The Indian Tomb
by Joe May
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Bernhard Goetzke, Conrad Veidt, Erna Morena, Mia May, Olaf F?nssDirector: Joe May
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Subtitled); English (Original Language)
Format: Black & White, DVD-Video, NTSC, Silent
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 212 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2000-07-18
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Image Entertainment
Movie Reviews of The Indian Tomb
Movie Review: An Indian epic
Summary: 5 Stars
Though this film runs just over three and a half hours long, the time flew by for me as though it were nothing. Written by the legendary Fritz Lang and his then-wife Thea von Harbou, it begins with an intertitle explaining that when a sleeping yogi in a tomb is awakened from his trance, he is commanded to absolutely obey the one who found him and reanimated him. In this case, Prince Ayan III (Conrad Veidt), the Rajah of Eschnapur, finds Ramigani (Bernhard Goetzke) and orders him to go to Europe to find an architect to construct for him a Taj Mahal-like tomb for his faithless wife Princess Savitri. Ramigani goes to the house of Herbert Rowland, who at first won't hear of returning with him to India, particularly without telling his fianc?e Irene Amundsen (Mia May, wife of director Joe May), but before long he comes around and departs with him. Irene's father has called her over to his house to tell her that he feels someone is trying to lure Herbert away from her; she initially thinks that's nonsense, but has her suspicions pinged, so much so that she returns to his house to check things out. Though Ramigani used his powers to take away the letter which Herbert left for her against his orders, Irene finds out anyway that Herbert left with an Indian, and makes up her mind to follow after him. And there the adventure begins.
The story packs in a lot of suspense and drama, with the viewer never knowing what's going to happen next. There are lepers, tigers, crocodiles, chases, mind control, snakes, shootouts, intrigue, the whole nine yards. And though the actors don't really look anything like actual Indians, one still gets the distinct feeling of India, with its culture, religion, history, and architecture, from the picture. The sets and costumes are all lavish and really give the film a sense of time and place. It's also kind of refreshing to see that Herbert and Irene are an older couple, not the typical movie couple in their late teens or early twenties, and while not homely, aren't candidates for the 50 most beautiful people of the year either. (Though some people, both past and present, have lambasted Frau May as being too pudgy or chubby, I didn't notice a weight problem, but then again, I don't think a normal woman is a size six. She looks healthy and natural, not like a stick figure.) While the story starts out with the basic premise of Herbert being taken to India to construct a tomb for the Maharajah, and Irene chasing after him, it soon gets a whole lot more complex. We find out that the woman for whom the tomb is to be built is very much alive, and the Maharajah wants to imprison her in it as punishment for how she cuckolded him with the handsome British officer MacAllan (Paul Richter). MacAllan himself is still in India, and Prince Ayan is determined to get revenge on him as well as his wife. Gradually, Irene and Herbert are drawn more and more into the intrigue and suspense all around them, to where it starts to feel like the point of no return.
1921 was a great year for films, at about the height of the transitional point between the acting and filmmaking styles popular in the Teens and the more natural and complex ones that evolved in the Twenties, and this film is no exception. It's a great epic adventure, and still packs a mighty punch over 85 years later. The suspense and drama are also greatly helped along by a superb musical score and a very nice print. Given how chopped-down it was in its original American release, it's a wonder it survived at all, and in such good condition.
Summary of The Indian Tomb
Joe May's spectacular "The Indian Tomb" captivated audiences in 1921, and was one of the biggest successes of its day. This lavish adventure thriller transported cinemagoers to an atmospheric India of the romantic imagination, with elaborate temples and palaces, exotic yogis and dancing girls, roaring tigers on the prowl and hissing cobras. Thea von Harbou's colorful plot stretches over two feature-length films, with twists and turns worthy of a serial. Ayan, the powerful Maharajah of Eschnapur, has lost his beloved wife, the beautiful Princess Savitri, but not through death. He plots revenge against Savitri and her lover MacAllan, an English officer. Ayan vows to build a tomb to his dead love; he'll supply the mausoleum's occupant. A yogi, Ramigani, prophesies that revenge will ruin the prince's life. Ayan sends the yogi to Europe to hire an architect, Herbert Rowland, who is sworn to secrecy about his commission. Rowland's fiancee Irene follows him to India, and the adventure begins. "The Indian Tomb" features a fantastic star-studded cast, topped by the legendary Conrad Veidt, who has a field day as the charismatic, sadistic Maharajah. Sumptuously photographed by Werner Brandes with a beautiful new score compiled and orchestrated by Eric Beheim, this is the most complete version available.Fritz Lang wrote the script to this exotic epic adventure with the intention of directing it himself, but when producer Joe May (a pioneer of German silent cinema himself) read it, he nabbed it, and did the work proud. Conrad Veidt (the stalking somnambulist of The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari) stars as a vengeful maharajah with a diabolical plot against his unfaithful wife and her haughty British lover. His plan involves a monumental tomb dedicated to his lost love, a spell-casting yogi (revived from his underground tomb in a riveting prologue), and a world-famous architect (Olaf Fonss), who is secretly whisked away to Bengal. Close behind is his fianc?e Irene (Mia May, the director's wife and frequent star), who follows him to the maharajah's grand palace. With his piercing eyes and gaunt, hawklike face, Veidt cuts a majestic figure and makes a fascinating villain, his menace tempered with a haunted sense of sadness.
Working with magnificent sets and simple but graceful special effects, May creates a sense of wonder and grandeur in the first half of the film, and then kicks it into high gear for a swiftly paced second half of deadly tiger pits, crocodile-infested moats, cliffhanger escapes, and mountaintop chases, straddling both high adventure and dramatic melancholy. The 3.5-hour production doesn't drag for a second. --Sean Axmaker
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