Sword and stove
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| Original title | Sword and stove |
| Country of production | Germany |
| original language | German |
| Publishing year | 1916 |
| length | 135 minutes (at the premiere) |
| Rod | |
| Director | Georg Victor Mendel |
| script | Fritz Skowronnek |
| production | National-Film GmbH, Berlin |
| music | Ferdinand Hummel |
| occupation | |
| |
Schwert und Herd is a German silent film from 1916 with a propaganda focus.
action
The focus of the plot are the lives of two families who belong to profoundly different social classes. On the one hand there is the manor owner Krafft, who, with his wife and daughter, owns a splendid property with large land holdings. His proletarian counterpart is embodied by the brave blacksmith Wilhelm Trautmann. The peacetime climax of these two circles, which otherwise hardly find any points of contact, are two love stories and a splendidly designed harvest festival.
But then the war breaks out, and in the turmoil of battle there are soon the first dead and seriously wounded. Solidarity at home is now required. The Kaiser says he no longer knows any parties, only Germans, and so it is expected that solidarity across all class barriers will be practiced at home, far from the front, where the soldiers are supposed to defend the fatherland. This is practically expressed in the fact that the large landowner Krafft also has to give land to the soldiers who are returning home and who are disabled in their arms and legs, so that a future can be secured for them. Finally, Krafft agrees to subdivide his land.
Production notes
Sword and Hearth was created in the Literaria film studio in Berlin-Tempelhof . The shooting was accompanied in 1916 by a wealth of articles in the journals Der Kinematograph and Lichtbild-Bühne . The first performance took place in the magnificent ambience on January 6, 1917 in the Berlin Philharmonic as part of a charity performance. Ludwig Fulda wrote a prologue for this, which Amanda Lindner presented. Chamber singer Joseph Schwarz sang the song “Das Kaisergebet”, composed specially by Prof. Ferdinand Hummel . The six-act act was 2,779 meters long when it was first performed, but was later shortened - in some cases considerably (down to 984 meters)
The proceeds from the film were donated to the war disabled welfare organization. Leopold von Ledebur and Carl de Vogt made their film debut here. J. von Santho designed the film structures.
criticism
“The tendency is not intrusive, and the portrayal of war does not seek sensations, but does not fail to make its strong impression, especially in the death scene of the fifth act. The acting cast, in which particularly powers of the court theater are involved, is to be praised throughout. "
“The film itself is a work of tendency (...) Skowronnek has dressed this tendency idea in a skilful and entertaining form, so that the tendency takes a back seat. Professor Hummel wrote music for the 6-act film that gives the individual scenes and images a concise musical illustration. The main roles of the film were played by first-class solo actors from the Royal Theater. The skillful direction of Dr. Viktor Mendel provided magnificent decorations and wonderful natural scenery. "
Individual evidence
- ^ The German Early Cinema Database names Fritz Seck as co-director