Tagebuch einer Verlorenen (1929)

Director:

Georg Wilhelm Pabst

Writers:

Margarete Böhme (novel)
Rudolf Leonhardt (writer)

Release Date:

24 April 1930 (Japan)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Thymiane is a beautiful young girl who is not having a storybook life. Her governess, Elizabeth, is thrown out of her home when she is pregnant...

Plot Keywords:

Escape | Brothel | Countess | Sexual Repression | Dark Secret

Cast

Louise Brooks	...	Thymian
André Roanne	...	Count Nicolas Osdorff
Josef Rovenský	...	Robert Henning
Fritz Rasp	...	Meinert
Vera Pawlowa	...	Aunt Frieda
Franziska Kinz	...	Meta
Arnold Korff	...	Elder Count Osdorff
Andrews Engelmann	...	The director of the establishment
Valeska Gert	...	The director's wife
Edith Meinhard	...	Erika
Sybille Schmitz	...	Elisabeth
Sig Arno	...	Guest (as Siegfried Arno)
Kurt Gerron	...	Dr. Vitalis
Hedwig Schlichter
Hans Casparius

Also Known As:

Diary of a Lost Girl (USA)

Runtime:

104 min | Germany:100 min (restored version) (24 fps) | USA:79 min | 115 min (Kino Print)

Country:

Germany

Language:

German

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Silent

Company:

Pabst-Film

Goofs:

Continuity: The scene in the notary's office (for the reading of the will): Thymian moves over to the window and looks out. Meinert joins her, and puts his hand on her shoulder. The camera view suddenly changes, and his hand is no longer on her shoulder. It changes back to its original POV, and the position has changed again (though his hand is now drawing away from her shoulder).

Movie Connections:

Remake of Das Tagebuch einer Verlorenen (1918)

Louise Brooks And Sordid Storyline Keep You Interested

I was a really looking forward to seeing this production, but I was surprised to see that I was not particularly enamored with it. Pabst's direction is very generic but the material is fascinating enough to grab the viewer's attention. The film tackles a series of adult issues in a bold manner. Rape, pedophilia and prostitution are just a few things the movie handles in a candid way. There are no subtle insinuations here; everything is presented the way it is, without sugarcoating anything. I guess my main, and probably only valid complaint, is that the heroine of the story is such a passive character that I had problems connecting with her. The star of the film is the fascinating Louise Brooks, but her character does not allow her to show any real dramatic range. The camera is in love with Brooks, no doubt about that, but she lacks the fire of someone like Garbo; even Joan Crawford would shredded the movie to pieces with her great magnetism. I'm not sure if it is a narrative problem or an issue related to Brooks's dramatic abilities, but her character is a bit boring. Still, it is an interesting movie.