Der Tiger von Eschnapur (1959) - film review

Chandra, the Maharajah of Eschnapur invites the architect Harald Berger to his country to work on various building projects.  There, Berger saves the life of a young woman, Seetha, when her party is attacked by a tiger.  Berger falls in love with Seetha, not knowing that she is promised to Chandra.  The Maharajah’s ambitious brother, Prince Ramigani, intends to use this fact so that he can steal the throne...

After a successful period in Hollywood, Fitz Lang returned to Europe to make an ambitious romantic adventure film, of which this is the first instalment.  (The second and concluding part was Das Indische Grabmal ).  The scale of Lang’s ambition is apparent in the sumptuous location filming and huge interior sets, but the absence of the director’s renowned artistic sense is equally noticeable.  The garish design, characterless performances and general lack of atmosphere make this a very poor comparison with Lang’s earlier achievements.  In contrast to such timeless works as Dr  Mabuse, der Spieler (1922),  Metropolis (1927) and M (1931), this film feels badly dated, a horribly kitsch attempt to imitate Indian culture without much in the way of charm and realism, and with certainly no great psychological or narrative depth.

© James Travers 2007

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