Learning on ScreenDie Nibelungen
Like many silent films, Die Nibelungen has been victim to all kinds of physical loss and damage over the decades. This new blu-ray release is the result of a lengthy restoration process by the Friedrich-Wilhelm-Murnau-Stiftung in Germany. Their impeccable work (detailed in an informative documentary included in this release) has produced what will likely remain the most authentic version of Die Nibelungen seen since 1924. The remarkable sharpness and depth of the image (complete with its original colour tinting) is hypnotically lustrous – this is as close as most viewers can get to the original 35mm celluloid. Eureka’s release preserves the written intertitles in their original German (a courtesy that other labels often deny foreign-language films) and the graphic impact of their gothic font is the perfect match for the visual design of Lang’s imagery. Also of importance is the music used for this restoration. Only a very small percentage of contemporary scores for silent films survive at all, so it is a joy to hear the wonderfully atmospheric orchestral music of Gottfried Huppertz that accompanied Die Nibelungen on its original release.
For students, this film offers a fascinating glimpse into the culture of the Weimar period
For students, this film offers a fascinating glimpse into the culture of the Weimar period and how UFA’s prestigious studio resurrected traditional German folktales for modern audiences. Die Nibelungen was not a great commercial success in 1924 and its reputation later garnered controversy when Siegfried was appropriated and rereleased by the Nazis in 1933. Significantly, they did not release the far more disturbing Kriemhilds Rache – Lang himself left Nazi Germany in 1934 and would always defend the value of his film as a vital retelling of a legendary past. This blu-ray edition (with its informative extras) represents a valuable opportunity to appreciate the power of Lang’s silent original, as well as understand its context in the culture of German national cinema and inter-war history. Die Nibelungen is without doubt one of the most important films of the 1920s, a dazzling example of expressionist technique and rich cinematic storytelling.
Dr Paul Cuff
