Homunculus

Part of the artificial-creature series encompassing Der Golem (1914 and 1920), Alraune (1918, 1928, 1930) and Metropolis (1926), 'Homunculus' was the most popular serial in Germany during World War I even influencing the dress of the fashionableset in Berlin. Foenss, a Danish star, is the perfect creature manufactured in a laboratory by Kuehne. Having discovered his origins, that he has no 'soul' and is incapable of love, he revenges himself on mankind, instigating revolutions and becoming a monstruos but beautiful tyrant, relentlessly pursued by his creator-father who seeks to rectify his mistake. Man’s attempts to create artificial life have long been a staple of cinema science fiction. That plot device achieved a high level of sophistication with director Otto Rippert’s Homunculus series. No grotesque pastiche of human body parts like his notorious counterpart Frankenstein’s monster, Homunculus is the beloved “test-tube child” of a German scientist who lacks only one thing—the capacity to feel love. The film seen here is preserved from a decomposing 35mm nitrate print with tinting and toning that may be a condensed version of the original six-episode series. Structurally, the story (with Italian intertitles) is still intact, and the combination of decomposing nitrate with the remains of the original colors creates an otherworldly beauty that serves to heighten the drama. Homunculus was preserved with funding from The Louis B. Mayer Foundation.