000, others place it in 2026, and, still others -- including the original Paramount U.S. release -- in 3000 A.D.) the city of Metropolis, with its huge towers and vast wealth, is a playground to a ruling class living in luxury and decadence. They, and the city, are sustained by a much larger population of workers who labor as virtual slaves in the machine halls, moving from their miserable, tenement-like homes to their grim, back-breaking ten-hour shifts and back again. The hero, Freder (Gustav Froehlich) -- the son of Joh Fredersen (Alfred Abel), the master of Metropolis -- is oblivious to the plight of the workers, or any aspect of their lives, until one day when a a beautiful subterranean dweller named Maria (Brigitte Helm) visits the Eternal Gardens, where he spends his time cavorting with various ladies, with a small group of children from the workers' city far below. They are sad, hungry, and wretched looking, and he is haunted by their needy eyes -- something Freder has never seen or known among the elite of the city -- and by this strange and beautiful woman who tells all who hear her, workers' children and ruler's offspring, that they are all brothers. He follows her back down to the depths of the city and witnesses a horrible accident and explosion in the machine halls where the men toil in misery. Haunted by what he has seen, he tries to confront his father, only to find that the man he loves and respects believes that it is right for the workers to live the way they do, while he and his elite frolic in luxury.

Freder decides to do something about it, but he must first learn more, and also locate Maria. With help from Josaphat (Theodor Loos), Fredersen's recently dismissed office manager, he goes below again and takes over the job of one of the workers, in order to find Maria. Meanwhile, Fredersen is concerned about the rumblings of unrest among the workers, and his son's sudden interest in their plight; he assigns "Slim" (Fritz Rasp), his investigator, to follow Freder. Meanwhile, he goes for advice to an old acquaintance, the inventor C.A. Rotwang (Rudolf Klein-Rogge). Rotwang once was a rival to Fredersen for the love of the woman Hel, who married Fredersen and died bearing his son, Freder. Rotwang still feels the loss, but he is a cunning and practical man, and is willing to help his old "friend," but not before showing off his latest creation -- a robot that he has modeled in the image of his beloved Hel, that he may have her again. Rotwang answers Fredersen's question by taking him to the catacombs below the modern city, where they see Maria preaching the gospel and counseling patience, in the hope that a "Mediator" -- who will be able to reconcile the "head" and "hands" of society (i.e. the ruling and working classes) -- will come among them.

Fredersen will hear none of it, and sees the need to break the workers' resistance and destroy Maria's influence among them. He arranges with Rotwang to make his robot creation into a duplicate Maria (which requires his kidnapping her), and to send her out among the workers to incite them to violence, so that Fredersen can use force against them. But he doesn't reckon with Rotwang, who despises Fredersen and his ruling class, and has commanded the robot to obey his orders and follow a plan that will destroy the city, both above and below ground. Fredersen also doesn't reckon with his own son Freder, who not only believes in what Maria is preaching but is beginning to see himself as the "Mediator," and is right in the midst of the conflagration when the workers' uprising starts. Soon, fires and floods spread, threatening to doom the children of the workers, abandoned in their parents' frenzied attack on the machines, and the city of Metropolis faces an impending disaster of biblical proportions. Meanwhile, the now-mad Rotwang tries to reclaim his lost Hel, and Maria and her evil robot twin are both stalked by crowds of workers driven to a murderous rage.

When it was premiered in Germany in January 1927, Metropolis ran 153 minutes when projected at 24 frames per second. That complete version was heavily cut for release in America, removing a quarter of the movie -- this included the personal conflict between Fredersen and Rotwang; a subplot involving double-dealing, espionage, and the mysterious "Slim"; a section taking place in the "red-light" district of the city; a good deal of the symbolism in the movie's original dialogue; and a large chunk of the chase at the end. In Germany in the spring of 1927, an edited version modeled roughly on the American edition, though running slightly longer, was prepared and released, and that became the "standard" version of the movie, for both domestic (i.e. German) distribution and export. In subsequent years, other editions were circulated and still others were found deposited in various archives; in a surprising number of instances -- including that of a source stored at the Museum of Modern Art in New York -- there were tiny fragments to be found of the lost, longer version of Metropolis.

