INTRODUCTION

Darwin meets Hitchcock in this true-crime tale of paradise found and lost. The Galapagos Affair: Satan Came To Eden is a fascinating documentary portrait of a 1930s murder mystery as strange and alluring as the famous archipelago itself. Fleeing conventional society, a Berlin doctor and his mistress start a new life on uninhabited Floreana Island. But after the international press sensationalizes the exploits of the Galapagos’ “Adam and Eve”, others flock there—including a self-styled Swiss Family Robinson and a gun-toting Viennese Baroness and her two lovers. Clashing personalities are aggravated by the island community’s lusty free-love ethos, and when some of the islanders disappear, suspicions of murder hang in the air leaving an unsolved mystery which remains the subject of local lore today.

To bring this extraordinary story to life, filmmakers Dayna Goldfine and Dan Geller (Ballets Russes) nimbly interweave newly unearthed home movies of these original settlers; testimonies of modern day islanders; stunning HD footage of native flora and fauna; and powerful voice performances by Oscar winner Cate Blanchett, Diane Kruger, Connie Nielsen, Sebastian Koch, Thomas Kretschmann, Gustaf Skarsgard and Josh Radnor. Macabre yet inspiring, The Galapagos Affair is a gripping parable of Robinson Crusoe adventure and utopian dreams gone awry.

 

OFFICIAL SELECTION
TELLURIDE FILM FESTIVAL 2013

OFFICIAL SELECTION
HAMPTONS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 2013

OFFICIAL SELECTION
BERLIN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 2014

 

Directed by Dayna Goldfine & Dan Geller

Written by Dayna Goldfine, Dan Geller & Celeste Schaefer Snyder

Based on the books, journals, articles and letters of
Dore Strauch
, Margret Wittmer, Friedrich Ritter,
Heinz Wittmer and John Garth

Featuring performances by (in alphabetical order)
Cate Blanchett (Dore Strauch
Sebastian Koch (Heinz Wittmer )
Thomas Kretschmann (Friedrich Ritter)
Diane Kruger (Margret Wittmer)
Connie Nielsen (Baroness Eloise von Wagner)
Josh Radnor (John Garth)
Gustaf Skarsgård (Rolf Blomberg)

Produced by Dan Geller, Dayna Goldfine
& Celeste Schaefer Snyder
Executive Producer Jonathan Dana
Edited by Bill Weber
Original Music Laura Karpman
Casting Margery Simkin
Associate Producer William McComas
Cinematography Dan Geller
Location Sound Dayna Goldfine

Film Info
2013
120 mins
Color and B&W
USA
In English
DCP, HD-Cam & Blu-Ray
Sound: Dolby 5.1
Rating: Not Rated

A ZEITGEIST FILMS RELEASE

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