King of Kings (1927)
King of Kings (original title The King of Kings ) is an early biblical monumental film by Cecil B. DeMille from 1927 . It is one of the full-length film adaptations of the life of Jesus , embodied here by HB Warner , from the time of the silent film . Dorothy Cumming as Jesus' mother Mary, Ernest Torrence as Simon Petrus and Joseph Schildkraut as Judas Iscariot are cast in leading roles .
action
The events on which the film is based took place in Palestine around AD 30, when the Jews were under the complete submission of Rome - even their own high priest was appointed by the Roman procurator. The beautiful courtesan Maria Magdalena lived in Judea - which groaned under the iron knot of Rome . It was Judas Iscariot who first told her about a preacher named Jesus, to whom special healing powers were ascribed. After Judas also confessed to Jesus and was one of his numerous followers who gathered around him, Mary Magdalene did the same after Jesus had cast out seven demons from her.
Followers of Jesus witnessed a miracle when Jesus met Lazarus , who had been lying in the grave for days. With the words: “ I am the resurrection and the life . Whoever believes in me even though he is dead should live! ”He got Lazarus to rise from his tomb. Jesus performed another miracle on a little blind girl who sought his presence and implored him to open her eyes because she had never seen the flowers or the light. Jesus replied, “ I came into the world so that anyone who believes in me should not stay in the dark.” He gave the happy child the opportunity to go home and show everywhere how great God's goodness is . After saving a woman accused of adultery from stoning, he countered the hustle and bustle of the money changers in the temple with its destruction, which led to the men fleeing. When Satan Jesus to the temple eviction temptation wants to lead, he rejects the suggestion with the words: henceforth, "Go, Satan. It is written that you must worship the Lord your God, and only you must serve him. You still don't get it. My kingdom is out of this world! "
Jesus proclaims his teaching to the disciples again and concludes by praying the Our Father with them . Sections of the Roman authorities are of the opinion that under certain conditions Jesus could have been made king if he would only avoid the poor and heal the rich. But Judas also sees his expectations disappointed, which he placed in Jesus. This is one of the reasons that ultimately leads to Judas betraying the Messiah. It is the last supper that Jesus is to take with his disciples, because the day before Judas had received thirty silver coins for delivering Jesus to his enemies with a kiss. There is a sham trial before the Roman governor Pontius Pilate, which ends with Jesus' condemnation. Although the governor wants to pardon him and asks the assembled crowd whether they want to see him or the robber Barabbas free, the loud voices of the high priests who want to see Jesus dead prevail. Jesus then has to carry his cross over several stations up to the place of execution on Golgotha . During this arduous walk the floor suddenly opens and swallows witnesses accompanying the cloister, including Judas, who had previously hanged himself from a tree.
Once on the hill, Jesus is nailed to the cross while the earth shakes again and again. It takes three days until he is released from his torments through death, and then resurrected in order to reach the eternal kingdom of heaven .
production
History of origin
The film, which cost "only" 2.5 million US dollars (36.7 million dollars today), was shot at Culver Studios in Culver City as well as on Santa Catalina Island in California and at the Iverson Ranch in Chatsworth, California . DeMille created the resurrection scene in a trick shot . Two sequences of the film, the beginning of the film and a scene shortly before the end, are shot in two-color Technicolor .
In order to do justice to the topic, DeMille was able to fall back on a Jesuit priest as well as a rabbi and other church workers during the shooting. The director was particularly fond of Peter Lord, a representative of the National Catholic Welfare Council, who showed keen interest in the film business.
De Mille had already proven in 1923 with the Bible film The Ten Commandments that he could be successful and profitable in this genre. The film was made under strict moral guidelines. The two main actors Warner and Dorothy Cumming were contractually bound not to endanger their image as God's son and mother for a period of five years. This included the abstinence from going to balls and night clubs, the strict ban on card games, the ban on visiting outdoor pools and driving convertibles . An anonymous woman took advantage of this contract when she pressured director DeMille to get HB Warner's personal life to the press. Although no further details are known, DeMille's wife was forced to leave the United States . For HB Warner, however, the film was also unsuccessful in other respects, because Hollywood tends to pin actors to certain roles, he had great difficulty finding a role that corresponded to the dignity of Christ after the film was completed. He later told friends that his career was practically over with the Christ film.
The author Ayn Rand worked as an extra on the set; during the film production she met her husband Frank O'Connor .
Release, film length, DVD
The film premiered on April 19, 1927 in New York and was presented on May 18, 1927 at Grauman's Chinese Theater in Los Angeles. It started in Austria in 1928, as well as in Portugal, Finland and Czechoslovakia (Prague). In Austria it was released again in 1932, and in 1934 it was released in Hungary. It was performed again in Slovenia and Croatia in 1939. First broadcast on television in the United States in March 1940. The film was shown again in Austria in 1948. It was also published in Belgium, Brazil, Germany (there also under the title The King of Kings ), Denmark, Spain, France, Greece, Italy, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Sweden, the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia.
It is said that around 8 billion people around the world should have seen the film, to which it is said that it was loaned to civil and religious groups for a small fee. Allegedly not a week goes by in which the film is not shown somewhere in the world, to which missionaries are said to have contributed. The King of Kings was also reportedly the first film Eskimos ever saw at Point Barrow , Alaska . The film ran in New York for more than 24 weeks and also in Los Angeles, for years it toured the USA and was in use worldwide. He made a lot of money.
