Needless to say I was heavily impressed, intrigued, and taken in by what many would claim to be F.W. Murnau's crowning achievement in filmmaking. To be honest I think I'm one of them even though I haven't seen even half his filmography mostly due to the fact that out of his 21 films only 11 still exist, but the power of Faust puts even modern films to shame in the simplest term for movies, imagery. This is a monumentally gorgeous film with so much special effects shooting it could be considered the Star Wars of it's day, where almost every frame is a painting filled with brilliant contrast of light and shadow, a wonderful mix of miniatures, cross dissolves, rear projection, and even animatronics that wouldn't be surpassed in cinema until 1933's King Kong. Concerning an old alchemist whose town is beleagured by plague, turns to the king of Hell itself to try to save people but is quickly snared by promises of youth and love as not only his life spirals but those he interacts with as well. The road to Hell is often paved with the goodest of intentions. For such a simple story it's told on a grand scale with drama to match, all the performances are big but not hammy or over the top. Gösta Ekman who plays the young and old versions of Faust does very good work and can convey a lot through facial acting, Camilla Horn as his love interest Gretchen honestly is my second favorite performance because she has so much range and dare I even say haunting moments which is amazing to witness, but the whole show is stolen in my humble opinion by Emil Jannings who plays Mephisto. I know, I know, praising the villain as per usual but you have not seen what I have seen. Dis guy, lemme tell you about dis guy! I have never seen a performance in silent movies so relishing in the part, I almost want to say he goes camp but that is not in a derogatory sense, gleefully indulging in vice, you can practically hear the hisses and groans when he's confronted with religious symbols, his natural instinct to backstab and lie. I am hardpressed in all of my years to think of a better devil character in fiction than this fella right here! Exquisite, definitive, iconic. Yet even with the lighter moments this movie can get dark man, with shots of people dying from pestilence, being stabbed with the most nonchalant grace, pretty much everything that happens to Gretchen after falling for Faust is horrific and depressing. I almost expected the movie to end on a seriously pessimistic if not even nihilistic note, but there is hope at the end with a message of love to help you fight through the darkness. I couldn't praise the visuals more and I'd be here all damn day if I tried, the direction is so tight and focused, you can tell this was a production that worked hand in hand with each department to craft the best movie possible. For an almost 2 hour movie it pretty much had me in a headlock before even the two minute mark hit, and it's got a solid pace to it. I loved it, I can fully see why it is lauded so much and has a special place in film history, I also can easily recommend it and hope that you enjoy it just as much if not even more than I did. Full 4 stars, 9/10, and I hopefully saved the best for last with one of the most influential movies of all time, Fritz Lang's Metropolis.
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