Max Guelstorff Movies

Susanne im Bade (A Study in Suzanne) is all about art professor Peter (Hans Brausewetter), who while relaxing at the beach sketches a quick picture of bathing beauty Gussy (Manja Behrens). He redoes the sketch in oil in his studio, and in the process the girl on the canvas loses her swimsuit (Peter has a vivid, and surprisingly accurate, imagination). When the painting shows up at an exhibition, rumors spread that Gussy posed in the nude for Peter. An attempt to clear Gussy's name is scotched by Peter's jealous sweetheart Erika (Erika von Thelmann), leaving our innocent hero at the mercy of Gussy's far-from-understanding daddy (Max Guelstorff). One wonders if the harmless Susanne im Bade was the sort of German entertainment fare that such art experts as Hermann Goering and Paul Goebbels would deride as decadent. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Per its title, the plotline of this film is motivated by a counterfeit $50 bill. The funny money is passed to shopgirl Christa (Lucie Englisch), who, fearful of being arrested, hides it in a baby's piggy bank at her home. In dire need of money, Christa's sister "robs" the bank and puts the bill into circulation. Eventually, the faux banknote falls into the hands of Frau Lehmann (Kathe Haack), the mother of a banker (Theo Lindgren); the banker just happens to be in love with Christa. The plot alone is enough to induce chuckles, but the producers of Ein Falscher Fuffzinger felt the need to truckle to the lowest common denominator by throwing in a whole bunch of gratuitous slapstick. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The English-language title of this German comedy is Dissatisfied Woman. That's putting it mildly: Lisa Brandt (Fita Benkoff) is not only dissatisfied but downright contemptuous of her old-fashioned husband Paul (Johannes Riemann). She wants to modernize their home, but he can't bear to part with such vestiges of the past as a worn-out radio, an ancient car, and the gas stove in the bathroom. On the advice of her friends, Lisa tries to "cure" her husband by pretending she doesn't recognize him any more and by treating him as a total stranger. When wifey caps her deception by pretending to make love to the family doctor, hubby is snapped out of his antiquated ways immediately! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Heisses Blut (Hot Blood) is a vehicle for musical-comedy favorite Marika Roekk, who always did better with the public than she did with critics. Set in Hungary, the story centers on a once-wealthy family, now on their uppers. Heroine Marika von Koeroessy (Roekk) is willing to give up almost everything she has to keep her loved ones out of debtor's prison. But Marika draws the line at selling her beloved horse Satan, and it is this refusal that motivates the rest of the plot. Most of the songs in Heisses Blut are traditional Gypsy tunes, of a sort that would soon be banned by the racist Hitler regime. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Brigette Helm stars as a disillusioned movie extra who makes a speedy exit from a Viennese movie studio while still wearing her elegant costume. She heads off to a resort in Monte Cristo, where she poses as a wealthy countess (she's certainly dressed for it!) Jewel thief Gustaf Gruendgens and swindler Rudolf Forster help Helm carry off her masquerade for larcenous reasons of their own, but Forster spoils everyone's plans by falling in love with the girl. Graefin von Monte Cristo served as the basis for the 1934 Universal comedy The Countess of Monte Cristo, with Fay Wray in the starring role. The property was remade in 1948 as a musical vehicle for skating-star Sonja Henie. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Mensch Ohne Namen (Men Without Names) is a modernized adaptation of Honore de Balzac's Colonel Chabert. Long believed dead, WWI captain Heinrich Martin (Werner Kraus) returns to Berlin after a 16-year absence. Suffering from amnesia, Martin suddenly remembers that he has a wife and that he used to run a successful auto-manufacturing business. Not surprisingly, his wife has remarried, and his business is now the property of her second husband. Vainly, Martin battles the bureaucracy to regain ownership of his business but is forced to give up the fight. He starts life anew in a poor, provincial community, finding happiness with a pretty typist. Thanks to his new wife's business savvy, Martin is able to regain his status in the manufacturing world and becomes a millionaire all over again. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Music, drama and comedy are neatly integrated in this low-key backstage romance. After a lengthy spell of unemployment, leading man Paul Hartwig (Willy Forst) and leading lady Lisa Brandes (Dolly Haas) prepare to open in a big-time stage musical. Is it any surprise that Paul and Lisa also manage to fall in love? Their story is but one of several leading to the inevitable "big opening"; other subplots involve the director, the composer, the supporting players, the chorus and the technical crew. So Ein Maedel Vergisst Man Nicht is one of the few "putting on a show" endeavors in which it appears that a real show is actually being put on. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Also known as Darling of the Gods, this was Emil Jannings' second talkie appearance. Jannings stars as famed operatic singer Albert Winkelmann, who is greeted with cheers, applause and romantic propositions whenever he performs in his native Vienna. But when he embarks on a tour of South America, tragedy strikes. The sweltering climate causes Winkelmann to lose his voice on stage, a disaster met with hoots and cat-calls. Dispirited he returns to Europe, where he soon learns that no one is aware of what happened in South America. Intending to retire so as not to be exposed to further humiliation, Winkelmann is goaded back on stage -- where, miraculously, his gorgeous voice returns. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Upon the death of a mittel-European prime minister, baroness Olga Tschechowa, the minister's mistress, is unceremoniously booted from the royal palace. In retaliation, the baroness claims she has in her possession a copy of the late prime minister's memoirs, the publication of which will bring about the ruination of all her political enemies. Pretty soon, the hypocritical courtiers and politicians who'd expelled her from the palace are fawning all over the baroness, hoping to be spared her wrath. Grand duke Willy Fritsch suspects that the allegedly scandalous memoirs do not actually exist, but he cares not: by film's end, he's fallen madly in love with the crafty baroness. Some above-average cinematography distinguishes this hectic boudoir farce. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

A jealous husband becomes enraged with his dinner guests when they pretend to kiss the silhouetted shadow of his beautiful wife. Fritz Kortner, Ruth Weyher, Gustav Von Wagenheim, and Alexander Granach co-star in this German feature where a seemingly innocent romantic indiscretion is met with violent retribution. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi