Danton (1931 film)

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Danton
Kortner as Danton
Directed by	Hans Behrendt
Written by	Heinz Goldberg Hans Rehfisch
Produced by	Arnold Pressburger
Starring	Fritz Kortner Lucie Mannheim Gustaf Gründgens
Cinematography	Léonce-Henri Burel Nicolas Farkas
Edited by	René Métain
Music by	Artur Guttmann
Production company	Cine-Allianz Tonfilm
Distributed by	Süd-Film
Release date	21 January 1931 (1931-01-21)
Running time	92 minutes
Country	Germany
Language	German

Danton is a 1931 German historical drama film directed by Hans Behrendt and starring Fritz Kortner, Lucie Mannheim and Gustaf Gründgens.^[1] It depicts the dramatic downfall and execution of Georges Danton in 1794 at the hands of Maximilien Robespierre.^[2]

Plot

The film is set amidst the French Revolution. The revolutionaries are discussing what happened to King Louis XVI should happen. The group around Georges Danton advocates the execution. The king is tried and executed. Further trials against nobles follow and death sentences are pronounced en masse. When Danton visits a prison, he falls in love with the prisoner Louise Gély. Now Danton comes into conflict with his opponent Robespierre. Robespierre succeeds in bringing Danton to the dock and his former comrade-in-arms Danton is also sentenced to death and executed under the guillotine.