Karl Ludwig Diehl Movies
- 1931
Der Zinker (To Squeal) was based on The Squeaker, a mystery play by Edgar Wallace. The hero is a Scotland Yard detective who poses as an ex-convict. It's all part of a strategy to capture a notorious and elusive fence known as "The Squeaker," who cloaks his criminal activities behind a facade of charitable respectability. Evidently, this German adaptation ran far afield of the Wallace original, since its plot was disjointed and its character motivations unbelievable. An English-language version of The Squeaker, directed by Wallace himself, was released in 1930. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lissi Arna, Karl Ludwig Diehl, (more)
- 1930
Rosenmontag (U.S. title: Carnival's End) was based on the novel of the same name by Otto Erich Hartlebein. Thanks to ugly gossip, a young Army lieutenant is convinced that his sweetheart is an unfaithful trollop. He becomes engaged to another woman then marches off to war, having promised to forsake all other women. Eventually, he discovers that the stories about his first love were all lies. He returns to her and rekindles the romance, whereupon he remembers vowing eternal devotion to his present fiancee. Rather than sacrifice his honor, the lieutenant resorts to extreme and tragic measures to keep his promise. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gertrud Arnold, Eduard von Winterstein, (more)
- 1930
Der Greifer translates as The Copper -- and, yes, this is a detective yarn. Hero Hans Albers, representing Scotland Yard, mingles with the cream of British society to bring a murderer to justice. Greeting everyone, friend and foe alike, with the same off-handed cheerfulness, Albers is able to put the culprit "at ease" long enough to tighten the noose. And, of course, he wins the girl, fetchingly played by Charlotte Susa. As often happened in German films of this period, the depiction of British aristocrats in Der Greifer is too broad and stereotyped to be believable -- though to be fair, German characters were treated in much the same manner in British films. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charlotte Susa, Hans Albers, (more)
- 1930
Originally Liebeswalzer, this German operetta was the third talkie vehicle for the effervescent Lillian Harvey. The plot is a typical Graustarkian affair, with Princess Eva (Harvey) preparing to marry a duke whom she's never met. Getting cold feet, the duke ducks the wedding, persuading a handsome young commoner named Bobby (Willy Fritsch) to take his place. The wedding goes on as planned, with Eva never suspecting that her new hubby is a ringer. Eventually, the false duke confesses everything, leading to all sorts of intrigue before a happy ending can be realized. Love Waltz was simultaneously filmed in an English-language version, which posed no problem for the British-born Harvey but caused a few uncomfortable moments for her Teutonic co-stars (eventually, Willy Fritsch was replaced by John Batton, who'd played a bit role in the German version). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lilian Harvey, Willy Fritsch, (more)
