We’re breaking the Sound Barrier rules again. Or bending them slightly. Once more, the new-release film we want to discuss in this episode is actually silent. It’s the theatrical re-release of Fritz Lang’s Der Müde Tod (Destiny, 1921), so we decided to pair it with Ingmar Bergman’s The Seventh Seal (1957). This means that today we are talking about two critically acclaimed films in which young people play games with death.

We’ll be talking about faith, symbolism, storytelling and Max von Sydow’s handsome face. Enjoy!

Sound Barrier: Der Müde Tod (1921) & The Seventh Seal (1957)

Just a quick note: there’s a bit of a wobble on my voice in this podcast – please bear with as it comes and goes and it was a technical hitch, not a permanent thing!

The Silent London Podcast is also available on iTunes and Stitcher. If you like what you hear, please subscribe and leave a rating or review too. The podcast is presented in association with SOAS radio by Peter Baran and Pamela Hutchinson.

If you want to get in touch with us about anything you hear on the podcast then you can post a comment below, or tweet @silentlondon.

The next episode of Sound Barrier will appear in a few weeks’ time. We’ll announce the films for the next podcast about a week before it launches, so you can watch what we’re watching.

You may also enjoy this piece I wrote with Alex Barrett for the BFI: 10 Great German Expressionist Films.