Carl Theodor Dreyer

**Carl Theodor Dreyer** (; 3 February 1889 – 20 March 1968), also called **Carl Th. Dreyer**, was a Danish movie director and screenwriter. He is thought to be one of the best filmmakers in history. His movies have lots of emotion and has slow pacing. Many of his movies have themes of fate, and evil.

His 1928 movie _The Passion of Joan of Arc_ is thought to be one of the best movies of all time. It is known for its cinematography and close-ups. It is often on the _Sight & Sound_'s lists of the great movies ever made. In 2012's poll, it was voted to be the 9th-best movie by movie critics. It was also voted 37th by movie directors.

Some of his other famous movies were _Michael_ (1924), _Vampyr_ (1932), _Day of Wrath_ (1943), _Ordet_ (_The Word_) (1955), and _Gertrud_ (1964).

### Feature movies

|width="5%"|Year|width="20%"|English title|width="25%"|Original title|width="10%"|Production country|Notes|
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|1919|_The President_|_Præsidenten_|Denmark|based on the novel by Karl Emil Franzos|||||
|1920|_The Parson's Widow_|_Prästänkan_|Sweden|based on the story "Prestekonen" by Kristofer Janson|||||
|1921|_Leaves from Satan's Book_|_Blade af Satans bog_|Denmark|loosely based on _The Sorrows of Satan_|||||
|1922|_Love One Another_|_Die Gezeichneten_|Germany|based on the novel by Aage Madelung|||||
|1922|_Once Upon a Time_|_Der var engang_|Denmark|based on the play by Holger Drachmann|||||
|1924|_Michael_|_Mikaël_|Germany|based on the novel _Mikaël_ (1904) by Herman Bang|||||
|1925|_Master of the House_ (aka _Thou Shalt Honor Thy Wife_)|_Du skal ære din hustru_|Denmark|based on the play by Svend Rindom|||||
|1926|_The Bride of Glomdal_|_Glomdalsbruden_|Norway|based on the novel by Jacob Breda Bull|||||
|1928|_The Passion of Joan of Arc_|_La Passion de Jeanne d'Arc (Jeanne d'Arc lidelse og død) _|France|co-written with Joseph Delteil, author of the novel _Jeanne d'Arc_ (1925, Prix Femina), named the most influential film of all time by the curators of the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival|||||
|1932|_Vampyr_|_Vampyr – Der Traum des Allan Grey_|France/Germany|loosely based on the short story collection _In a Glass Darkly_ (1872) by J. Sheridan Le Fanu|||||
|1943|_Day of Wrath_|_Vredens Dag_|Denmark|based on the play _Anne Pedersdotter_ by Hans Wiers-Jenssen, hymns by Paul La Cour|||||
|1945|_Two People_|_Två människor_|Sweden|based on the play _Attentat_ by W.O. Somin, made in Nazi-related exile in Sweden, the film was disowned by Dreyer and withdrawn from distribution|||||
|1955|_The Word_|_Ordet_|Denmark|based on the play by Kaj Munk|||||
|1964|_Gertrud_|_Gertrud_|Denmark|based on the play by Hjalmar Söderberg|||||

### Short movies

- _Good Mothers_ (_Mødrehjælpen_, 12 min, 1942)
- _Water from the Land_ (_Vandet på landet_, 14 min, 1946)
- _The Struggle Against Cancer_ (_Kampen mod kræften_, 15 min, 1947)
- _The Danish Village Church_ (_Landsbykirken_, 14 min, 1947)
- _They Caught the Ferry_ (_De nåede færgen_, 11 min, 1948)
- _Thorvaldsen_ (10 min, 1949)
- _The Storstrom Bridge_ (_Storstrømsbroen_, 7 min, 1950)
- _The Castle Within the Castle_ (_Et Slot i et slot_, 9 min, 1955)

## Further reading

- Carney, Raymond Francis, Junior, _Speaking the Language of Desire: The Films of Carl Dreyer_, Cambridge University Press, 1989.

## Other websites

- Official website
- CarlDreyer.com (archived)
- In-depth article from 1951 on 'The Tyrannical Dane'
- Bibliography
- Thoughts on My Métier by Carl Theodor Dreyer
- Carl Th. Dreyer by Armond White

## Infobox (person)

- **name**: Carl Theodor Dreyer
- **image**: Carl Theodor Dreyer (1965) by Erling Mandelmann.jpg
- **caption**: Dreyer in 1965
- **birth place**: Copenhagen, Denmark
- **death place**: Copenhagen, Denmark
- **nationality**: Danish
- **occupation**: Film director, screenwriter
- **years active**: 1919–1968
- **children**: 2
- **awards**: **Golden Lion** at the 1955 Venice Film Festival for
 _Ordet_ (_The Word_)