Part one of a ‘German trilogy’ continued by Karl May (1974) and Hitler, ein Film aus Deutschland (1977). “The ‘requiem’ refers to a closed aesthetic system, close to music and musical forms, and to my idea of film as music of the future. The goal was to break with the common perception of cinema. Here, I put forward an alternative, working on a speech close to the monologue, using strict forms, fixed shots, motionless frames, opera sceneries in the background, a clarity, an irony, an alienation, an epic pathos, underlined by the music of Wagner.” (Syberberg)
Ludwig. Requiem for a Virgin King
Ludwig. Requiem für einen jungfräulichen König
Hans-Jürgen Syberberg
1972
West Germany
134’