DramaFantasy

The Wandering Jew

Old Jerusalem: Matathias, spiteful over his lover's illness, spits on Jesus along the road to Calvary, and is cursed to live endlessly until His return. The Crusades, 1150: Matathias, now an anonymous knight, competes for glory in combat and for the wife of a soldier. Palermo, 1290: Matteos Battadios witnesses the death of his young son, leading to conflict with his wife over whether to take comfort in Christianity. Seville, 1560: Dr Matteos Battadios dedicates himself to the treatment and comfort of the poor, but his life and work are endangered by the arrival of the Spanish Inquisition.

Release Date : 1933-11-15

Language :English

Adult : false

Status : Released

Production Company : Twickenham Film Studios

Production Country : United Kingdom

Alternative Titles :

Cast

Character Name : Matathias / The Unknown Knight / Dr Matteos Battadios

Original Name : Conrad Veidt

Gender : Male

Character Name : Judith (Phase I)

Original Name : Marie Ney

Gender : Female

Character Name : Pontius Pilate (Phase I)

Original Name : Basil Gill

Gender : Male

Character Name : Rachel (Phase I)

Original Name : Cicely Oates

Gender : Female

Character Name : Joanne de Beaudricourt (Phase II)

Original Name : Anne Grey

Gender : Female

Character Name : Boemund, Prince of Tarentum (Phase II)

Original Name : Bertram Wallis

Gender : Male

Character Name : Isaachar (Phase II)

Original Name : Hector Abbas

Gender : Male

Character Name : Lord de Beaudricourt (Phase II)

Original Name : Dennis Hoey

Gender : Male

Character Name : Godfrey, Duke of Normandy (Phase II)

Original Name : Jack Livesey

Gender : Male

Character Name : Phirous (Phase II)

Original Name : Kiyoshi Takase

Gender : Male

Character Name : Knight (Phase II)

Original Name : Alan Napier

Gender : Male

Character Name : Gianella (Phase III)

Original Name : Joan Maude

Gender : Female

Character Name : Pietro Morelli (Phase III)

Original Name : John Stuart

Gender : Male

Character Name : Andrea Michelotti (Phase III)

Original Name : Arnold Lucy

Gender : Male

Character Name : Merchant (Phase III)

Original Name : Hay Petrie

Gender : Male

Character Name : Olalla Quintana (Phase IV)

Original Name : Peggy Ashcroft

Gender : Female

Character Name : Juan de Texada (Phase IV)

Original Name : Francis L. Sullivan

Gender : Male

Character Name : Ferera (Phase IV)

Original Name : Felix Aylmer

Gender : Male

Character Name : Castro (Phase IV)

Original Name : Ivor Barnard

Gender : Male

Character Name : Zapportas (Phase IV)

Original Name : Abraham Sofaer

Gender : Male

Character Name : Juan, the Servant (Phase IV)

Original Name : Stafford Hilliard

Gender : Male

Character Name : First Monk (Phase IV)

Original Name : Robert Gilbert

Gender : Male

Character Name : Second Monk (Phase IV)

Original Name : Conway Dixon

Gender : Male

Reviews

CinemaSerf

@Geronimo1967

2022-06-13

Told in an historically episodic fashion, Conrad Veidt depicts the Jewish man "Matathias", who helped to convince Pilate to crucify Jesus. By way of punishment, he is condemned to walk the Earth facing, enduring and surviving many of the trials that faced his race as history marched on. It is a history, of sorts. Many of the events depicted are reflections of true events - pogroms, the Spanish inquisition etc., but it's the way in which he lives his life, yearning for release - however that may manifest itself - that makes this a decent film to watch and Veidt manages this amalgam of roles quite skilfully. You can see a few short cameos from Peggy Ashcroft and Francis L. Sullivan that help to enhance this depiction of the chronology of the persecution - and persevenence - of his race, too. I don't take this film as a seriously evaluative (of religion) piece of cinema. Though overtly Christian in outlook, it is not a ram-it-down-your throat type of production. It has enough romance and adventure to keep it from moralising too much - and to keep it enjoyable to watch. I found the use of light especially effective throughout, but potently when inflicting and then rescinding his punishment and although the ending spoils it somewhat - it is abrupt, and asks way more questions than it answers - I suspect it pleased our immortal pilgrim.