Salomé

Even more highly paid than the much better-known Mary Pickford in 1918, Alla Nazimova did not receive the attention she deserved for a long time. Born in Crimea and a star on Broadway, Nazimova began producing her own films after her contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, including her adaptation of the Oscar Wilde one-act play Salomé: After being spurned by the deeply religious John the Baptist, Salomé seeks brutal revenge on him - with the help of her stepfather Herod, who himself cannot take his eyes off her ... With its, according to Nazimova, exclusively queer cast and its open treatment of sexuality, the opulent film caused several scandals. Today, the crossover of camp, fin de siècle and biblical material sees itself as an avant-garde homage to Oscar Wilde. (Bianca Jasmina Rauch)