Der Müde Tod
| Destiny | |
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| Directed by | Fritz Lang |
| Produced by | Erich Pommer |
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| Edited by | Fritz Lang |
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| Distributed by | Decla-Bioscop AG |
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Running time
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99 minutes |
| Country | Germany |
| Language |
Silent film German intertitles |
Destiny (German: Der müde Tod: ein deutsches volkslied in 6 versen (Weary Death: A German Folk Story in Six Verses); originally released in the US as Behind the Wall) is a 1921 silent German Expressionist fantasy romance film directed in Germany by Fritz Lang. The film follows a woman desperate to reunite with her dead lover. It also follows three other tragic romances, set in a Middle Eastern city; in Venice, Italy; and in the Chinese Empire.
In "Some Time and Some Place," a loving young couple is riding in a carriage on a country road, when they pick up a hitchhiker, offering him a ride into town. Little do they know, this stranger is Death himself.
In town, Death visits the mayor's office, where he purchases a small piece of land adjacent to the town cemetery. Surrounding this property, Death erects a giant, mysterious wall. At the local tavern, the young couple encounters Death again, and when the young woman is distracted, her lover disappears. Grief stricken, she sobs in front of the mysterious wall, when she sees a large group of ghosts walk past her, and through the wall. The last among these ghosts is her lover; and despite her protests, he also moves through the wall, entering the realm of Death.
Relentless, the young woman confronts Death, begging him to bring her to her lover. He leads her to a large, dark room, with numerous long candles, each one in different stages of burning. The young woman demands to know why Death took her lover away, to which Death explains that he was simply following God's will, and that it was her lover's time to die. She asks if there is anything that can be done to get her love back, arguing that love is stronger than Death. Death tells her that each candle in the room represents a human life, and that currently, three candles are flickering, representing three lives hanging in the balance. Death promises the young woman that, if she can save one of these lives with love, he will return her lover to the living.
During the holy month of Ramadan in "The City of the Faithful," a Muezzin calls those of Islamic faith to prayer. Zobeide, a princess and the Caliph's sister, meets with her secret lover, the Frank, in the mosque. the Frank, however, is exposed as an infidel, and is chased to the roof, where he escapes by diving into a nearby body of water.
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Wikipedia