''Helena'' is a 1924 German silent

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super- ...

directed by Manfred Noa and starring Edy Darclea,

Vladimir Gajdarov Vladimir Georgievich Gajdarov (Russian language, Russian: Владимир Георгиевич Гайдаров; 25 July 1893 – 17 November 1978) was a Russians, Russian film actor and star of Russian and German language, German Silent film, sil ...

and

Albert Steinrück Albert Steinrück (20 May 1872 – 10 February 1929) was a German stage and film actor of the silent era. He appeared in more than 80 films between 1910 and 1929. He starred in the 1923 film '' The Treasure'', which was directed by Georg Wil ...

. The film was based on the poem the ''

Iliad The ''Iliad'' (; grc, Ἰλιάς, Iliás, ; "a poem about Ilium") is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the ''Ody ...

'' by

Homer Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...

. It was released in two separate parts: ''The Rape of Helen'' and ''The Fall of Troy.'' It was produced by

Bavaria Film Bavaria Film is a German film production and distribution company. It is one of Europe's largest film production companies, with some 30 subsidiaries. History The studios were founded in 1919, when Munich-raised film producer Peter Ostermayr ...

at the

Emelka Studios Bavaria Studios are film production studios located in Munich, the capital of the region of Bavaria in Germany, and a subsidiary of Bavaria Film. History The studios were constructed in the suburb of Geiselgasteig in 1919 shortly after the Fir ...

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and ...

. The film was made on an epic scale with thousands of extras, and large sets which rivalled those of the larger

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 constitu ...

-based

UFA Ufa ( ba, Өфө , Öfö; russian: Уфа́, r=Ufá, p=ʊˈfa) is the largest city and capital city, capital of Bashkortostan, Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Belaya River (Kama), Belaya and Ufa River, Ufa rivers, in the centre-n ...

. For many years the film was considered partially

lost Lost may refer to getting lost, or to: Geography * Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland *Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US History *Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...

until it was reconstructed from a version found in

Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland *Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri *Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia *Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports * Swiss Internation ...

archives. The film has been described as Noa's "masterpiece," although it was so expensive that it seriously damaged the finances of Bavaria Film.Schildgen p. 42

Cast

* Edy Darclea as Helena *

as Paris *

as Priamos *

Adele Sandrock Adele Sandrock (; born Adele Feldern-Förster; 19 August 1863 – 30 August 1937) was a German-Dutch actress. After a successful theatrical career, she became one of the first German movie stars. Early life Sandrock was born in Rotterdam, Net ...

as Hekabe *

Carl de Vogt Carl de Vogt (14 September 1885 – 16 February 1970) was a German film actor who starred in four of Fritz Lang's early films. He attended the acting school in Cologne, Germany. Together with acting he was also active as a singer and recorded se ...

as Hektor *

Friedrich Ulmer Friedrich Ulmer (1877–1952) was a German film actor. Partial filmography * ''Das schwarze Amulett'' (1920) * ''Der Totenkopf'' (1920) * ''Die Hexe von Lolaruh'' (1920) as Waldläufer * ''A Dying Nation'' (1922, part 1, 2) * '' Helena'' (1924) ...

as Menelaos *

Carlo Aldini Carlo Aldini (1894–1961) was an Italian actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, an ...

as Achille *

Carl Lamac Carl may refer to: * Carl, Georgia, city in USA * Carl, West Virginia, an unincorporated community *Carl (name), includes info about the name, variations of the name, and a list of people with the name * Carl², a TV series * "Carl", an episode of ...

as Patroklos *

Karl Wüstenhagen Karl may refer to: People * Karl (given name), including a list of people and characters with the name * Karl der Große, commonly known in English as Charlemagne * Karl Marx, German philosopher and political writer * Karl of Austria, last Austri ...

Agamemnon In Greek mythology, Agamemnon (; grc-gre, Ἀγαμέμνων ''Agamémnōn'') was a king of Mycenae who commanded the Greeks during the Trojan War. He was the son, or grandson, of King Atreus and Queen Aerope, the brother of Menelaus, the ...

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 Ra ...

as Andromache * Albert Bassermann as Aisakos *

Ferdinand Martini Ferdinand Martini (1 September 1870 – 23 December 1930) was a German film actor. He appeared in 38 films between 1920 and 1931. He was born in Munich and died in Germany. Selected filmography * '' The Monastery's Hunter'' (1920) * '' Nig ...

as Agelaos * Rudolf Meinhard-Jünger as Tersites *

Otto Kronburger Otto is a masculine German given name and a surname. It originates as an Old High German short form (variants ''Audo'', ''Odo'', ''Udo'') of Germanic names beginning in ''aud-'', an element meaning "wealth, prosperity". The name is recorded fro ...

as Ulises

References

Bibliography

* Schildgen, Rachel A. ''More Than A Dream: Rediscovering the Life and Films of Vilma Banky''. 1921 PVG Publishing, 2010. * Winkler, Martin M (ed.). ''Troy: From Homer's Iliad to Hollywood Epic''. John Wiley & Sons, 2009.

External links

* 1924 films 1920s historical drama films German epic films German historical drama films Films of the Weimar Republic German silent feature films Films directed by Manfred Noa Films based on the Iliad Trojan War films Films released in separate parts Cultural depictions of Helen of Troy Bavaria Film films Films shot at Bavaria Studios German black-and-white films 1924 drama films Agamemnon Silent drama films Silent adventure films Silent war films 1920s German films {{Germany-silent-film-stub