Jonna Neiiendam

In 1911 the German poet Hugo von Hofmansthal wrote a new version of the medieval morality play Everyman, and this was staged in Danish translation at the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen in 1915. At the time, it was radical example of symbolist abstraction. Its success inspired a film version, Enhver [Everyman], directed by Vilhelm Glückstadt for Filmfabrikken Danmark. The film, however, was set in a modern-day environment. It depict the moral choice confronting its protagonist at struggle because two attendant spirits, one good and one bad. The protagonist is tempted by dark figure of evil and succumbs, rejecting God and leading a life of iniquity, but he is then haunted by guilty visions until he finally dies, asking God for forgiveness at the last moment.

After years living in the province, the well-respected lawyer Poul Lindorph returns to the capital. While he is expected to take up the post of Director of Public Prosecutions, his wife Maria is far less enthusiastic about returning to the city. She fears bumping into the editor Asp, with whom she shares a secret: Several years ago, she became Asp’s mistress in order to save Poul and herself from financial ruin. The anxiety of being exposed drives her to make a fateful decision. (stumfilm.dk)