Movie Review: The Golem (2018)

The Golem (2018) directed by Yoav and Doron Paz

In seventeenth century Lithuania, Hannah lives a small Jewish village. She is beset with problems. Seven years early, she lost her son. She's grieved for him and refused to have another child. Her husband is unhappy. He's the son of the town's rabbi. He goes for lessons with other men from the village. Hannah listens in from underneath the building; her husband sneaks books away for her to read. Hannah's sister is getting married but the ceremony is interrupted by a ruthless gentile who brings his plague-striken daughter to be cured. Without a cure, he'll destroy the town. The local healer promises to do her best. The rabbi recommends not striking back at the gentiles. Hannah has other ideas. In Kabbalistic texts (like the ones "borrowed" from the rabbi), a formula is given for creating a being out of clay that will protect its master. Hannah's chance to get her son back (sort of) and to defend the village is at hand. Of course, things don't go exactly according to plan.

Hannah is a very complicated character, eliciting both sympathy and revulsion as she makes her choices throughout the story. Other characters are less developed. The villain is little more than a bad guy (he does have a creepy bird-beak mask like the plague doctors used to wear) and just creates peril for the village. The healer once confronted a golem in her childhood (which we see at the beginning of the movie), though her experience doesn't really contribute to the situation. The husband is interesting as he is flawfully supportive of his wife and also frustrated with her. The tension between them is subtle and well developed. The boy who played the golem did a good job which is critical for the film. He doesn't talk and he has little emotional expression (like a golem). He's got enough intensity to give the movie the edge it doesn't have in other departments.

The story is fairly standard. No huge surprises happen. The backstory is told at a good pace. I found the characters a little less sympathetic than they should be, making me less engaged in the story. It wasn't bad and it wasn't great.

Slightly recommended.

Movie Review: Der Golem (1920)

Der Golem, wie er in die Welt kam (1920) directed by Carl Boese and Paul Wegener

Part of the fun of going places is getting to see them on film afterward (or if you are really organized, before). I've had this film in my DVD collection for some time and finally watched it now that we've visited Prague. In the film, Prague is more or less unrecognizable compared to today. That's for several reasons. The primary reason is that it was not filmed in Prague, but in Germany. Also, it's set in the 1500s, so it has a more medieval look to it. Finally, the movie is an early example of the German Expressionist style that is seen in movies like Metropolis and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. The sets and visuals are very stylized and meaningful and less realistic. As a representation of Prague, it's not so good, but it is not meant to be historically accurate.

The story begins with an edict by the emperor declaring the Jews have less than a month to evacuate their quarter of the city. The justification is stereotypical: the Jews killed Jesus, they cheat at business, they practice black magic, etc. A knight is sent to deliver the message. He brings it to the house of Rabbi Loew, who has already predicted the coming calamity. He saw it in the stars. The knight delivers the message and catches the eye of Miriam, the Rabbi's daughter. She catches his eye too. The Rabbi sends the knight back requesting an audience with the emperor (they know each other since he has drawn the emperor's horoscope many times). Meanwhile, the leaders of the Jews gather to decide what to do.

Rabbi Loew heads off to his basement to consult his various books of arcane lore. He decides to build the Golem, a human figure made from clay and given life force by a special word. In order to get that word, he must summon the demon Astaroth, who reveals the life giving word. The Rabbi writes it on a piece of paper, puts the paper in an amulet, and attaches it to the Golem's chest. The construct then comes to life to do the bidding of its master. The Rabbi has been invited to entertain at a feast the emperor is having and he brings the Golem with him.

The movie unfolds in interesting ways and the special effects are quite amazing for the period. The sequence where the Rabbi summons the demon is impressive but not scary. Paul Wegener, who wrote and directed the film, also plays the Golem and gives a good though not great performance. Like all great movie monsters, there's a mixture of good and bad in him. He's sometimes sympathetic which makes his evil actions all the worse when they do come. The knight and the daughter are pretty good. They communicate a lot through looks and touches.

The movie definitely had an impact on later films, both in Germany and the United States. I already mentioned the silent-era German Expressionist films that followed Der Golem. James Whale's Frankenstein borrows quite a few specific visuals as well as the overall style. The other Universal horror movies (Phantom of the Opera, Dracula, etc.) mimic the style in greater or lesser degrees. Even the film noir movement of the 1940s and 50s owes a debt to expressionism in general if not this movie in particular.

While not as great as the films that followed it, Der Golem is still interesting and worth watching. I have the Kino edition of the film on DVD. Kino generally puts out the best silent films. They get the best prints available and have fine musical accompaniment.