Paracelsus

3/28/2022

Although GW Pabst was unable to the escape the Nazis and had to remain making films under the supervision of the Ministry of Propaganda, it's pretty clear that this director was simply not just going to toe the party line. Here he presents us with quite a straightforward biopic of the eponymous Swiss man, vilified by the established scientific profession, who worked with homeopathy and other types of more traditional methods of treating illness - spurning the modern day (16th Century) more invasive, shall we say, techniques espoused by the medical elite. Werner Krauss is well cast in the title role and the film takes us through his many confrontations with his peers and the wealthy German nobles and businessmen who, many of them, made their business (and sustained their wealth) from the pa