Faust (1926)
-
94% of critics liked it
(18 reviews) -
89% of users liked it
(5,281 ratings)
Faust was the mammoth German production which won F. W. Murnau his contract with Hollywood's Fox Studios. Emil Jannings glowers his way through the role of Mephistopholes, who offers the aging Faust (Gosta Eckman) an opportunity to relive his youth, the price being Faust's soul. Though… More Faust was the mammoth German production which won F. W. Murnau his contract with Hollywood's Fox Studios. Emil Jannings glowers his way through the role of Mephistopholes, who offers the aging Faust (Gosta Eckman) an opportunity to relive his youth, the price being Faust's soul. Though highly stylized, the film is unsettlingly realistic at times, especially during the execution of the unfortunate Gretchen. Even in old age, actress Camilla Horn could recall how close she came to genuine immolation when Murnau burned her at the stake. An American version of Faust had been planned earlier as a Mary Pickford vehicle, but Pickford's mother wanted no part of a film in which her darling daughter strangled her own baby. The scenario for Faust touches lightly upon the previous retellings by Goethe and Marlowe, but is more heavily reliant on the paintings of Pietr Breughel. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Directed By
- F.W. Murnau
- Written By
- Hans Kyser
- Genres
- Horror, Art House & International, Science Fiction & Fantasy
Unrated,
- In Theaters
- Dec 5, 1926 Wide
- Studio
- MGM
Critic Reviews
-
Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader
This extraordinary piece of artistry and craftsmanship integrates its dazzling special effects so seamlessly that they're indistinguishable from the film's narrative, poetry, and, above all, metaphysics.
-
Don Druker, Chicago Reader
As atmospheric and menacing a work as the expressionist movement ever produced.
-
, New York Times
Here is a picture which is as far removed from the ordinary movie as a Tintoretto painting.
-
Geoff Andrew, Time Out
Murnau's version of the story of the man who sold his soul to the Devil (Jannings) in return for youth is visually extraordinary but dismally uneven in terms of its dramatic effect.
-
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
I sometimes feel, in this age of expert CGI, that I am being shown too much -- that technique is pushing aside artistry and imagination. The world of Faust is never intended to define a physical universe, but is a landscape of nightmares.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
Currently unavailable on Flixster
Also available on
Other Retailers
Not Available
Not Available
Not Available
Subscription Services
Not Available
Not Available
Cast
-
Gösta Ekman
as Faust
-
Emil Jannings
as Mephisto
-
Camilla Horn
as Marguerite
-
Werner Fuetterer
as Archangel
-
Frida Richard
as Mother
-
William Dieterle
as Valentin
-
Yvette Guilbert
as Marthe
-
Eric Barclay
as Duke of Parma
-
Hanna Ralph
as Duchess of Parma
-
Hans Brausewetter
as Farmboy
- Hertha von Walther
- Hans Rameau
