Barnes & Noble

F. W. Murnau's Faust (1926) has long lingered in the shadow of Nosferatu, his unauthorized Dracula adaptation. Although it's no masterpiece, there are riveting moments galore. It kicks off with a breathtaking opening, using light metaphorically to depict an argument between the Devil (Emil Jannings) and an angel, punctuating the frame with extremes of brightness and darkness. Driven to despair, Faust (Gösta Ekman) makes a deal with the devil to save his town, in which half the inhabitants have died of plague in just a few days. Faust is a film of great set pieces -- the opening; Gretchen (Camilla Horn) agonizing in abandonment amid winter snowdrifts; a flight taken by Faust and Mephisto -- but not a great film. Murnau emphasizes imagery over storytelling, leading to some jarring tonal shifts. The middle section, devoted to Faust's courtship of Gretchen, is almost lighthearted, injecting a comic element that seems wildly inappropriate here, although it might work in a different context. Faust is at its best in moody, mystical mode. Frequently the film draws on its own roots as a folktale as much as on Goethe's version. Even if its spell wavers, Faust bedazzles often enough to make the movie a memorable experience. -- Steve Erickson

All Movie Guide

Faust was the mammoth German production which won F. W. Murnau his contract with Hollywood's Fox Studios. Emil Jannings glowers his way through the role of Mephistopholes, who offers the aging Faust (Gosta Eckman) an opportunity to relive his youth, the price being Faust's soul. Though highly stylized, the film is unsettlingly realistic at times, especially during the execution of the unfortunate Gretchen. Even in old age, actress Camilla Horn could recall how close she came to genuine immolation when Murnau burned her at the stake. An American version of Faust had been planned earlier as a Mary Pickford vehicle, but Pickford's mother wanted no part of a film in which her darling daughter strangled her own baby. The scenario for Faust touches lightly upon the previous retellings by Goethe and Marlowe, but is more heavily reliant on the paintings of Pietr Breughel. Hal Erickson

Product Details

• UPC: 738329020729
• Source: KINO VIDEO
• Region Code: 1
• Aspect Ratio: Pre-1954 Standard (1.33.1)
• Presentation: B&W, Pan & Scan
• Sound: Dolby Digital, stereo
• Language: Deutsche
• Time: 1:56:00
• Sales Rank: 42,454

This DVD is also available as part of a box set:

• Murnau

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