DeMille's original 155-minute film version was shortened to 112 minutes by him a year later for the official film release. Criterion released a DVD with both versions. The 155-minute version can be watched either with Donald Sosin's music or in silence. For the shorter version, the original Movietone accompaniment composed by Hugo Riesenfeld especially for the film is available or an improvisation by Timothy J. Tikker on a church organ.
In 1931 the film was released with a new music version. In 2017 the film was restored by Lobster Films Paris, the length of the film is 154 minutes. Hugo Riesenfeld's film music was adapted, orchestrated and re-recorded by Robert Israel. The film was broadcast on the Arte cultural channel at Easter 2018 .
Film adaptation from 1961
For Samuel Bronstons produced film almost the same title, was King of Kings ( King of Kings (1961) ) taken. This Nicholas Ray film with Jeffrey Hunter as Jesus also deals with the time and events around the birth of Christ.
criticism
Kino.de found that Cecil B. DeMille's name was “inseparable” from the Hollywood Bible epic The Ten Commandments from 1956. However, he has celebrated “successes” “already in the younger stages of the dream factory”, such as “for example with the 1927 silent film about the life of Jesus based on a script by Jeanie Macpherson”. The New Testament literature is "spun out". "Entertaining" is the portrayal of Mary Magdalene "as a light-hearted lady", "seriously Caiaphas", who "takes the blame for the death of Jesus on himself".
On the monumentalfilm.net page it was read that the film was a lasting success and was repeatedly used in Sunday schools. Generations of American children have grown up with the opulent iconography of the film.
On the main (silent) film page , one can read that one clearly notes that the film is “the embarrassing endeavor to avoid any controversy”; whereby it "- at least viewed from a time lag of more than 80 years - becomes controversial again". It is interesting how the topic was approached at the time: “With the greatest possible respect, with absolute accuracy to the letter and with so much caution that the film should actually be called a Bible illustration. In contrast to Mel Gibson's very free and controversial version, The King of Kings remains strangely lifeless. ”It was also said that the leading actor was probably not allowed to show any emotion because his job was to portray an icon. HB Warner strides through the scene “as if he were out of this world”. Although the film is never "boring", it is, due to the "sweet and naive portrayal of Jesus", "sometimes difficult to bear" and "definitely outdated today".
Felicia Feaster noted in an article for Turner Classic Movies that the film had met with controversy at the time, as had many other films dealing with the story of Christ. Jewish groups criticized the film for blaming them for the crucifixion of Jesus. Another view was that the images would stir up too much emotion. The writer John Steinbeck said that when he saw the pictures, he loved books all the more.
Dennis Schwartz of Ozus' World was of the opinion that retelling the Gospels after De Mille seemed awkward, awkward, boring and hectic and was tricky. The plot is more propaganda than religious. The idea of God is simplified and HB Warner's portrayal of Jesus is too rigid and moral to be taken seriously.
DVD talk's John Sinnott was full of praise and said the film was brilliant and sublime. The production is masterful because DeMille does not turn the story of Jesus into a special effects spectacle, but rather approaches it with awe and taste. The actors are also very good. HB Warner's performance was masterful, even if he looked a little too old than Jesus, as other critics also found. His discreet and subtle play fits the role perfectly.
Also Decent film was that HB Warner indeed radiate the view in the title role, as he conveys quiet dignity and compassion trigger, but in his early fifties a little too mature (be even nearly 20 years older for the role as the actress who his Represent Our Lady). The film also reminds us that the high priest Caiaphas, who shed the blood of Jesus, was an agent of the Roman Empire and therefore not representative of his people, which even goes so far that Caiaphas asks God to blame him alone and not his to see his people.
Matt Bailey noted for Not Coming to Theater Near You that DeMille, like Mel Gibson , had angered many Jews with his drama The Passion of the Christ . Films with religious themes offer many riches, but they should not be used for religious instruction.
Web links
- King of Kings in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- The King of Kings at Turner Classic Movies (English)
- The King of the Kings 5 different film clips from Turner Classic Movies in the original
- Movie poster on filmposter-archiv.de
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d e Felicia Feaster: The King of Kings (1927) - Articles. In: Turner Classic Movies . Retrieved November 9, 2019 .
- ↑ The King of Kings (1927) - Trivia. In: Turner Classic Movies . Retrieved November 9, 2019 .
- ^ Robert Mayhew: Ayn Rand and Song of Russia: Communism and Anti-Communism in 1940s Hollywood . Scarecrow Press, Lanham 2005, ISBN 0-8108-5276-4 , pp. 75 (English, limited preview in Google Book Search [accessed November 9, 2019]).
- ↑ a b Matt Bailey: The King of Kings adS notcoming.com (English). Retrieved November 16, 2017.
- ↑ a b The King of Kings (1927) (German: King of Kings ) adS gabelingeber.wordpress.com
- ↑ The King of Kings (1927) - Notes. In: Turner Classic Movies . Retrieved November 9, 2019 .
- ↑ King of the Kings ( memento from April 5, 2018 in the Internet Archive ) full film (available until May 1, 2018) at arte.tv
- ↑ The King of Kings adS kino.de. Retrieved November 16, 2017.
- ↑ The King of Kings (1927) adS monumentalfilm.net. Retrieved November 16, 2017.
- ↑ Dennis Schwartz: The King of Kings adS homepages.sover.net (English). Retrieved November 16, 2017.
- ^ John Sinnott: The King of Kings adS dvdtalk.com (English). Retrieved November 16, 2017.
- ^ The King of Kings (1927) adS decentfilms.com (English). Retrieved November 16, 2017.