Friedrich Schoenfelder Movies

Popular German comic Otto Waalkes stars in this comedy about a country boy who comes to the big city. He takes a job as a handyman with disastrous results due to his ineptitude. Otto falls for a pretty woman who has a crush on a musclebound movie star. He masquerades as a veterinarian psychiatrist in an attempt to win the woman's love, and he repeatedly pokes fun at the Teutonic tendency for order and conformity. Waalkes has been compared to Robin Williams and Groucho Marx in terms of his comic delivery. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

This expensive production attempts to bring Nobel Prize-winning author Isaac Bashevis Singer's subtle philosophical novel The Magician of Lublin to the screen. In the story, Yasha Mazur (Alan Arkin) is a perfectionistic turn-of-the-century Jewish stage magician, con-man and mystic, who is touring through eastern Europe, at the same time managing to progressively sabotage his own career. In nearly every town Yasha has a girlfriend, from the youthful Zeftel (Valerie Perrine), to the feisty Elizabeta (Shelly Winters). His harassed manager/impressario Wolsky (Lou Jacobi) arranges for him to have one more chance at theatrical success, which requires that he pull off the trick of a lifetime in a Warsaw theater. Reviewers, fans of Singer's works, and ordinary filmgoers all expressed disappointment in this beautifully filmed and ambitious movie, which was a box-office failure. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

Keir Dullea dives into a bevy of babes with an open wine bottle as the notorious Marquis de Sade in this low-budget debauch from American International Pictures -- purveyors of fine entertainment morsels for the connoisseur. The film takes place as an extended flashback after de Sade has escaped from a madhouse and taken refuge in the dilapidated mansion where he was reared. In his flashback, de Sade recalls how the Abbe de Sade (John Huston) used to have a maid whip him until he began to like it. Of course, after that, the next step down the primrose path was flagellation and orgies. Finally sent to a French jail for lewd behavior, de Sade begins to write anti-government creeds to while away the hours. After his release, he is compelled to marry the repulsive Renee de Montreuil (Anna Massey). De Sade goes along with the marriage in order to get closer to her sister Anne (Senta Berger). In spite of that, de Sade continues to seek out various forms of softcore sex. But then the Black Plague hits. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

In this frilly-costumed comedy, Baron Halbach (Martin Held) and his daughter Dodo (Senta Berger) move freely among the wealthy social elite, stealing jewels. When Dodo falls for the handsome London lawyer Robert (Joachim Fuchsberger), the Baron tries to stop the budding romance. Later, Dodo is caught trying to pull off one last caper before she marries, but Robert successfully wins her case in court. Watch for James Robertson Justice as Robert's father Sir Hammond in this lavish production. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

This mystery is based on an Edgar Wallace tale and centers upon an enigmatic, seemingly supernatural abbot who lives in a tower connected to an abandoned old country manse said to contain a fabulous treasure. It is the black-hooded monk's duty to keep thieves at bay. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Mrs. Cheney (Lilli Palmer) is a genteel widow whose outward appearances hide her involvement as a thief. With the help of her faithful butler, she steals diamonds from a wealthy matron. When she falls in love with a handsome international playboy, her thoughts quickly change from larceny to love in this light comedy. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

If you're into stories about disgruntled postal employees, you'll probably get an extra kick out of the gory German melodrama The Avenger. The "hero" is a criminal who uses the European mail services to (literally) dispatch his victims. First he slices off the heads of his enemies. Then he neatly packages up those heads and sends them through the mail. We'd like to say that he's foiled by insufficient postage, but we'd be fibbing. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide