Genuine: The Tragedy of a Vampire (Silent)

Genuine, the exotic priestess of an ancient cult, is made callous and cruel by her subjects' worship. When her tribe is massacred, she is sold as a slave to an elderly German aristocrat, Lord Melo. Unable to bear another man gazing upon his acquisition, he imprisons her in his home. But when a handsome young man visits Melo, it is a simple matter for Genuine to convince him to slit the old man's throat. Now free, she lusts for the power she once knew, and death will surely befall anyone who stands in her way.

Director Robert Wiene, anxious to repeat the success of his prior film, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1919), once again teamed with screenwriter Carl Mayer to craft this tale of psychological horror. Expressionist painter Cesar Klein was enlisted to create bizarre, claustrophobic sets reminiscent of Caligari. Star Fern Andra was actually born in Watseka, Illinois and had worked as a circus aerialist. While on a tour of Europe, she was discovered by famed director Max Reinhardt, subsequently enjoying popularity as a leading lady in several UFA features. Upon her return to America, she made only two films, The Eyes of the World and Lotus Lady (both 1930), and then retired from show business to marry actor Ian Keith. Though unfairly overshadowed by The Cabinet of Caligari, Genuine serves as a testament to the bold creativity of German cinema during the Weimar era.

BONUS: THE FALL OF THE HOUSE OF USHER (BW, 1928, Silent): This abstract adaptation of the classic Edgar Allan Poe short story is one of the first examples of the American avant-garde movement that developed outside of Hollywood in the 1920s. Directors James Sibley Watson and Melville Webber use techniques borrowed from German Expressionism to illustrate the madness of the doomed Roderick Usher. Directed by James Sibley Watson & Melville Webber.

• silent