Die Spinnen, 1. Teil – Der Goldene See is a German western first released in 1919, directed by Fritz Lang. The film stars Carl de Vogt, Ressel Orla, Georg John, Lil Dagover and Paul Biensfeldt. It has also been released under the title: The Spiders, Part 1: The Golden Lake. Our overall rating for this film is: good.
While Modern Men sleep soundly in their beds, ancient civilizations plot to invade.
While Today’s Women keep their houses pristine, secret societies send hooded hoodlums skulking through the closets and corridors.
Who can peer to the depths of this shadowy world?!
Only a most intrepid gentleman—a courageous fellow who loves culture but shuns convenience. Kay Hoog is the man we need.
Kay Hoog. Millionaire, treasure hunter, athlete, adventurer. Dashing bachelor; a man who, in the words of his greatest nemesis (and would-be lover), ‘lives only for sport.’ But Hoog (Carl de Vogt) finds ribbons and cups mere distractions—his first love is adrenaline, and the more dangerous and exotic its pursuit, the better. His mansion is filled with the spoils of missions-past: Indian statues; African masks; golden Buddhas—trophies he would not have sought if they were easy to find.
So this is where Spielberg got Indiana Jones.
In San Francisco, well-known sportsman Kay Hoog announces to a club that he has found a message in a bottle with a map drawn by a Harvard professor who has gone missing. The map tells of a lost Incan civilization that possesses an immense treasure. Hoog immediately plans an expedition to find it. But Lio Sha, the head of a criminal organization known as the Spiders, is determined to get the treasure for herself and plans a rival expedition.
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Fritz Lang's Spiders is about the adventures of high-society adventurer Kay Hoog (Carl de Vogt, whose gaunt, expressionless face resembles a younger William S. Hart) and his arch nemesis, a secret criminal organization known as the Spiders. Part 1 (''The Golden Lake'') is a treasure hunt that takes both Kay and Spiders mastermind Lio Sha (Ressel Orla) to Peru, where they battle primitive Incas (who capture Lio for a human sacrifice) and each other for a fortune in hidden gold. Part 2 (''The Diamond Ship'') is a longer and far more intricate conspiracy involving a hidden criminal underground beneath the streets of Chinatown, a legendary lost jewel known as the Buddha Head Diamond, and an ambitious plot to rule all of Asia. Full of secret passages, coded messages, treasure maps, double-crosses, and death-defying escapes, Lang's pulpy action-fantasy borrows from the wacky serials of Louis Feuillaude (notably the deliriously entertaining Les Vampires). But behind the wild plots, gorgeous sets, and driving, breakneck-paced direction lies a dark undercurrent of death and doom that transforms his gallant hero into a brooding, vengeful spirit.
THE SPIDERS was a two part serial.
But what a serial it is! THE SPIDERS packs in a TON of classic movie serial and pulp magazine goodness into its lengthy nearly three-hour running time! Secret maps, ancient Aztec treasure, human sacrifices, racing in a hot air balloon, hidden caves complete with booby-traps, globe-trotting escapades with a steel-jawed hero (who would make an imposing villain with his chiseled looks), a massive secret criminal organization and most importantly, the never-ending wrath of a woman scorned!
The adventure kicks off in EPISODE 1: THE GOLDEN SEA with our yachting hero Kai Hoog (Carl de Vogt) finding a message in a bottle from a lost Harvard professor detailing the location of a lost Incan tribe in Peru and their endless treasure in a hidden cave. The mysterious criminal organization, The Spiders, have also learned of Hoog’s find and lead by their best agent, Lio Sha (Ressel Orla), promptly steal the map from Hoog’s mansion. The race is on!
For the further adventures of Kay Hoog and his revenge on Lio Sha... See Part Two—
THE DIAMOND SHIP!Coming Soon!
Fritz Lang lovers should indulge. Classic s
