Open ClassicCINEMA
Back to the collection

OPEN CLASSIC CINEMA · 918

Nathan the Wise

1922128 minGermany
Drama

Synopsis

In Jerusalem during the Crusades, Nathan's dealings with people of different faiths place religious divisions beside the obligations of family and everyday life. The Jewish merchant and Sultan Saladin inhabit a world where inherited judgments can obscure shared humanity. The historical drama turns encounters across those divisions into an argument for tolerance.

Watch the film ↓
Video edition
Wikimedia Commons
Original language
No spoken dialogue. Intertitles: German.
This copy runs
122:54
Subtitles
No subtitle track in this language

No spoken dialogue. Intertitles: German. No subtitle track in this language.

Languages and subtitles

No subtitle track in this language

Wikimedia Commons · Manfred Noa · Public domain

Cast

DirectorsManfred Noa

Inspirations

Manfred Noa adapts Lessing's Enlightenment play. The production's sympathetic treatment of a Jewish central character provoked far-right protests in Munich, giving its appeal for tolerance a pointed context in the Germany of its release.

Sources and availability

General references identify the work and its copy. A reference beside an editorial section is linked to the claims checked in that section.

Wikipedia — film referenceWikidata — film identity and credits

Work catalogued as public domain in the United States.

The public-domain references concern the original films in the United States. Rights can differ for other countries, editions, restorations, music or translations. Sources are listed on each film page.

Availability checked on September 12, 2026.

Photograph credit

Photographs cropped, resized and optimized as WebP, displayed in monochrome.

  • Carl de Vogt — Alexander Binder; Ross-Karte Nr. 266/4 (Ausschnitt) · Public domain
  • Werner Krauss — George Grantham Bain Collection (Library of Congress); This image is available from the United States Library of Congress 's Prints and Photographs division under the digital ID ggbain.37082 . This tag does not indicate the copyright status of the attached work. A normal copyright tag is still required. See Commons:Licensing . · Public domain

Audience rating

Loading ratings…

Keep exploring

Collection