Valdemar Psilander

Miss Vibeke takes no pleasure in hearing of her fiancé’s imminent arrival. For she is in fact in love with a handsome forester, Poul, and now the two lovers will only be able to meet in secret. But one night when Poul visits Vibeke in her room, things do not go as planned. (stumfilm.dk)

The young Englishman Cecil Brown lives and works on a tea plantation in India. When he is about to set off to London on leave, his Indian girlfriend Profula wants to go with him. He refuses even though she begs him. Only when she threatens to take her own life if they do not immediately get married and travel together to London does he give in. Their early days together as a married couple in London are pure happiness, but soon problems arise. (Stumfilm.dk)

Upon suddenly losing his fortune, the young Count Berner sets out for New York to try his luck there. With his winning nature and great drive, he quickly advances from being a stevedore to becoming a chauffeur for a well-known millionaire. But when he embarks on a relationship with the millionaire’s daughter Anny, he gets into trouble: another suitor of hers gets jealous and will stop at nothing to get Berner out of the way.(Stumfilm.dk)

A satire on movie newsreels combines with humorous narration of silent screen footage in this one reel comedy short.

FRAGMENT | These recordings were part of Valdemar Psilander’s live performance at the Royal Orfeum in Budapest, in February and March 1914. Psilander financed the show himself, and it was a mixture of film and theatre under the title Count Dahlborg’s Secret. The film footage, which unfortunately hasn’t been preserved in its entirety, opened the performance, after which Psilander himself rode onto the stage and continued the action. (stumfilm.dk)

Stella, a circus princess, has two suitors: young, handsome Count Waldberg and the greying, hidebound jeweller Hirsch. Stella’s love for Waldberg drives Hirsch mad with jealousy. He will stop at nothing to be near the woman of his dreams. When the count loses a staggering sum to the jeweller in a gambling duel, Stella embarks on a fateful mission to save her beloved’s honour. (Stumfilm.dk)

The circus clown Joe Higgins is scouted by a world famous artist agent, who promises him fame and fortune. Joe takes the offer on one condition: His fiancèe Daisy and her parents are coming with him. Soon, Joe finds himself performing on the biggest stages in the city, enthralling his audience night after night. But the glamorous life in the big city is no fairy tale after all.

19-year-old Melitta von Windheim is profoundly fascinated by the famous actor Ludvig Romay. That’s why she can hardly believe her own good fortune, as it turns out that her cousin Rudolf is an old friend of Romay and wants to introduce them. Romay and Melitta hit it off straight away, and before poor Rudolf can look twice, the woman he’s in love with is married off to someone else. Over the years, the marriage crumbles, and a tragic accident hits Melitta so hard that she has to leave for warmer climes. Romay continues his career and the wild social life that comes with it, but his past suddenly catches up with him. (Stumfilm.dk)

The popular artist Frank Harvey has been offered a job in America. On the voyage across the Atlantic, Harvey catches sight of the captain’s beautiful daughter, and the two quickly become good friends. However, a fire breaks out in the ship’s hold, and while the crew struggles to put out the flames, Harvey has to keep the passengers calm with his very best performances, and pray for his and the lives of others. (Stumfilm.dk)

The manufacturer Laroque stops at nothing when trying to destroy his enemies, and this time Fréderic Nessières, one of his competitors, is in the line of fire. With his diabolical, hypnotic power, Laroque has snared Nessières’s wife, Madeleine, in his evil web, and she will now do anything to help her husband’s enemy. But even though Laroque’s first plan to ruin Nessières fails, he does not give up. Once he has selected a victim, he will quite literally fight to the death to vanquish them. (stumfilm.dk)

Young hothead Billy, quick to speak and drifting into a life of crime, has many encounters the community's lay preacher, John Redmond. Billy's conscience stirs as Redmond recounts his life's story. Holger-Madsen supplied three different endings for the film's various releases.

er.After a series of failed stock market speculations, the banker Grant is on the verge of bankruptcy. To make matters worse, he has spent a large sum of money entrusted to him by an old friend, Werner, a factory owner. Despairing, he decides to take his own life, but his suicide attempt is interrupted at the last minute by his daughter Lilly. She persuades Werner to let bygones be bygones, but this in turn puts her in a difficult situation: Torn between her boyfriend, the young painter Poul Holck, and the love for her father. (Stumfilm.dk)

Out of the blue, war is declared, making two otherwise friendly neighbouring nations deadly enemies. Amid the inferno, finding themselves on different sides of the conflict, Elsa and Alexis are forced to call off their engagement. Will they ever get back together again? (stumfilm.dk)

It’s the spring of 1793 and the French Revolution is raging. King Louis XVI had been beheaded in Paris a few months earlier, and the whole of Europe is teetering on the brink of war. Austrian troops move across the country’s northern border, and among many other members of the French nobility who emigrated, Erneste des Tressailles also serves as an officer in the enemy ranks. Although he risks the death penalty for treason, he rides to Trionville Castle to marry his young bride Alaine. The revolutionary troops arrive quickly and storm the castle, but Alaine is determined to save her groom. (Stumfilm.dk)

