The witches or witchcraft through the ages is a 1922 swedishdanish silent film written and directed by benjamin christensen. Haxan 1922 swedish film institute print full movie youtube. The result is a documentarylike film that must be among the first to use reenactments as a visual and narrative tool. Please access detailed information on over 250 individual film color processes via the classification system on this page, display the timeline of historical film colors in chronological order, search via the tag cloud at the end of this page or directly on the search page, or see the contributing archives collections on the header slides. I have no idea why it is classified as science fictionhorror. Benjamin christensens legendary film uses a series of dramatic vignettes to explore the scientific hypothesis that the witches of the middle ages suffered the same hysteria as turnofthecentury psychiatric patients. Aelita free a silent film directed by soviet filmmaker yakov protazanov. Haxan 1922 swedish film institute print full movie.
The mysterious island 1929 and you call yourself a. Stanley kubrick listed it as one of his 10 favorite. Many more on this list are available for rent or purchase on youtube or other streaming services. Part history lesson followed by reenactments with actors, this film depicts the history of witchcraft from its earliest days through to the present day in this case,1922 or thereabouts. While showing the film to prisoners at sing sing in ossining, new york, one convict knifed another, deeply disturbing christensen. I was aiming more for an introductory array of films that are wellknown, easy to access, and still exist more or less in. Accidentally preserved, volume 1 19201931 accidentally preserved, volume 2 19191928 accidentally preserved, volume 3 19151929 accidentally preserved, volume 4 19201926 the actors. Benjamin christensen was born on september 28, 1879 in viborg, denmark. Choose from 500 different sets of world cinema flashcards on quizlet.
What ive seen is the 1968 version called witchcraft through the ages, which was shrunk, a jazz score was added and worst of all a narration by william s burroughs was overlaid onto the film. Haxan is a swedishdanish silent film completed in 1920 and released in 1922. It was college and obviously i knew everything about anything that meant anything worthwhile. A list of 1,222 films compiled on letterboxd, including a trip to the moon 1902, the great train robbery 1903, the birth of a nation 1915, les vampires 1915 and intolerance. Media in category 1929 in film the following 8 files are in this category, out of 8 total. All the films from all the editions, including those subsequently removed, presently totalling 1222. The witches or witchcraft through the ages is a swedishdanish silent film completed in 1920 and released in 1922.
Haxan is a silent film by benjamin christensen halfway between horror films and. The complete jacques tati 578 the complete jean vigo the complete lady snowblood 167 the complete monterey pop festival. This film screening event was suggested by silent film group member. Such form set by director benjamin christensen was what we later named as essay film, and it is a unique window serving as a comprehensive guide of the theme for our viewers. This is probably due to the fact that it focuses less on dramatics than was normal at the time. For films listed alphabetical, see alphabetical list of horror films. Best horror movies by year since 1920 complete list our classic foreign films.
She based the score on a list of musical cues printed in the theaters weekly program notes and conducted an 11piece ensemble from the czech film orchestra in prague in june 2001. The witches or witchcraft through the ages is a 1922 swedishdanish documentarystyle silent. Past events london silent film group london, united. Man with a movie camera 1929 movie by all soviet movies on rvision. The result is a documentarylike film that must be among the first to use reenactments as a visual and. Im talking such genreshaping classics as the golem 19151920, the cabinet of dr. A horror film from a time when the category as such did not exist, haxan is contemporary with but stands apart from the two other most notable precursors of the genre, robert wienes the cabinet of dr.
It was one of the most expensive scandinavian silent movies ever made. Grave robbing, torture, possessed nuns, and a satanic sabbath. Conversely, a critic for the new york times wrote in 1929, the picture is, for the most part, fantastically. Original film from the writer and director benjamin christensen discloses a historical view of the witches through the seven parts of this silent movie. Haxan marked a parting of the ways for christensen and the danish film industry. The surviving footage, a version of director carl theodor dreyers original cut, well represents the original quality and visual intent of the film. Haxan, the witches or witchcraft through the ages is a 1922 swedishdanish silent horror film written and directed by benjamin christensen. It features a combination of narrative devices that, by todays standards, would make it more akin to a docudrama. Though obviously a work of pure imagination, the film occasionally takes on the dimensions of a. But the film itself is far from serious instead its a witches brew of the scary, gross, and darkly humorous. The naked lunch burroughs, complete with acid jazz soundtrack.
The witches or witchcraft through the ages is a 1922 swedishdanish silent horror film written and directed by benjamin christensen. A mad scramble to provide synchronized sound is on february 1 the broadway melody is released by mgm and becomes the first major musical film of the sound era, sparking a host of imitators as well as a series of broadway melody films that will run until 1940. Witchcraft through the ages is one of the earliest and darkest documentaries. The following is a chronological list of every horror film ever made. Finally, in october of 1929, three years late and three million dollars over budget, the mysterious island was released to a rapturous critical reception and to the utter indifference of the public. This is by no means a complete list of every silent horror or scifi film. Hyde 1920, nosferatu the first dracula in 1922, the phantom of the opera 1925, the cat and the canary 1927, and the man who laughs 1928. On the other hand, some of horror film historys great features likewise come from those years.
A few of the films are available in parts from the original youtube uploader only part 1 is represented here in those cases. The real unreal the current the criterion collection. Community content is available under ccbysa unless otherwise noted. Haxan is such an excellent documentary that it conscientiously cites its references for the various still images and scenarios shown. Although it won acclaim in denmark and sweden, the film was banned in the united states and heavily censored in other countries for what were considered at that time graphic depictions of torture, nudity, and sexual perversion. Witchcraft through the ages, a oneofakind documentary just as shocking today as it was in 1922. Svensk filmindustri, preferring it over the local danish film studios, so that he could maintain complete artistic freedom. Silent movie piano series mario mariani official website. Chronological list of horror films horror film wiki fandom.
February 18 the first academy awards, or oscars, are announced for the year. Footprints to satan 1929, an americanmade satire on hollywood musicals. Based partly on christensens study of the malleus maleficarum, a 15thcentury german guide for inquisitors, haxan is a study of. Far from a dry dissertation on the topic, the film itself is a witches brew of the scary, the gross, and the darkly humorous. A fter prophesying the downfall of the weimar republic in his 1928 film spies, perhaps there was nowhere left for fritz lang to go but the moon. He was a director and writer, known for blind justice 1916, haxan 1922 and seven footprints to satan 1929. All of the problems inherent in the conversion to sound are evident in the exchanges between lionel barrymore and montagu love. That version is frankly awful and yet there was obviously some joyous substance hiding behind all the. Also known as witchcraft through the ages or the witches haxan was a groundbreaking movie for its time.
Learn world cinema with free interactive flashcards. With benjamin christensen, elisabeth christensen, maren pedersen, clara pontoppidan. Written and directed by benjamin christensen, the films documentary style is dramatized with horror sequences. Christensen opens the film with a calculated deception titled chapter 1. The opening section of the film is awkwardly executed, certainly, but this probably grates upon the modern viewer far more than it did people in 1929. For more great films, please visit our complete collection of free movies online. Woman in the moon is the great german directors somewhat labored final silent, slave to a first hour of repetitive submabuse theatrics before an aweinspiring rocket launch sequence that, according to some including a gravitys rainbowera. Haxan free swedishdanish silent horror film written and directed. The witches or witchcraft through the ages is a 1922 swedishdanish documentarystyle silent horror film written and directed by benjamin christensen. Produced by the leading swedish film company, svensk filmindustri, which lured him with the promise of full artistic freedom, haxan. Its genesis began in 1919, when benjamin christensen, a filmmaker often referred to as the d.
Fictionalized documentary showing the evolution of witchcraft, from its pagan roots to its confusion with hysteria in modern europe. Benjamin christensen in haxan 1922 tora teje in haxan 1922 haxan 1922. The visual design of haxan, with its magnificent use of light and shadow, is too much a part of the detailed description of a. Christensens mixandmatch approach to genre anticipates gothic horror, documentary recreation, and the essay film, making for an experience unlike anything else in the history of cinema.
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