Although created for German cinema audiences, the version which appears on the Kino Video 'Avant Garde 2: Experimental Cinema 1928-1954' DVD set has been adapted for English-speaking audiences. This 'rebus' film is a visual crossword puzzle which was shown in two parts. In the first 10-minute segment, the half-dozen clues are presented through both vivid animation bits as well as film clips derived from current newsreels. There is even a pause to allow the audience to bring out their pencils and paper which the average moviegoer was assumed to be carrying on his/her person. Then a separate short film was shown before the Rebus Film returned for a 5-minute wrap-up, in which the solutions are shown one by one and the viewers can congratulate themselves on their cleverness.
4 Reviews
Cute but Poor Transfer
Yxklyx20 May 2005
This is a filmed crossword puzzle - 3 vertical and 3 horizontal so 6 riddles in all. Visual clues are given and it's up to the audience to solve the puzzle. Except for one of the words, it's pretty easy to solve - though kids might find it challenging. The film is about 15 minutes long and is quite snazzy - lots of camera movement, overlays, animation, all combined together - Leni pulls out all the stops and haves fun in the process. I'd rate it higher except that the transfer is pretty bad in that there's a sizable chunk cut-off on the left hand side making it difficult or even impossible to read some of the inter-titles. Still, a pretty interesting use of the medium. This film can be found on the Waxworks DVD.
All that jazz
Horst_In_Translation31 March 2016
Warning: Spoilers
"Rebus Film Nr. 1" is a German black-and-white silent film from 1925. This one runs for 15 minutes and is fairly well-structured. First 5 minutes, we get to see the blanks we need to fill in, second five minutes we get hints and final third of the film we see the solutions. Cross-word puzzles were popular back then already and this was Paul Leni's attempt to make crossword movies. It was definitely a fun watch, but the effort is just too big for the reward and that is why today crossword puzzles only exist in written form. Still I enjoyed the watch. I knew some, not all, but quizzing is always fun and the animation was a bit goofy but not bad. Another nice aspect is that this film has been translated in all kinds of languages, so everybody can join in. I recommend checking it out. Thumbs up.
A Little Theater Fun
gavin694221 July 2011
An "extra" shown in two parts at the movie theater, before and after a feature: part one gives the clues to six words in a crossword puzzle, and part two has the solution.
I have to give a shout-out to Emil Jannings, whose name appears on a marquee in this film for the movie "Variety". This has nothing to do with the plot, but I thought it was nice of Jannings to find a place in a film like this.
While the concept is simple, this film adds a little bit of fun and interaction to the theater experience. I could use a bit more of that at the theater. And it is more colorful than a simple crossword, as they (Paul Leni and whomever else) mixed animation, photos and video into a nice collage.
Lastly, I have to give the film credit for teaching me that "jazzband" is one word and not two. A little weird, but if Paul Leni says so...
I have to give a shout-out to Emil Jannings, whose name appears on a marquee in this film for the movie "Variety". This has nothing to do with the plot, but I thought it was nice of Jannings to find a place in a film like this.
While the concept is simple, this film adds a little bit of fun and interaction to the theater experience. I could use a bit more of that at the theater. And it is more colorful than a simple crossword, as they (Paul Leni and whomever else) mixed animation, photos and video into a nice collage.
Lastly, I have to give the film credit for teaching me that "jazzband" is one word and not two. A little weird, but if Paul Leni says so...
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