Der Januskopf (lost F. W. Murnau film; 1920): Difference between revisions

Revision as of 15:03, 5 July 2017

This article has been tagged as Needing work due to its lack of content and references.

Advertisement poster for the film.

Status: Lost

Der Januskopf (translated to English as The Head of Janus) is a 1920 silent German horror film directed by F. W. Murnau, who went on to direct Nosferatu in 1922, and starred Conrad Veidt (The Cabinet of Dr Caligari and The Man Who Laughs) as well as Bela Lugosi in a minor role. It is one of three adaptions of the novel Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde to be released that year, done without securing the rights to adapt the novel. It is believed that the film used one of the first instances of a moving-camera shot in cinematic history.

The film reportedly followed the novel very loosely. Instead of using a potion to transform, the doctor uses a cursed statue of the two-faced Roman god Janus. Also, much like the film Nosferatu, the names were changed in hopes of avoiding getting caught infringing copyright.

While the film itself has been lost, the script is believed to still exist somewhere.

Gallery

Compilation of existing stills.

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-'''''Der Januskopf''''' (translated to English as ''The Head of Janus'') is a 1920 silent German horror film. It is one of three adaptions of the novel ''Dr Jeckyll and Mr Hyde'' to be released that year, done without securing the rights to adapt the novel. It is believed that the film used one of the first instances of a moving-camera shot in cinematic history.
+'''''Der Januskopf''''' (translated to English as ''The Head of Janus'') is a 1920 silent German horror film directed by F. W. Murnau, who went on to direct ''Nosferatu'' in 1922, and starred Conrad Veidt (''The Cabinet of Dr Caligari'' and ''The Man Who Laughs'') as well as Bela Lugosi in a minor role. It is one of three adaptions of the novel ''Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde'' to be released that year, done without securing the rights to adapt the novel. It is believed that the film used one of the first instances of a moving-camera shot in cinematic history.
-The film followed the novel very loosely. Instead of using a potion to transform, the doctor uses a cursed statue of the two-faced Roman god Janus. Also, much like the film ''Nosferatu'', the names were changed in hopes of avoiding getting caught infringing copyright.
-The film was directed by German cinema legend F. W. Murnau (who also directed the 1922 film ''Nosferatu'') and starred Comrad Veidt (of ''The Cabinet of Dr Caligari'' and ''The Man Who Laughs''). The film also featured Bela Legosi in a minor role.
+The film reportedly followed the novel very loosely. Instead of using a potion to transform, the doctor uses a cursed statue of the two-faced Roman god Janus. Also, much like the film ''Nosferatu'', the names were changed in hopes of avoiding getting caught infringing copyright.
-No footage from the film is known to exist. The script also is believed to exist but is not available online.
+While the film itself has been lost, the script is believed to still exist somewhere.
 ==Gallery==
-{{#ev:youtube|https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gG5ohzIxgsk|640x480|center|Compilation video of existing stills.|frame}}
+{{#ev:youtube|https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gG5ohzIxgsk|320x240|center|Compilation of existing stills.|frame}}
 [[Category:Lost films]]
 [[Category:Historic]]
+[[Category:Needing work]]