Although Henny Porten had only a supporting part in Das alte Gesetz/The Ancient Law (1923) and Ernst Deutsch had the leading role, she was the main subject on the series of postcards which Ross Verlag made for the film. Photographer Hans Natge made the beautiful stills for the this silent film production by Comedia Film, directed by Ewald André Dupont.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 663/1. Photo: Hans Natge, Berlin / Comedia Film. Publicity still of Henny Porten in Das alte Gesetz (E.A. Dupont, 1923).
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 663/2. Photo: Hans Natge, Berlin / Comedia Film. Publicity still of Henny Porten and Ernst Deutsch in Das alte Gesetz (E.A. Dupont, 1923).
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 663/3. Photo: Hans Natge, Berlin / Comedia Film. Publicity still of Henny Porten in Das alte Gesetz (E.A. Dupont, 1923).
In Das alte Gesetz/The Ancient Law (E.A. Dupont, 1923), Ernst Deutsch plays the mid-19th century rabbi's son Baruch Mayer, who decides to break with the family tradition. Against his orthodox father's will, he leaves his shtetl in Galicia to become an actor.
Baruch joins a small wandering burlesque company. The Austrian archduchess Elisabeth Theresia (Henny Porten) discovers him there and becomes enarmoured with him. Secretly in love with him, she provides him an engagement at the Burgtheater, the most important theatre in Vienna.
Baruch receives a contract at the Burgtheater and soon manages to become a celebrated star. More and more he becomes an assimilated jew, but his relation with the grand-duchess isn't approved by the Austrian court, so they have to end it.
His father Rabbi Mayer (Avrom Morewski) is appalled by this life and rejects his son, but when he witnesses a performance of his son as Don Carlos, he is so impressed by his talent, he recognises God's mercy in this and pardons his son.
Baruch returns to his eastern European shtetl where he grew up and where his sweetheart from his youth (Margarete Schlegel) has waited for him all the time...
With its complex portrayal of orthodoxy and emancipation, Ewald André Dupont's period film marks a highpoint of Jewish filmmaking in Germany, according to film historians.
Das alte Gesetz was scripted by Paul Reno. The story precedes the similar plot of the more famous American sound film The Jazz Singer (Alan Crossland, 1927) with Al Jolson, which was made just a few years after,
Cinematography of Das alte Gesetz was done by Thomas Spahrkuhl and the sets were designed by Alfred Junge, and executed by Curt Kahle, while the costumes were designed by Ali Hubert.
The film premiered in Berlin on 29 October 1923. The German press praised the film: "Dupont manages to visualise these two so different worlds, the ghetto milieu, which is separated from the outer world by a sheer insurmountable wall, and this world itself; the Vienna of the 1860's, led by the rhythms of Strauss' valzer and epitomized by the Burgtheater as artistic summit." (Film-Kurier, no. 244, 30 October 1923)
Various prints of the films existed, which were quite different from each other and not always respected the original. The Deutsche Kinemathek recently did a full restoration and the restored, 135 minutes long version of the film was shown with live accompaniment on 16 February 2018 at the Friedrichstadt - Palast at the Berlinale 2018. Three days later it was showed on Arte TV.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 663/4. Photo: Hans Natge, Berlin / Comedia Film. Publicity still of Henny Porten in Das alte Gesetz (E.A. Dupont, 1923).
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 663/5. Photo: Hans Natge, Berlin / Comedia Film. Publicity still of Henny Porten in Das alte Gesetz (E.A. Dupont, 1923).
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 663/6. Photo: Hans Natge, Berlin / Comedia Film. Publicity still of Henny Porten in Das alte Gesetz (E.A. Dupont, 1923).
Sources: epd-film.de, Filmportal.de, Wikipedia (English and German) and IMDb.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 663/1. Photo: Hans Natge, Berlin / Comedia Film. Publicity still of Henny Porten in Das alte Gesetz (E.A. Dupont, 1923).
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 663/2. Photo: Hans Natge, Berlin / Comedia Film. Publicity still of Henny Porten and Ernst Deutsch in Das alte Gesetz (E.A. Dupont, 1923).
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 663/3. Photo: Hans Natge, Berlin / Comedia Film. Publicity still of Henny Porten in Das alte Gesetz (E.A. Dupont, 1923).
He recognises God's mercy in the performance of his son
In Das alte Gesetz/The Ancient Law (E.A. Dupont, 1923), Ernst Deutsch plays the mid-19th century rabbi's son Baruch Mayer, who decides to break with the family tradition. Against his orthodox father's will, he leaves his shtetl in Galicia to become an actor.
Baruch joins a small wandering burlesque company. The Austrian archduchess Elisabeth Theresia (Henny Porten) discovers him there and becomes enarmoured with him. Secretly in love with him, she provides him an engagement at the Burgtheater, the most important theatre in Vienna.
Baruch receives a contract at the Burgtheater and soon manages to become a celebrated star. More and more he becomes an assimilated jew, but his relation with the grand-duchess isn't approved by the Austrian court, so they have to end it.
His father Rabbi Mayer (Avrom Morewski) is appalled by this life and rejects his son, but when he witnesses a performance of his son as Don Carlos, he is so impressed by his talent, he recognises God's mercy in this and pardons his son.
Baruch returns to his eastern European shtetl where he grew up and where his sweetheart from his youth (Margarete Schlegel) has waited for him all the time...
With its complex portrayal of orthodoxy and emancipation, Ewald André Dupont's period film marks a highpoint of Jewish filmmaking in Germany, according to film historians.
Das alte Gesetz was scripted by Paul Reno. The story precedes the similar plot of the more famous American sound film The Jazz Singer (Alan Crossland, 1927) with Al Jolson, which was made just a few years after,
Cinematography of Das alte Gesetz was done by Thomas Spahrkuhl and the sets were designed by Alfred Junge, and executed by Curt Kahle, while the costumes were designed by Ali Hubert.
The film premiered in Berlin on 29 October 1923. The German press praised the film: "Dupont manages to visualise these two so different worlds, the ghetto milieu, which is separated from the outer world by a sheer insurmountable wall, and this world itself; the Vienna of the 1860's, led by the rhythms of Strauss' valzer and epitomized by the Burgtheater as artistic summit." (Film-Kurier, no. 244, 30 October 1923)
Various prints of the films existed, which were quite different from each other and not always respected the original. The Deutsche Kinemathek recently did a full restoration and the restored, 135 minutes long version of the film was shown with live accompaniment on 16 February 2018 at the Friedrichstadt - Palast at the Berlinale 2018. Three days later it was showed on Arte TV.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 663/4. Photo: Hans Natge, Berlin / Comedia Film. Publicity still of Henny Porten in Das alte Gesetz (E.A. Dupont, 1923).
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 663/5. Photo: Hans Natge, Berlin / Comedia Film. Publicity still of Henny Porten in Das alte Gesetz (E.A. Dupont, 1923).
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 663/6. Photo: Hans Natge, Berlin / Comedia Film. Publicity still of Henny Porten in Das alte Gesetz (E.A. Dupont, 1923).
Sources: epd-film.de, Filmportal.de, Wikipedia (English and German) and IMDb.
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