(Spoilers). The Indian Tomb (actually titled The Tomb of Love in the opening credits of the Fantomas DVD release) is part two of Fritz Lang's Indian Epic, and I have to say that this and Part One, The Tiger of Eschnapur, are quickly become two of my favorites of this director, despite their deficiencies. As I said in my notes about Tiger, this two part production has a lot going for it, not the least of which are the remarkable locations, cinematography, Langian screen compositions and costumes. This is eye candy to the max with one amazing image after another, but its modern day Adam and Eve storyline and supernatural microcosm are also noteworthy. Part One set the stage, pitted the characters against one another, and in Part Two, the rivalry between architect Harald Berger and the Maharaja Chandra, and the political intrigue finally explode in full force. In Part Two the pacing also picks up. Speaking of that, I must mention that the first time I watched both films, I found them rather slow and uneventful, particularly Part Two - but something about them brought me back and about a year later I re-watched them. The second viewing was a very different experience. I saw things I completely missed the first time around. The clever irony, the emphasis on the spiritual world, the correlation of animals to the main characters and the Gods, the existence of a subversive underworld, and the interplay of opposing forces all came into focus in the most poetic fashion. On first viewing I think I preferred the first part, but I now feel they are equally strong. In Part Two, the plot to overthrow the prince and the arcs of the key characters (particularly Paget's Seetha character) carried more weight on second viewing. As someone else said, the films are structured in a cliff hanger serial style, not unlike the Indiana Jones films. Unlike Spielberg, however, Lang's Indian Epic isn't afraid to take its characters seriously. There is humor, but the romance of character, locale, theme and story take a front seat. There is more going on here than just a fantastic adventure. At the end of Part One, the hero, Berger, and the Indian dancer, Seetha, beaten by the sun in the desert, collapse, and Berger shoots his gun towards the sun in an act of defiance against God. This theme of defiance towards God develops throughout Part Two. And Part Two also has Debra Paget's erotic dance of death (with an unfortunately fake snake). As I mentioned in my comments about Tiger, Paget basically runs away with the whole show, and her erotic dance in this part certainly adds to it. With her many jeweled costumes contrasted by her dark makeup, she never radiated on screen more beautifully. She is truly one of the great faces of that era. Her scant gilded costume is very risqué for 1960, and I can't image it didn't get censored back then. Yet, the dance is beyond erotic, for it also intelligently expands the drama of the story. Lang's compositions speak volumes about the characters and an entire essay could be written about them. Suffice to say, even if the meaning of the shots don't hit you, you'll still be blown away by the exquisite colors, production design, and costumes. The use of white is astounding. And let me mention the music by Michel Michelet. It's quite a stylish score, rich with exotic instrumentation, Indian marches and fanciful dances. Like the exquisite images, the score adds considerably to the alluring atmosphere. If you're a Fritz Lang fan, and you don't mind silent film pacing, you're probably of an age and mind-set to appreciate this epic. It made me wonder what Lang would have done with Metropolis had he shot it in 3-strip Technicolor. There are some deficiencies I must mention, however. Some of the visual effects are less than satisfactory (the aforementioned snake being the worst offender), and a few of the sets look like sets. Also, some of the Indian characters (Chandra, for example) are not Indians but white actors in makeup. Such was the times, but even as recently as 1982's Gandi, white actors (Ben Kingsley) were playing non- whites. Nevertheless, the broad strokes performances work well in this kind of adventure. The Fantomas DVD of Lang's Indian Epic has both German and English language available. Even though the dubbing is regrettable, the English version is preferable (unless you speak German), since the subtitles avert your eyes from the spectacular imagery. If you approach this with an open mind, Lang's Indian Epic will sweep you away to a wondrous world.
Review of The Indian Tomb
