Lotte H. Eisner
Encyclopedia
Lotte H. Eisner was a French-German film critic, historian, writer and poet.
She was born Lotte Henriette Eisner in Berlin as a daughter of a Jewish merchant. After studies in Berlin and Munich, from 1927, she worked as a theater and film critic for German newspapers, working for, among others, Film-Kurier, a daily film newspaper published in Berlin.
In 1933 she fled from Germany to France to avoid anti-Jewish persecution by the Nazis. During World War II
she hid for a time, but finally was caught and interned in the French concentration camp at the town of Gurs
in Aquitaine
, France. She managed to survive the war, and after the Liberation she returned to Paris. She worked closely with Henri Langlois
, the founder of the Cinémathèque Française
, where she worked as a Chief Archivist from 1945 until her retirement in 1975.
Lotte H. Eisner continued to write for the monthly Cahiers du Cinéma
and La Revue du Cinéma. In 1974, learning that Eisner was seriously ill and on the verge of death, the German film director Werner Herzog
walked from Munich to Paris to visit her, in the faith that she would be well again when he arrived. His journey is recounted in Herzog's book Of Walking in Ice.
She was awarded membership in the French Legion of Honor in 1982. Wim Wenders' film Paris, Texas
(1984) is dedicated to her memory.
She was born Lotte Henriette Eisner in Berlin as a daughter of a Jewish merchant. After studies in Berlin and Munich, from 1927, she worked as a theater and film critic for German newspapers, working for, among others, Film-Kurier, a daily film newspaper published in Berlin.
In 1933 she fled from Germany to France to avoid anti-Jewish persecution by the Nazis. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
she hid for a time, but finally was caught and interned in the French concentration camp at the town of Gurs
Gurs
Gurs is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in south-western France.Gurs was the site of the Camp Gurs concentration camp. Nothing remains of the camp; after World War II, a forest was planted on the site where it stood.-Geography:...
in Aquitaine
Aquitaine
Aquitaine , archaic Guyenne/Guienne , is one of the 27 regions of France, in the south-western part of metropolitan France, along the Atlantic Ocean and the Pyrenees mountain range on the border with Spain. It comprises the 5 departments of Dordogne, :Lot et Garonne, :Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Landes...
, France. She managed to survive the war, and after the Liberation she returned to Paris. She worked closely with Henri Langlois
Henri Langlois
Henri Langlois was a French film archivist and cinephile. A pioneer of film preservation, Langlois was an influential figure in the history of cinema...
, the founder of the Cinémathèque Française
Cinémathèque Française
The Cinémathèque Française holds one of the largest archives of films, movie documents and film-related objects in the world. Located in Paris, the Cinémathèque holds daily screenings of films from around the world.-History:...
, where she worked as a Chief Archivist from 1945 until her retirement in 1975.
Lotte H. Eisner continued to write for the monthly Cahiers du Cinéma
Cahiers du cinéma
Cahiers du Cinéma is an influential French film magazine founded in 1951 by André Bazin, Jacques Doniol-Valcroze and Joseph-Marie Lo Duca. It developed from the earlier magazine Revue du Cinéma involving members of two Paris film clubs — Objectif 49 and...
and La Revue du Cinéma. In 1974, learning that Eisner was seriously ill and on the verge of death, the German film director Werner Herzog
Werner Herzog
Werner Herzog Stipetić , known as Werner Herzog, is a German film director, producer, screenwriter, actor, and opera director.He is often considered as one of the greatest figures of the New German Cinema, along with Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Margarethe von Trotta, Volker Schlöndorff, Werner...
walked from Munich to Paris to visit her, in the faith that she would be well again when he arrived. His journey is recounted in Herzog's book Of Walking in Ice.
She was awarded membership in the French Legion of Honor in 1982. Wim Wenders' film Paris, Texas
Paris, Texas (film)
Paris, Texas is a 1984 drama film directed by Wim Wenders. The screenplay is by L.M. Kit Carson and playwright Sam Shepard, and the distinctive musical score was composed by Ry Cooder. The cinematography is by Robby Müller....
(1984) is dedicated to her memory.
Writings
- Murnau, London, Secker and Warburg, 1973 ISBN 978-0436097003.
- Fritz LangFritz LangFriedrich Christian Anton "Fritz" Lang was an Austrian-American filmmaker, screenwriter, and occasional film producer and actor. One of the best known émigrés from Germany's school of Expressionism, he was dubbed the "Master of Darkness" by the British Film Institute...
, Da Capo Press, New Edition 1986, ISBN 0306802716 - Die dämonische Leinwand, engl. The Haunted Screen: ExpressionismExpressionismExpressionism was a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Germany at the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it radically for emotional effect in order to evoke moods or ideas...
in the German Cinema and the Influence of Max ReinhardtMax Reinhardt----Max Reinhardt was an Austrian theater and film director and actor.-Biography:...
, Univ of California Press, Second Edition 2008, ISBN 0520257901 - Ich hatte einst ein schönes Vaterland. Memoiren, Munich: dtv, 1988 - in her autobiography she describes her collaboration with the eccentric Henri Langlois.
External links
- An essay by Lotte H. Eisner about Louise BrooksLouise BrooksMary Louise Brooks , generally known by her stage name Louise Brooks, was an American dancer, model, showgirl and silent film actress, noted for popularizing the bobbed haircut. Brooks is best known for her three feature roles including two G. W...
and the film Pandora's BoxPandora's Box (film)Pandora's Box is a 1929 German silent melodrama film based on Frank Wedekind's plays Erdgeist and Die Büchse der Pandora . Directed by Austrian filmmaker Georg Wilhelm Pabst, the film stars Louise Brooks, Fritz Kortner, and Francis Lederer...
(1929), directed by Georg Wilhelm PabstGeorg Wilhelm Pabst-Biography:Pabst was born in Raudnitz, Bohemia, Austria-Hungary , the son of a railroad employee.Returning from the United States, he was in France when World War I began...
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