Kurt Vespermann Movies

Homosexuality is exploited to the tasteless hilt in the 1957 cheapie The Third Sex. The parents of Paul Dahlke can't understand why their son isn't interested in he-man activities. They soon discover that he's-argh! gasp!--gay. Even worse, he's hanging out with a KNOWN PERVERT!!!! There is nothing for it but to "straighten out" the boy, in as cold and brutal a manner as possible. This one must be seen to be believed. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

"Ist Mein Mann Nicht Fabelhaft?" ("Isn't My Husband Wonderful?") coos adoring wife Lu Brandt (Lien Deyers). Lu's hubby Victor (Georg Alexander) may indeed be wonderful, but rich he's not. A lowly employee in a record-player factory, Victor discovers that his wife has told their neighbors that he's actually the company's supervisor. Rather than embarrass Lu, Victor tries to live up to his reputation -- and nearly goes broke in the process. But the worst is still to come when Victor's neighbors, each of them laboring under the misapprehension that they're musically talented, descend upon the Victrola factory en masse demanding auditions. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Paul Hartmann stars as businessman Bernhard Fredersen, who tries to make a go of his inherited business in South Africa. When Fredersen begins losing his eyesight, he is deserted by friends, business associates, and clients; only his wife, Agnes (Charlotte Susa), remains faithfully by his side. The villain of the piece is Eugen Schliebach, a Teutonic "Uriah Heep" who takes advantage of Fredersen's blindness to try to seduce the long-suffering Agnes. Schliebach is played by Gustaf Gründgens, one of the leading lights of the German theater, whose film appearances were infrequent but always welcome. Produced in Bavaria, Inheritance in Pretoria smells a bit of the lamp, with grandiose gestures and stagey direction carrying the day. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

A robbery and a betrayal begin this convoluted crime drama. Following a robbery, jewel thieves Dr. Sandegg and Klotz demand that the corrupt jeweler behind their latest heist give them a bigger cut of the take, but he cannot as he has already spent the loot. Instead, he gives them the key to his ex-wife's hotel room so they can steal her large diamond ring. Sandegg does the dirty work. Unfortunately another crook, Diehl, steals the ring from him. Diehl is involved with the ex-wife and after teaming up with Sandegg and Klotz, informs them that the ring they took was a fake. Diehl devises a complex plan to get the real stone. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

The title translates as Schoeller Boarding House, which is where 95% of the film's action takes place. The hero, Phillip Klaproth (Jacob Triedke), has been borrowing heavily from his wealthy uncle Alfred (Paul Heidemann), ostensibly to finance his education but actually to pay for his hedonistic lifestyle. When Uncle shows up in town, Phillip hastily tries to put him out of the way so he won't discover the truth. He takes his uncle to a boarding house, claiming that it's a mental hospital which he, Phillip, intends to purchase. Though the boarders aren't really crazy, they're eccentric enough to convince the uncle that Phillip is telling the truth. Pension Schoeller is an agreeable entry in the screwball-comedy genre, its humor predicated almost entirely upon misunderstanding and misrepresentation. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Filmed in France, Jede Frau Hat Etwas is the German-language version of the 1930 Paramount musical Honey. Based on Alice Duer Miller's play Come Out of the Kitchen, this is the story of two young aristocrats, brother and sister, who lose their fortune and are obliged to rent their ancestral mansion to a pretentious nouveau riche family. Remaining in the mansion as household servants, the brother falls in love with the daughter of his new employer, while the sister falls for the daughter's cast-off fiancee. Trude Berliner heads the cast, stepping into the leading-lady role previously occupied by Nancy Carroll. A French-language adaptation of Honey, titled Cherie, was filmed simultaneously with Jede Frau Hat Etwas. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Starring American expatriate Betty Amann, this still extant German silent film features a young citizen of Berlin, who, driven into poverty, steals a valuable piece of jewelry. Caught by a handsome policeman (Gustav Froehlich), the girl attempts to seduce him into letting her go. She succeeds beyond all expectation and they marry. Born in Germany to American parents, Betty Amann went on to appear in several Hollywood films, including Nancy Drew, Reporter (1938). ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi