A young couple encounter Death in a country tavern while on a journey, and he claims the man. The man's young wife tracks Death down and pleads with him to return her husband to her. He promises to do so if she can prevent any one of three imminent deaths, each represented by a burning candle that has nearly burned out.
The subject of death is a ripe one for the cinema, and probably the most famous example of a living person attempting to bargain with death is Bergman's The Seventh Seal, but this silent movie from Fritz Lang is possibly more accessible to the casual viewer. Death here is something of a sympathetic character - and he is a character rather than just a representation - slavishly following the laws laid down by God, but wishing for a release from his responsibilities. He's played here by Bernhard Goetzke, a hollow-cheeked man with searing eyes who certainly looks the part.
All of the principle characters play multiple roles, perhaps to emphasise the inevitability of death for us all and the futility of attempting to escape it (or maybe to cut down on costs - who knows?) The film looks great, with some striking images and impressive sets. It's true that the film does drag a little in the second act in which three short stories are played out, taking the action away from the main story and thus bringing that part of the film to a screeching halt.
Der Mude Tod is one of those films that will no doubt entrance lovers of silent or early German cinema but which is unlikely to convert many to the genre. Fritz Lang's direction is crisp and imaginative and there's something almost intangible about it that suggests a young director at the outset of his career.
The subject of death is a ripe one for the cinema, and probably the most famous example of a living person attempting to bargain with death is Bergman's The Seventh Seal, but this silent movie from Fritz Lang is possibly more accessible to the casual viewer. Death here is something of a sympathetic character - and he is a character rather than just a representation - slavishly following the laws laid down by God, but wishing for a release from his responsibilities. He's played here by Bernhard Goetzke, a hollow-cheeked man with searing eyes who certainly looks the part.
All of the principle characters play multiple roles, perhaps to emphasise the inevitability of death for us all and the futility of attempting to escape it (or maybe to cut down on costs - who knows?) The film looks great, with some striking images and impressive sets. It's true that the film does drag a little in the second act in which three short stories are played out, taking the action away from the main story and thus bringing that part of the film to a screeching halt.
Der Mude Tod is one of those films that will no doubt entrance lovers of silent or early German cinema but which is unlikely to convert many to the genre. Fritz Lang's direction is crisp and imaginative and there's something almost intangible about it that suggests a young director at the outset of his career.