Carl Theodor Dreyer - Michael (1924)

Michael (1924)

German/Silent/B&W

Directed by:

Carl Theodor Dreyer

Written by:

Herman Bang

Thea von Harbou

Carl Theodor Dreyer

Cast:

Walter Slezak...Michael

Benjamin Christensen...Claude Zoret

Nora Gregor...Countess Lucia Zamikow

Robert Garrison...Charles Switt, journalist

Max Auzinger...Jules, principal steward of the house

Didier Aslan...Duke de Monthieu

Alexander Murski...Mr. Adelsskjold

Grete Mosheim...Mrs. Alice Adelsskjold

Karl Freund...LeBlanc, art dealer

Wilhelmine Sandrock...Widow de Monthieu

A famous painter falls in love with one of his models, Michael.

Michael (also known as Mikaël, Chained: The Story of the Third Sex, and Heart's Desire) was a German silent film released in 1924, directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer, director of other notable silents such as The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928), Master of the House (1925), and Leaves from Satan's Book (1921). The film stars Walter Slezak as the eponymous Michael, the young assistant and model to the artist Claude Zoret (Benjamin Christensen). 

The film is based on Herman Bang's 1902 novel Mikaël. It is the second screen adaptation of the book, the first being The Wings, made eight years prior by director Mauritz Stiller. Michael, however, follows Bang's storyline much more closely than the earlier film version.

Initial responses to the film included some major objections. Film critic Mordaunt Hall, writing in December, 1926 for The New York Times, pronounced:

"Chained" is a dull piece of work, redeemed only by some artistic scenes and Benjamin Christensen's able portrayal of Claude Zoret, an artist...The actress cast as a princess does not screen well, and Walter Slezak, who figures as the youth, gives a stilted, amateurish impersonation.

He criticises the film for what he perceived as opportunism for a German director to take a "fling at France" by filming less than favorable national figures on the screen (Zoret was purportedly based on French sculptor Auguste Rodin). The homosexual undertones also upset reviewers, since "Michael [was] one of the very few big-budget mainstream studio productions from the silent period that [dealt] with homosexuality; although it remains implicit, it was readily apparent to many contemporaries."

After Dreyer had further established himself as a prominent director through his later films – most notably The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928), which is considered a masterpiece – critics began to reevaluate Michael. From the perspective of auteur theory, this film exhibits many trademark elements of Dreyer's personal directorial style, such as his use of close-ups in a "way that... makes a tranquil picture of overwhelming feelings." It has also been suggested that the film reflects personal feelings harboured by Dreyer after a purported homosexual affair.

The film has been cited to have influenced several directors. Alfred Hitchcock drew upon motifs from Michael for his script for The Blackguard (1925). 

Along with Different From the Others (1919) and Sex in Chains (1928), Michael is widely considered a landmark in gay silent cinema.