Willi Forst Movies

As can be gathered from its title, which translates to Vienna, City of My Dreams, this film is an old-fashioned Austrian comedy with operatic undertones. Hans Holt stars as the obligatory incognito king, in this case one "Alexander of Alania." Escaping a revolution, Alexander takes a job as chauffeur in his own country's embassy in Vienna. Gaining popularity for this move, the King is invited by popular demand to return to his throne. By this time, he has fallen in love with pretty commoner Elisabeth Seyboldt (Hertha Feller), while Alexander's one-time fiancee, Princess Sandra (Erika Remberg), has found happiness in the arms of music teacher Peter Lehnert (Adrian Hoven,the story's nominal hero). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The Sinner was heralded by a storm of publicity regarding its director Willi Forst and its star Hildergarde Neff. The film was Forst's first effort since 1942, and as such it was highly anticipated. The film was also Neff's last German production before her "new" career in Hollywood. According to most contemporary reviews, The Sinner was considered unworthy of Forst's and Neff's talents, though this may have been a negative reaction to the publicity blitz. The film casts its star as a young girl who is no better than she ought to be, but whose good intentions outweigh her bad impulses. Believing she has finally found true love in the form of an artist (Gustav Frolich), the girl is in for a major disappointment when her lover begins behaving erratically due to a brain tumor. The spectacularly tragic ending to this sorry little tale, coupled with a handful of highly censurable love scenes, seriously impaired any chances for The Sinner to achieve box-office success in the U.S. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Curt Jurgens was still spelling his name "Curd Jurgens" when he was featured in the Austrian musical romance Das Kuckucksei. The story begins when a groom-to-be expresses unwillingness to marry the girl of his dreams until he ascertains the identity of her mother. When mom turns out to be a showgirl of some notoriety the stiff-necked Romeo withdraws his proposal of marriage. The girl, played by Kaethe Dorsch, settles for a much more liberal-minded hubby, who helps her clear her mother's name. Peter Wehle's musical score is easily the best aspect of this by-the-numbers effort. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Hans H. Zerlett was pretty near the whole show in the German Es Leuchten die Sterne (The Stars are Shining): producer, director, screenwriter. Zerlett, however, was not the star, that honor went to German musical-comedy star La Jana. What story there is concerns a pretty movie extra who is mistaken for a famous dancer, requiring her to head the cast of a star-studded musical revue. Among the guest performers in this glorified vaudeville show are tap-dance king Paal Roschberg and former heavyweight boxing champ Max Schmeling. Incidentally, the "Paul Verhoven" providing comedy relief is not the same-named contemporary director. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Absent from the screen since 1932, Pola Negri made the first of several comebacks in the German melodrama Mazurka. Negri is cast as a famous opera star, married to a powerful military officer. While hubby's off to war, she has "one too many" and ends up sleeping with another man. When she becomes pregnant, it's the end of her marriage and her career. Fifteen years later, Negri comes face-to-face with the daughter she'd farmed out to adoption. Careful not to reveal her true identity, the chastened Negri tries to prevent her daughter from making a similar mistake with her virtue -- and with the same casual lover who'd impregnated our heroine. When the caddish ex-lover refuses to back off, Negri takes drastic measures, setting the stage for a passion-tattering "Madame X"-style courtroom finale. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this convoluted melodrama, an elderly thespian falls for a rising young starlet. He admits his love for her and then announces that he will retire from the stage. The young woman pretends she loves him too, but her real motive is to give her struggling lover, also an aspiring actor, a break. The old actor learns the painful truth and though wounded, understands that the relationship would never have worked. When the young actor attempts to end his life, following the loss of his job at the Burg Theatre, it is the elderly actor who saves him. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Anthony Asquith filmed this biographical treatment of the life of his favorite composer, Franz Schubert. The joint Austrian-British production stars Hans Yaray as Schubert who, as the film opens, is a poor, unknown, struggling musical genius. He is having trouble finishing a symphony he has written. A friend arranges for him to perform for Princess Kinsky (Hermine Sperler), but at the performance, the aristocratic Caroline Esterhazy (Martha Eggerth) laughs aloud. Schubert angrily stomps out at this slight. Caroline likes his hot temper and persuades her father, Count Esterhazy (Ronald Squire), to hire Schubert to give her private music lessons. They fall in love, and she inspires him to finish his symphony. But their class differences prove to be problem when they decide that they want to get married. ~ Michael Betzold, Rovi