Rarely has a film work left such an impact on film and media history as F. W. Murnau's brilliant silent film THE LAST MAN from 1924. The poignant tragicomedy about an ageing hotel porter, stunningly played by the still young Emil Jannings, revolutionized the language of film with its unexpectedly versatile (“unleashed”) camera movements and the absence of text panels. None other than Alfred Hitchcock, who attended the shooting, described THE LAST MAN as the perfect film. The visual spectacle with elaborate buildings, sophisticated film tricks and stylized images is still just as captivating 100 years later as it once inspired Hollywood.

Richard Siedhoff's congenial musical composition, played live by the Metropolis Orchestra Berlin under Burkhard Götze, transforms the visual composition into an intoxicating concert film experience. Siedhoff's new composition oscillates between romanticism, modernism, jazz and tango influences and turns the film into a gripping satire about the overthrown monarchy in the shadow of the Golden 20s.

In conversation with Knut Elstermann, legendary director Volker Schlöndorff - patron of the evening - will give a special introduction and an insight into his very personal relationship with the film.