Fritz Imhoff Movies

This biopic chronicles the life and rise to fame of the original waltz king, Johann Strauss. The composer developed his radical new sound while conducting a small band in a restaurant. It was his mistress, a milliner, who created the dance. Soon after its appearance, the waltz became the rage of Vienna. The new-found wealth and fame goes to Strauss' head and he ends up abandoning his wife to tour Europe with his lover. Years pass before he returns to Vienna. There the curmudgeonly Strauss discovers that his son, Johann Jr. has become almost as famous for his waltzes. Family discord ensues, but just before the elder Strauss dies, he hears his son's music and the two finally reconcile. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Drei Maenner im Schnee (Three Men in the Snow) was based on a novel by the prolific Erich Kastner. The story is predicated on one of the oldest plot devices in the book. A millionaire (Paul Dahlke), hoping to remain incognito, switches identities with his servant (Guenther Lueders) while vacationing in an Alpine hotel. The "third man in the snow" is young doctor Claus Bierstadt, who is in love with the millionaire's daughter (Nicole Huesters). The mistaken-identity ploy is played to the hilt, with the servant having so much fun pretending to be rich that he isn't inclined to tell anyone the truth. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This tuneful Austrian biopic chronicles the rise to stardom of opera composer-singer Richard Tauber. He becomes so obsessed with fame that he ignores his ballerina lover. In the end he becomes a star, but at the expense of love. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Appropriately, the title of this nostalgic Austrian musical translates to Vienna, As it Was. The story concerns a wealthy father who hopes to wean his spoiled son from his wastrel ways. To teach the boy a lesson, dad sells his business short, plunging his family into destitution. The boy straightens up and flies right in a hurry, allowing father to buy back his business at a tidy profit. Many of the nonmusical scenes in Verklungenes Wien play like something out of an old, musty operetta, and as such couldn't have meant much to American audiences in 1951. The music, however, is very pleasant and easy to take. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Wiener Madeln is the story of 19th-century Austrian composer Carl Michael Zihrer. Though not as famous as such contemporaries as Strauss, Zihrer had one "hit" waltz to his credit, which enabled him to sustain his popularity for nearly 20 years. The film's highlight is a "battle of the bands," pitting Zihrer's aggregation against John Philip Sousa's orchestra. Starring as Zihrer is Teutonic film favorite Willie Forst, who also produced and directed. Completed in 1945, Wiener Madeln nearly became a "lost film" during the confusion following the end of the war. It took Forst four years to piece together an acceptable print from four different, incomplete negatives -- and nearly as long to secure legal clearance to do so. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In a sense, The Mozart Story can qualify as an international production. The balance of the film was lensed in Austria by director Karl Hartl, with Hans Holt as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and the songs sung in German. When the American rights to the film were purchased by Screen Guild, director Frank Wisbar supervised the English dubbing, and even lensed a few new scenes, with Wilton Graff as Mozart's great rival Antonio Salieri (later the "protagonist" of the Oscar-winning Amadeus). Also appearing in the newly shot scenes were Carol Forman as Catherine Cavalleria and Anthony Barr as Ruffini. Despite its patchwork construction, The Mozart Story weaves a cogent and credible (if not altogether accurate) version of Mozart's life and work. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This postwar Austrian musical harks back to happier prewar times. Yugoslavian-born singing favorite Elfie Mayerhoffer essays a dual role, playing twin sisters separated at birth. Yes, that's right: one of the girls, Viktoria by name, is brought up in wealth and privilege, while her sister Lily is raised in genteel poverty. With the help and support of her kindly foster father, Lily becomes a popular singer, leading to a wonderful reunion with Viktoria. But before this happens, Lily and Viktoria's respective suitors find themselves in the midst of a comedy of errors. Despite its lighthearted ambience, Vienna Melodies injects a note of reality into the proceedings by staging its exterior scenes against the actual, war-ravaged Vienna of 1947. ~ 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