Conrad Veidt, Demon of the Silver Screen: His Life and Works in Context

by Sabine Schwientek

This book depicts the life of Conrad Veidt (1893-1943), the defining German actor of Expressionist cinema in the 1920s. His legendary performance in Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari (1919/20) earned him the epithet "Demon of the Screen" and made Veidt an international star. To this day, Veidt is considered an icon of early horror film. He showed his acting range in more than a hundred films, among them masterpieces such as The Indian Tomb (1921), Orlac's Hands (1924), The Man Who Laughs (1928), The Thief of Bagdad (1940), and Casablanca (1942). Conrad Veidt used his acting career to become socially and politically involved, starting with the film Anders als die Anderen , the first film to advocate homosexual rights, in 1919. After the Nazis came to power, he left Germany to protest anti-Semitism and Nazi rule. Along with his biography, this book provides insights into the development of filmmaking from its beginnings through the 1940s, an epoch of cinematic art marked by technical innovations like sound and color film and by world-shaking events, including two world wars.

244 pages, Paperback

Published June 20, 2023

Reviews

[Steve Joyce · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was wondering if this book would be superfluous to John T. Soister's book on Veidt (both from McFarland, by the way).

It was not at all and approaches the subject from a completely different angle. I learned to appreciate Herr Veidt that much more because of it. It's a good one!!

Anyway ... Read 'em both, says I!!