''Algol: Tragedy of Power'' (german: Algol. Tragödie der Macht) is a 1920

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

science fiction film Science fiction (or sci-fi) is a film genre that uses speculative, fictional science-based depictions of phenomena that are not fully accepted by mainstream science, such as extraterrestrial lifeforms, spacecraft, robots, cyborgs, interstellar ...

about an alien from the planet Algol.

Production background

The film was directed by Hans Werckmeister and stars

Emil Jannings Emil Jannings (born Theodor Friedrich Emil Janenz, 23 July 1884 – 2 January 1950) was a Swiss born German actor, popular in the 1920s in Hollywood. He was the first recipient of the Academy Award for Best Actor for his roles in '' The L ...

and

John Gottowt John Gottowt (15 June 1881 – 29 August 1942) was an Austrian actor, stage director and film director for theatres and silent movies. He was born as Isidor Gesang in Lemberg, Austria-Hungary (present-day Lviv, Ukraine) into a Jewish family. Af ...

. The story centers on a human who is given a machine by an alien spirit which, if used, would allow him to rule the world. The sets for the movie were constructed by Walter Reimann, one of the set designers of '' The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari'' (released February 1920). The film was produced by the Deutsche Lichtbild-Gesellschaft (German Light Play Company) in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

and was distributed by

Universum Film AG UFA GmbH, shortened to UFA (), is a film and television production company that unites all production activities of the media conglomerate Bertelsmann in Germany. Its name derives from Universum-Film Aktiengesellschaft (normally abbreviated as ...

(UFA). Its first release was on 3 September 1920 in

, and was subsequently released worldwide including a launch in

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

on 7 November 1921.

Preservation status

For many years it was believed that this was a

lost film A lost film is a feature or short film that no longer exists in any studio archive, private collection, public archive or the U.S. Library of Congress. Conditions During most of the 20th century, U.S. copyright law required at least one copy o ...

, but an intact version was recovered. It was screened by MoMA on Monday 29 November 2010 as part of their film exhibition ''Weimar Cinema, 1919–1933: Daydreams and Nightmares''.

Plot

The story follows the life of Robert Herne, who works in a

coal mine Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...

, and his friendship with Maria Obal. While working in the mine, he encounters an inhabitant of the planet

Algol ALGOL (; short for "Algorithmic Language") is a family of imperative computer programming languages originally developed in 1958. ALGOL heavily influenced many other languages and was the standard method for algorithm description used by the ...

who gives him a prototype machine which can provide a virtually unlimited source of power. Over the next year Herne sets up a

factory A factory, manufacturing plant or a production plant is an industrial facility, often a complex consisting of several buildings filled with machinery, where workers manufacture items or operate machines which process each item into another. T ...

providing energy; however, instead of simply relieving workers of the difficult job of mining, the device creates massive economic upheaval throughout the world. Over the next 20 years, Herne continues to increase his power and influence, but he has lost touch with Maria who now lives in the one part of the world to which his influence does not extend. The film follows the machinations of Herne's son Reginald and his – ultimately unsuccessful – attempt at a coup, aiming to seize the secrets of the machine for himself. Meanwhile, Maria has had a son who travels to meet Herne to ask for his assistance: his country's coal reserves have expired. Herne initially refuses assistance; Maria visits him to ask in person. He comes to realise the extent to which he has been corrupted by power. In a moment of realisation, Herne destroys the machine, thereby preventing his son from taking control after his death.

Cast

as Robert Herne, the protagonist. The film follows his life from that of a normal man to that of corrupt dictator over a period of 20 years. *

as Algol, an extraterrestrial, presumably from the planet orbiting the Algol star, who gives Robert Herne a machine that produces unlimited energy. Algol's motivations are not made clear. *

Hans Adalbert Schlettow Hans Adalbert Schlettow (11 June 1888 – 30 April 1945) was a German film actor. Schlettow appeared in around a hundred and sixty films during his career, the majority during the silent era. Among his best-known film roles was ''Hagen von Tronje' ...

as Peter Hell, the son of Herne's friend Maria. He lives in the one part of the world over which Herne has no influence. He travels to seek from Herne aid for his country, but Herne denies his request. He returns to his homeland with Herne's daughter Magda. *

Hanna Ralph Hanna Ralph (born Johanna Antonia Adelheid Günther; 25 September 1888 – 25 March 1978) was a German stage and film actress whose career began on the stage and in silent film in the 1910s and continued through the early 1950s. Career Hanna R ...

as Maria Obal, mother of Peter Hell and a former friend of Herne, from before his encounter with Algol. Her influence causes Herne realise what he has become. *

Erna Morena Erna Morena (born Ernestine Maria Fuchs, 24 April 1885 – 20 July 1962) was a German film actress, film producer, and screenwriter of the silent era. She appeared in 104 films between 1913 and 1951. Biography Ernestine Maria Fuchs was born in ...

as Yella Ward. *

Ernst Hofmann Ernst Karl Heinrich Hofmann (7 December 1880 – 27 April 1945) was a German stage and film actor. Selected filmography * '' The White Roses'' (1916) * '' Dr. Hart's Diary'' (1917) * '' Countess Kitchenmaid'' (1918) * '' Ikarus, the Flying Man ...

as Reginald Herne, Robert Herne's son and chosen successor. Despite his father's promises to one day show him the secrets of the machine, he hungers for power and seeks to overthrow his father by means of a coup. * Gertrude Welcker as Leonore Nissen. *

Käthe Haack Käthe Haack (born Käte Lisbeth Minna Sophie Isolde Haack; 11 August 1897 – 5 May 1986) was a German stage and film actress. She appeared in more than 200 films and 30 television productions between 1915 and 1985. Life and career Käte Li ...

as Magda Herne, Robert Herne's daughter. Following her father's refusal to provide aid, she realises the extent of his corruption and leaves with Peter. *

Sebastian Droste Sebastian Droste (born Willÿ Knobloch; 2 February 1898 – 27 June 1927) was a German poet, actor, and dancer associated with the underground art subculture of the Weimar Republic in the 1920s. Droste relocated from his hometown of Hamburg to Be ...

as a dancer.

References

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External links