While holidaying, the beautiful heiress Grace meets the love of her life. Percy Fancourt is a cowboy and hardly a suitable match for a millionaire’s daughter – at least not if you ask her father. Reluctantly, she returns home. Then, a surprising piece of news reaches heartbroken Percy: a huge estate in London has been willed to him as sole heir. Will his newfound wealth make his marriage to Grace possible? (stumfilm.dk)

Alice, the seventeen-year-old daughter of millionaire John Payne, is dying. Doctor Sheldon, deep in grief due to the very recent loss of his wife, reluctantly agrees to help and saves Alice’s life at the very last minute. While he was treating his patient, a fire has broken out in his home, and upon his return the sight of the flames consuming the flower-covered coffin still laid out in the living room takes a heavy toll on his psyche. He is admitted to a mental hospital, where Payne and Alice’s frequent visits help him get back on his feet. But darkness still lurks in a corner of his mind. (Stumfilm.dk)

Doctor Willy Prager’s long, selfless office hours come at the expense of his attention-seeking fiancée. During a garden party, Willy is summoned to an ill child’s bedside and leaves his fiancée Erna in the hands of his faithful friend Alfred. Out of sheer boredom, Erna tries to kiss Alfred, but the loyal friend rejects her. Erna feels devastated and lies to Willy that it was Alfred who tried to seduce her. However, Alfred refuses to tarnish Erna’s honour and tacitly accepts when Willy challenges him to a duel. (Stumfilm.dk)

On a holiday, the family Gram meets a young, mysterious man who turns out to be a Mormon. In spite of her fiancèe's presence, the daughter Nina is drawn to the stranger. Hypnotized, she soon follows his every step. When she finally awakes from her trance, she finds herself on a ship to Utah, in the clutches of a dangerous man. (Stumfilm.dk)

At a party, Frede meets the popular actress Edith, with whom he falls head over heels in love. One day, he’s in the theatre to see her perform, he overhears a conversation which shows her in a new and bad light. Frede chooses to travel away, and he doesn’t see Edith until many years later, when she comes on an unannounced visit. (stumfilm.dk)

When journalist Warren discovers that a charming pilot is about to seduce his wife, he decides to take revenge. He sneaks into the aircraft and turns it into a death trap. There’s a threat of a fatal ending, but the seducer also has an ace up his sleeve. In the end, both men learn a lesson they’ll never forget. (stumfilm.dk)

A husband and wife play the roles of Othello and Desdemona on stage, and find themselves in a similar situation in their own lives.

FRAGMENT | Wild love drives a woman to steal money from her own father. It is the lodging lieutenant Von Bremer, who has charmed her with empty words. Von Bremer leaves with the money, while the father throws the woman out. Twenty-two years later, a young man seeks accommodation with Von Bremer and his wife. Von Bremer suddenly discovers cracks in his happy marriage. Will he discover in time that it’s his nemesis that has caught up with him after all these years? (Stumfilm.dk)

A frivolous count disposes of his unwanted, newborn child in a first-class train compartment bound for Moscow. The train staff takes care of little Eva, but decide to send her to an orphanage so that she can have a formal education. At 18 years old, Eva must find a guardian before she’s thrown out onto the street. In a wicked twist of fate, Eva’s father, Count Iwan, seems unwittingly interested in the young beauty. Hopefully they realise their familiarly resemblances before it’s too late. (Stumfilm.dk)

Mrs. Hellertz is distraught about her son Aage, who – in spite of a good pay and generous support from home – manages to spend every penny on debauchery in the night life. He indebts himself deeply and falls into the clutches of a malicious loan shark who is out for Mrs. Hellertz's fortune. To complicate things further, Aage starts a relationship with the loan shark's beautiful daughter. (Stumfilm.dk)

The merchant’s son Aage wants to save his father from bankruptcy by marrying the rich man’s daughter Irma. Aage dutifully courts her, although not a single spark flies between them. One day, Irma’s household receives guests, and Solveig, an 18-year-old beauty, opens Aage’s eyes as to which love he’s about to sacrifice for the sake of his father. Will duty outweigh love for Aage? (Stumfilm.dk)

A corrupt young man somehow keeps his youthful beauty, but a special painting gradually reveals his inner ugliness to all.

Peter Niemand, a blacksmith by trade, is prone to drink and has something of a bad reputation with his comrades and his employer alike. One day, the factory owner is finally fed up with the lazy worker, giving him one last chance to change his ways. If not, he will be fired. Seized by a fierce desire for revenge, Niemand decides to burn down the factory. But before he can put his plans into action, he falls asleep, and in his dream he sees himself in the place of his employer. Can these visions help make Peter Niemand a better person? (stumfilm.dk)

Of the films that Psilander made at Nordisk during the first two years it is the film Dødsspring til Hest fra Cirkuskuplen (The Great Circus Catastrophe), that is worth noting. Maybe not so much for Psilander's acting, but for the sensational, action-packed storylines that he was in. This film shows the other side of Psilander's fame: his daring. He was an excellent rider and looked fantastic in long riding boots and elegant riding jackets and this skill was exploited in his films.