The movie's reputation was further compromised with the lapsing of its American copyright in 1953, after which countless copies and duplicates, in every format from 8 mm to 35 mm (and, later, VHS tape and DVD) came to be distributed in the U.S. by anyone who could lay their hands on a print, of whatever quality and with whatever music track they chose (or didn't choose) to put on it. While several versions of the movie from these sources -- each with plot elements missing -- circulated, various restorations of the movie were attempted over the decades by responsible parties, as well. The BBC did a very effective one in the mid-'70s that was a hit on public television in America, utilizing an electronic music track that sometimes mimicked some of the industrial images on the screen. Also, there was the Giorgio Moroder version from 1984, heavily tinted and re-edited, with a rock score grafted onto it, which introduced the movie to a whole new generation of fans and turned it into a modern pop-culture fixture. The copyright was re-established in 1998 by the F.W. Murnau Foundation, and a restoration in 2002 brought the movie back to a 127 minute running time, in addition to utilizing a full orchestral score based on Gottfried Huppertz's original 1927 music. In 2008, it was reported that a significant part of the "lost" footage from the 1927 153-minute version of Metrpolis had been found in Argentina. The newest restoration of the complete Metropolis was on-going as of 2009, and a theatrical premiere was anticipated for 2010. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide

Released in America in 1928 as Armored Vault, this Lupu Pick production was originally distributed in 1926 under the title Das Panzergewolbe. A typical Pick exercise in minimalist expressionism, the entire story is played out in "real time." Heinrich George plays Stuart Webbs, a brilliant detective who is so feared by the underworld that he is approached with bribes and threats even before they commit their crimes. On this occasion, Webbs must figure out when a gang of particularly clever robbers are going to knock over the armored vault of the title. The villains' "motivation" is sublimely silly: they hope to steal all the real money in the bank so that they can flood the city with counterfeit bills. Former MGM leading lady Mary Nolan plays the heroine. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Also known as Manolescu -- Der Konig von Hochstapler (Manolescu -- King of Swindlers), this was one of several European silent films inspired by the escapades of the titular real-life scoundrel. As played by Ivan Mosjoukine, the infamous Hungarian sharpster Manolescu is usually motivated by the noblest of intentions. Most of his larceny is committed on behalf of a beautiful woman (Brigitte Helm), who turns out to be unworthy of him. Seriously injured by the woman's ex-lover (Heinrich George). Manolescu awakens in a hospital, where his wounds are tended by a sweet young nurse. For nursie's sake, our hero promises to reform. Alas, he is prevented from doing so by his fickle former sweetheart, who jealously turns Manolescu over to the authorities. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Mesnchen im Kaefig is the German-language version of the British melodrama Cape Forlorn (aka Love Storm). Based on a play by Frank Harvey, this is the story of William, a taciturn lighthouse keeper who marries dance-hall girl Eileen. Their already shaky relationship is further damaged when the husband hires a handsome young assistant named Gordon, who immediately inaugurates an affair with the wife. When Gordon is arrested for a killing committed by Eileen, she leaves her husband and returns to the dance-hall whence she came, there to patiently await her lover's release from jail. The stars of the British Cape Forlorn were Fay Compton (Eileen), Frank Harvey (William) and Ian Hunter (Gordon); in Menschen im Kaefig, these roles were essayed by Tala Birrell, Fritz Kortner and Heinrich George (also appearing in a lesser role was Conrad Veidt, the star of the 1919 silent classic Cabinet of Dr. Caligari). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Released in English-speaking countries as The Man Who Murdered, this German melodrama was based on a play by Pierre Frondale (itself inspired by a novel by Claude Farere). Set in pre-WWI Constantinople, the story concerns French diplomatic attache Conrad Veidt, who seduces Trude von Molo, the wife of British aristocrat Heinrich George. Confronted by George, Veidt kills the man, then turns himself into the authorities. But because George was known to be a sadist and a wife-beater, a compassionate Turkish official allows Veidt to return to Paris -- and the arms of Molo -- without fear of arrest or repercussions. Director Kurt Bernhardt regarded Der Mann der den Mord Beging as one of his best films, not so much because of what happens in the film, but because of the omnipresent atmosphere of tension over what might happen. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide