The Golem: How He Came into the World
In 16th-century Prague, a rabbi creates the Golem - a giant creature made of clay. Using sorcery, he brings the creature to life in order to protect the Jews of Prague from persecution.
From the archive
I've been researching newly public domain films from 1929 and earlier, so I'm uploading the best possible copies that I can find. One of the first great examples of German Expressionism, The Golem: How He Came into the World is a silent horror film that follows a Jewish rabbi as he creates a seemingly indestructible creature to defend his people against discrimination and destruction. Unfortunately, after his people are saved, the Golem turns its violence against his creator. It was a massive success in Germany and in its small run in the US, and is frequently considered a critical turning point in the horror genre.
Why this is free to watch
The Golem: How He Came into the World (1920) is hosted by the Internet Archive as a public-domain or openly licensed work, which means its copyright has expired, lapsed, or was released by the rights holder. The uploader declared an explicit licence, linked in the source panel. Nitrate streams the file directly from the Internet Archive and hosts no video itself.
- Director
- Carl Boese
- Starring
- Paul Wegener, Albert Steinrück, Lyda Salmonova, Ernst Deutsch, Hans Stürm, Max Kronert, Otto Gebühr, Dore Paetzold
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