The ballet pupil Camilla Favier makes for a quick success and falls for the author Jean Mayol. She discovers a love letter to him from a rich married woman and is devastated. In revenge she reveals the secret love story for the cuckolded husband and his guests at a big party. Later she finds a new love message from the wayward wife and brings it to the husband, who gets furious, grabs a pistol and incites the climax of the story.

A movie about monomania from 1914.

Court huntsman, Søtoft, is courting his daughter Else’s lady-in-waiting, Miss Engelke. That’s why it’s a bit of a punch in the stomach when, late one evening, he discovers his son Ove in close contact with her. Chamberlain von Plessen, who had been gossiping to Søtoft and is himself spying on the young couple, is going to set fire to the room they’re in. The hurt Søtoft wants to leave the young couple to their cruel fate – that is until he discovers that it’s not Engelke, but his daughter Else, who is trapped in the flames with her brother. (Stumfilm.dk)

FRAGMENT | Solicitor von Ramm lives alone with his little daughter, whom he had with his teenage sweetheart Klara. At a party, he randomly encounters Klara, who has since married the talented pulmologist von Esmarck. Ramm gives into Klara’s desire to see their child again, and the love between them is suddenly rekindled. When the child falls ill, Ramm has to beg Dr. von Esmarck to help, and he finally relents only when Klara reveals that the child is hers. However, von Esmarck is wrongfully convicted of the murder of his old uncle, and Ramm must act as prosecutor against the doctor who just saved his child’s life. In connection with the trial, the scales fall from Klara’s eyes, and she now knows with certainty where her heart belongs. Stumfilm.dk

When Lucca meets Lt Victor quite by chance, he sweeps her off her feet in a whirlwind romance and the couple are quickly engaged. Unfortunately, the cheerful lieutenant turns out to be a drunkard, so the engagement is called off and Victor leaves for South America. When he returns a few years later, he has become an upstanding pillar of the community. In the meantime, Lucca has married Mr Rafn, a factory owner, but old feelings flare up when the former couple meet again. When Rafn accidentally learns about the budding relationship, he becomes enraged with jealousy and makes a drastic decision. Stumfilm.dk

INCOMPLETE | The Widow Stein’s children, Vita and Arthur, are as different as night and day. Vita spends all her time taking care of her mother at home, while Arthur squanders his money at the city’s most notorious nightclubs. Vita is engaged to the diligent and striving Jacob, who has to step in when Arthur’s debauched life leads him into great debt. A particularly drunken pub crawl ends tragically when Arthur falls into the harbour and drowns. Vita and her mother grieve deeply, and Jacob, who has sacrificed all his savings to cover his brother-in-law’s debt, must travel to Australia to rebuild a fortune for his and Vita’s future. Here, by a stroke of fortune, he comes into contact with a man who will prove to be of great importance to himself, Vita and her mother. (Stumfilm.dk)

The only surviving excerpt of a documentary on film production in Weimar Germany, featuring the different personalities of several famous directors of the era at work on the set including Fritz Lang, Robert Wiene, and E.A. Dupont.

Two friends, Fritz and Theodor, make the acquaintance of Christine and Mizzi, who are also friends. Fritz is immediately captivated by Christine, who is bashful and modest as opposed to the eager, effervescent Mizzi. But even though the love between the two grows, Christine is not the only woman in Fritz’s life. His affair with a married woman will prove to have fatal consequences.

A beautiful but eccentric countess amuses herself by subjecting her numerous suitors to silly tests. Most men turn into frenzied dogs in the company of the countess, but there’s one who behaves differently in quite a lascivious way. Chas Burns isn’t easily ordered around and won’t hesitate to do anything to get his way. Not even when it turns out that a death ride on the rails is the only direct route to success and the countess’ cunning heart. (Stumfilm.dk)

Countess von Würzen is of a certain age, but she still captivates the men she meets on her way. When her daughter Elsa announces her engagement to the young, handsome Leopold von Raven, the countess suddenly feels the years creeping up on her. So she cannot help herself when, at the engagement party, she finds Leopold suddenly leaning in towards her. (Stumfilm.dk)

Chancellor von Rallenstein is terrorizing the country. He even forces Princess Irene to marry Prince Deima, even though she is already engaged to her true love, Pawlow. When Rallenstein finds out about their secret wedding, he furiously sets out to sabotage the marriage. (stumfilm.dk)

A young bank clerk Karl Fribert falls hopelessly in love with the celebrated operetta primadonna Lydia, and faithfully and chivalrously puts his deepest feelings on display, following the goal of his love so vehemently that he does not turn back from either theft or murder. Lost.

About all the complications that can arise when women appear in men's costumes, even if it's to save a friend in need.

Promotional film for Nordisk Films Kompagni.