Organized in association with the Friedrich-Wilhelm-Murnau Foundation in Wiesbaden and in cooperation with the Deutsche Kinemathek in Berlin, this exhibition-the most extensive ever mounted in the United States of German films made between the world wars-includes 75 feature-length films and six shorts, along with a gallery exhibition of Weimar-era film posters and stills. The exhibition continues the tradition of Iris Barry, the world's first curator of film and founding curator of MoMA's Department of Film, who began adding German films to the collection in the mid-1930s and exhibited a deep commitment to this rich period of film culture throughout her career. Daydreams and Nightmares also builds upon the scholarly legacy of Siegfried Kracauer's seminal 1947 book From Caligari to Hitler: A Psychological History of the German Film, which the émigré film and social critic wrote (at Barry's invitation) at The Museum of Modern Art.

In addition to classic films by Fritz Lang, F.W. Murnau, and G.W. Pabst, among others, the exhibition includes many films, unseen for decades, that were restored after German reunification. The extensive program reaches beyond the standard view of Weimar cinema-which sees its tropes of madmen, evil geniuses, pagan forces, and schizophrenic behavior as dark harbingers of Hitler-by adding another perspective: that of the popular German cinema of the period. The development of Weimar cinema coincided with the coming of sound, and German filmmakers also excelled in the making of popular musicals, cabaret-type comedies, and dramas, shot outside the studio, that tackled social issues.

Featured Works:

Anders als die Andern (Different From the Others, Richard Oswald, 1919); Algol: Tragödie der Macht (Algol, Hans Werckmeister, 1920); Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari (The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, Robert Wiene, 1920); Von Morgens bis Mitternachts (From Morn to Midnight, Karlheinz Martin, 1920); Die Mysterien eines Frisiersalons (The Mysteries of a Hairdresser's Shop, Bertolt Brecht and Erich Engel, 1923); Varieté (Variety, Ewald André Dupont, 1925, pictured); Irrgarten der Leidenschaft (The Pleasure Garden, Alfred Hitchcock, 1926); Dirnentragodie (Tragedy of the Street, Bruno Rahn, 1927); Drei von der Tankstelle (Three Good Friends/Three From the Filling Station, Wilhelm Thiele, 1930); Der Hauptmann von Köpenick (The Captain From Köpenick, Richard Oswald, 1931); Der Mann, der seinen Mörder sucht (Looking for His Murderer, Robert Siodmak, 1931); Ins blaue hinein (Into the Blue, Eugen Schüfftan, 1931); Mädchen in Uniform (Girls in Uniform, Leontine Sagan, 1931); Das Blaue vom Himmel (The Blue From the Sky, Victor Janson, 1932); Ein Blonder Traum (A Blonde Dream, Paul Martin, 1932)

Program information:
Weimar Cinema, 1919-1933: Daydreams and Nightmares

Harvard Film Archive

November 27-December 19, 2010

Decadent Shadows: The Cinema of Weimar Germany

Related Articles:
Warning Shadows by Michael Atkinson posted Nov. 23, 2010