The Devil Worshippers

The Devil Worshippers
Directed byMuhsin Ertuğrul[1][2]
Written byMarie Luise Droop
Based onKarl May (novels)
Produced byUstad Film Dr. Droop & Co.
Starring
CinematographyJoseph Rona
Distributed byFilmhaus Bruckmann & Co.
Release date
  • 2 January 1921 (1921-01-02)
Running time
76 minutes
CountryWeimar Republic
LanguageSilent

The Devil Worshippers (German: Die Teufelsanbeter) is a six-chapter 1921 silent German film written by Marie Luise Droop,[3] directed by Muhsin Ertuğrul[1][2] and featuring Carl de Vogt in the title-role of Kara Ben Nemsi.[4] De Vogt's career as an actor stretched into the 1960s, where he appeared in a number of the then-popular German crimi films.[3] Later horror-star Béla Lugosi is also featured in one of his first supporting roles in a film, although his precise role in the film is unknown (some sources say he played a character called Pir Kamek).

The film was an adaptation of two Karl May novels (The Desert and Wild Kurdistan).[1] It was one of the first German films to be based on the works of Karl May, who was normally known for his novels set in the old American West[3]).

This film was the first of a trilogy of the production company "Ustad-Film" starring actor Carl de Vogt, but it was only released as the third in the cinemas. In several scenes, this black-and-white film has some coloring, e.g. blue for night scenes.

The film is said to have premiered on 2 January 1921 at "Vaters Lichtspiele" at Würzburg,[1] but the first showing is only documented for 14 January 1921 at Wilhelmsburg. The film is now considered to be lost.

  1. ^ a b c d "Němé mayovky - Filmy | Karl May - Mayovky na Internetu".
  2. ^ a b "Die Teufelsanbeter | filmportal.de".
  3. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference tome was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference portal was invoked but never defined (see the help page).