Eduard Hoesch Movies

Latin Quarter (Quartier Latin) was director Augusto Genina's sole cinematic contribution for 1928. Ivan Petrovitch is cast as Ralph, a wealthy young man who is invited to the artists' ball in Paris' Latin Quarter. Here he meets lovely aspiring painter Louise (Carmen Boni), with whom he instantly falls in love. Pretending to be an artist himself, Ralph leads Louise to believe that he is as poor as she, hoping that she'll love him for himself rather than his money. The truth comes out when Ralph is briefly distracted by a vampish young model (Gina Manes). Convinced that Ralph has gone off to Italy with his new "conquest," Louise falls seriously ill but immediately recovers when her sweetheart rushes back to her bedside. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Based on the best-selling book by Egon Erwin Kisch, this Czechoslovakian production tells the true story of one of the most flagrant turncoats in European history. A officer on the pre-WWI Austrian military staff, Colonel Redl has no qualms about accepting bribes from and passing secrets to the hated Russians. Playing both sides of the fence, Redl also accepts gratuities from his fellow Austrians to get the goods on "undesirables" from within. His justification? As a member of the "lower orders," Redl feels that he could never have cracked the aristocratic upper circles of the European military without resorting to treachery. The real Redl's homosexuality is not an issue in this film, though it certainly would be in Istvan Szabo's 1985 production Colonel Redl (not a remake of the 1931 film, but instead adapted from John Osborne's A Patriot for Me). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The pressbook for Kadetten (Cadets) claims that the film was written by Dr. Alfred Schirokauer, "after motives of a novel from Peter Muir." Whatever that means. The hero, played by newcomer Franz Fiedler, is a young cadet in a Prussian military school. Upon learning that his superior officer has tried to seduce his pretty young stepmother, Fiedler heads to the officer's home for a confrontation. Upon arriving, he discovers that the officer has been killed. Accused of the crime, Fiedler refuses to offer details to the police for fear of exposing his stepmother to scandal. This leads to tension-laden courtroom climax, dominated by that grand old trouper Albert Basserman. Incidentally, the "Peter Muir" who wrote the novel on whose "motives" Kadetten was based was a pseudonym for journalist Sven von Muller, the husband of actress Mady Christians. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The merry monarch of the title is King Louis XV of France, here rechristened "Ludwig" and played by Alfred Neugebaur. For most of the film however, the king is shunted off to the background, while the spotlight is shifted to provincial coachman Chapelou (Willy Eichberger). Gaining fame as a singer, Chapelou is whisked off to Versailles, where he catches the eye of royal mistress Madame Pompadour (Thekla Ahrens), who tries to dispose of Chapelou's wife Madelaine (Rose Stradner) by confining her to her home. But Madelaine has her revenge when she shows up at the King's palace, posing as the Countess Latour. Yes, the King smiles, but not before La Pompadour is given plenty of reason to frown. This frothy costume escapade was originally released as Der Postillon von Lonjumeau. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

City Park in Vienna is where a poverty-stricken woman (Annie Rosar) rents lawn chairs to the more affluent. It is also the location that seven-year-old runaway, played by Peter Czieke, has chosen as a hiding place. When the boy's divorce-bound parents come searching for him, the woman in the park helps to smooth everyone's emotional path. Originally titled Stadtpark, City Park was based on a stage play by Hans Schubert. Virtually the entire cast of the original Volkstheatre production of the Schubert play was carried over to the film version. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide