Die Nibelungen: Siegfried on AllMovie

This lushly produced UFA production from Fritz Lang was adapted from the Norse sagas, and also from the Wagner operas Siegfried, Gotterdaemmerung, and Lohengrin. There is also a sequel -- Kremhilde's Revenge (Kriemhild's Rache). Siegfried (Paul Richter), son of King Siegmund, masters the art of forging a sword at the shop of Mime (George John). On his journey home, he hears tales of Kriemhild, the princess of Burgundy (Margarete Schoen). En route to Burgundy, Siegfried slays the dragon Fafnir, and bathes in his blood. This mades him invulnerable to attack -- except for one spot on his shoulder blade which he has missed. After finding the treasure of the dwarfs, Siegfried arrives in Bergundy. He meets the beautiful Kriemhild and accompanies King Gunther (Theodor Loos) to Iceland. The king wins the powerful Brunhilde (Hanna Ralph) as his wife, and Siegfried weds Kriemhild. Brunhilde plots to have Siegfried killed and makes up lies about him to the King. Gunther's uncle, Hagen Tronje (Hans Schlettow), finds Siegfried's weak spot and pierces it with a spear. After confessing that she made up stories about Siegfried, Brunhilde kills herself. An interesting side note: Adolf Hitler and Josef Goebbels both claimed this film as one of their favorites.