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Svengali (1927 film)
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Wikipedia article
'Svengali' is a 1927 German silent drama film directed by Gennaro Righelli and starring Paul Wegener, Anita Dorris and Andr Mattoni. It was produced and written by Max Glass, an adaptation of the 1894 George du Maurier novel 'Trilby'. This is one of the adaptations of the novel that shifts the focus of the story more to Svengali, since at this time anti-Semitism was on the rise in Germany, and Svengali was portrayed as an evil Jew in the film.
German actress Anita Dorris appeared in very few other silent films, none of which are well known today. Italian director Righelli on the other hand directed numerous films during his career, although his main claim to fame today is that he was the grandfather of Italian horror film director Sergio Martino. 'Svengali' was remade in 1931 as a sound film starring John Barrymore.
Plot
A pretty young artist's model named Trilby falls under the spell of a mesmerist named Svengali who turns her into a leading opera singer with no will of her own. German horror film star Paul Wegener plays Svengali, who uses hypnosis to enslave the beautiful young Trilby, preventing her marriage to her fiance even though he cannot make her love him. The strain of controlling her and shaping her into an opera star takes a toll on both of them, and when Svengali dies suddenly, Trilby inexplicably dies with him.
Cast
* Paul Wegener - Svengali
* Anita Dorris - Trilby
* Andr Mattoni - Billy (artist)
* Teddy Bill - Leard (artist)
* Hans Brausewetter - Taffy (artist)
* Paul Biensfeldt - Martine (model)
* Alexander Granach - Geiger Gecko
* Alice Torning - Martine's wife
* Hertha von Walther - Sascha (dancer)
* Irma Green - Student
* Hermann Picha - Landlord of cafe
* Emil Heyse
Production
'Svengali' had previously been filmed in 1914 as an Austrian film directed by Luise Kolm and Jacob Fleck. There were also three notable earlier silent film versions of 'Trilby'...'Trilby' (1914 film), 'Trilby' (1915 film), and again 'Trilby' (1923 film).
Bibliography
* Isenberg, Noah. 'Weimar Cinema: An Essential Guide to Classic Films of the Era'. Columbia University Press, 2009.
References
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