“Faust was one of the most pictorially beautiful films ever made, a supreme example of German studio craftsmanship, at times seeming like a Dürer or Bruegel come to life. The expressionistic medieval settings were beautifully lighted; strange apparations and weird camera tricks added a mystical atmosphere; low angles and ceilings were again employed. In the famous scene where Mephisto and the rejuvenated Faust fly through the air, the camera, placed on a roller coaster device, travelled over miles of miniature cities and country.
“The leading role was played by Gösta Ekman, noted Swedish actor, who was able to project successfully the extreme contrast between youth and old age.... But...it was Emil Jannings who ran away with the picture, dressed in a long black cape to make him appear more slender, and playing with mischief and subtle humor a very delightful Mephistopheles. In fact, it was a conception and treatment of Mephisto which overbalanced the picture; the main theme of Faust was lost, as well as any genuine emotional quality....” --Theodore Huff, “An Index to the Films of F.W. Murnau,” Sight & Sound