My husband and I enjoyed an opportunity to watch this restored silent film with a live orchestra last night.
Famous concert pianist, Paul Orlac (Conrad Veidt), is the victim of a terrible train wreck and loses his hands. His wife, Yvonne (Alexandra Sorina), implores a surgeon to save her husband's hands. When he can't, he decides to perform a risky transplant, using the hands of a recently executed murderer named Vasseur. Orlac mourns the loss of his skilled hands but becomes convinced that the murderous replacements are still possessed with a drive to kill...
A fun plot that has been remade and reworked several times over the years. Being an Expressionist piece, modern audiences may find the styling quite overt and jarring, but the film is very charming. Veidt sells the torment of Orlac with gusto and Sorina's desperation is often palpable.
The film has a run time just shy of 2 hours, and its ponderous pacing does sometimes make for difficult viewing. The film pales in comparison to Wiene's superior "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari", however, it's certainly still a classic piece of Expressionist film and a piece of history.
[Image: Pan-Film, et al]
Hani
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