Atlantis (1913 film)
| Atlantis | |
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1913 film poster by Aage Lund
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| Directed by | August Blom |
| Written by |
Karl Ludwig Schröder Axel Garde Gerhart Hauptmann (book) |
| Starring |
Olaf Fønss Ida Orloff |
| Cinematography | Johan Ankerstjerne |
| Distributed by | Nordisk Film Kompagni |
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Release date
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Running time
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113 minutes |
| Country | Denmark |
| Language | silent film Danish intertitles |
Atlantis is a 1913 Danish silent film directed by August Blom, the head of production at the Nordisk Film company, and was based upon the 1912 novel by Gerhart Hauptmann. It starred an international cast headlined by Danish matinée actor Olaf Fønss and Austrian opera diva Ida Orloff. The film was the first Danish multi-reeled feature film. The story, which tells the tale of a doctor who travels to the United States in search of a cure for his ailing wife, includes the tragic sinking of an ocean liner after it strikes an object at sea. Released only one year after the sinking of the RMS Titanic, the movie drew considerable attention as well as criticism due to similarities to the actual tragedy.
The high production costs for Atlantis were not equaled by box office returns at that time. However, the film went on to become the most watched film for Nordisk Film and has been hailed by film historian Erik Ulrichsen as a Danish masterpiece and "one of the first modern films."
Dr. Friedrich von Kammacher (Olaf Fønss), a surgeon, is devastated after his wife develops a brain disorder and is institutionalized. On the advice of his parents, von Kammacher leaves Denmark to gain some respite from his wife's illness. Von Kammacher travels to Berlin, where he meets a young dancer named Ingigerd (Ida Orloff) and the doctor becomes fond of her and very interested in her. However she has a large amount of admirers and thus Von Kammacher gives up on her. However, while in Paris he sees an ad in the paper that she is going to New York with her father and decides to follow her. Von Kammacher buys a first ticket on the same liner as Ingigered, the SS Roland.
Aboard the ship, von Kammacher learns Ingigerd has a boyfriend with her and thus he backs down. Shortly after, he is called to treat a young Russian girl with seasickness and they nearly get romantically involved but class stops this from happening.
Halfway across the sea the Roland strikes an unseen object which causes massive flooding and dooms the ship. The passengers panic as the ship sinks into the Atlantic. Von Kammacher finds Ingigered passed out in her cabin from shock and carries her to a lifeboat. He goes back and searches in vain her father but when he can't find him, von Kammacher returns to the lifeboat and holds Ingigereds hand as the lifeboat pulls away. They watch in horror as the Roland sinks into the ocean. The liner sinks so rapidly that many of the lifeboats are never launched and several passengers are swept into the sea and drowned. By morning, only von Kammachers lifeboat is still floating (the rest having been swamped by swimmers) and 8 still alive. They are spotted by a cargo liner and saved. Ingigerd is devastated when she is told that there are no more survivors and both her father and boyfriend have drowned.
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