Film: Fritz Lang & German Expressionism

Fritz Lang (1890–1976) is a towering figure in film history. His work stretches over five decades, from the Expressionist silent films of his initial German period, through his brief Paris sojourn and his work as a Hollywood director, to his final three films made in Germany. A contemporary of F. W. Murnau, G. W. Pabst, and Ernst Lubitsch, Lang received early recognition for his brilliance with suspense, visionary insight into the zeitgeist of the German people, and flair for visual stylization. He enjoyed a rapid rise to the top of the German film industry and helped lead it through its 1920s “golden age,” of which several of the best-known films—including Robert Wiene’s The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari and Murnau’s Nosferatu, The Last Laugh, and Faust—are featured in this series. Lang worked in a wide…