The Indian Tomb (1959 film)

The Indian Tomb (a.k.a. Journey to the Lost City; in the original German, Das indische Grabmal) is a 1959 West German-French-Italian adventure drama film, produced by Artur Brauner, directed by Fritz Lang, that stars Debra Paget, Paul Hubschmid, Walter Reyer, Claus Holm, Valéry Inkijinoff, and Sabine Bethmann.

The Indian Tomb
Directed byFritz Lang
Produced byArtur Brauner
Screenplay byThea von Harbou
Fritz Lang
Werner Jörg Lüddecke
Based onDas indische Grabmal by Thea von Harbou
StarringDebra Paget
Paul Hubschmid
Walter Reyer
Claus Holm
Valéry Inkijinoff
Sabine Bethmann
Music byGerhard Becker
Michel Michelet
CinematographyRichard Angst
Edited byWalter Wischniewsky
Production
company
Central Cinema Company
Rizzoli Film
Regina Production
Critérion Film
Release date
1959
Running time
102 minutes
CountryWest Germany
France
Italy[1][2][3]
LanguageGerman

It is the second of two films comprising what has come to be known as Fritz Lang's Indian Epic; the other is The Tiger of Eschnapur (Der Tiger von Eschnapur). The film was based on the novel Das indische Grabmal, written by Lang's ex-wife, Thea von Harbou, who died in 1954. In 1960 American International Pictures obtained the rights to both films and combined them into one long feature called Journey to the Lost City. Curiously, when the film was dubbed into Spanish, they were shown as two separate films, the second being a continuation of the first.

Interiors were shot at the Spandau Studios in West Berlin with sets designed by the art directors Helmut Nentwig and Willy Schatz.

The film is probably best remembered for Debra Paget's erotically charged "snake dance scene".

Reception

At its initial release, German film critics were especially negative about The Indian Tomb. Die Welt wrote: "Here lies Fritz Lang, once creator of important films like Metropolis and M. The 'Indian tomb' is his own." [i.e, grave as a filmmaker][4] In contrast to those earlier opinions, contemporary American film critics are positive about the film.[5]

See also

Notes
  1. Mannikka, Eleanor. "The Indian Tomb". Allmovie. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved February 18, 2013.
  2. "Das indische Grabmal". BFI Film & Television Database. London: British Film Institute. Retrieved February 18, 2013.
  3. "Das indische Grabmal". Filmportal.de. Retrieved February 18, 2013.
  4. Der deutsche Film der fünfziger Jahre, Heyne Filmbibliothek, 1987, page 170.
  5. "The Indian Tomb" at Rotten Tomatoes


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