Ferdinand Hart Movies
- 1940
In this German drama, a French military officer finds himself discriminated against during a trial because he is Jewish. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1936
Filmed in Czechoslovakia, this French-language adaptation of the oft-filmed Jewish folk tale The Golem was one of the most expensive productions ever made in that country. The story, which some have cited as a precursor to Frankenstein, is set in Prague's Jewish Ghetto. Fearing an anti-Semitic pogrom at the hands of Emperor Rudolf (Harry Baur), Rabbi Jacob (Charles Dorat) magically brings a statue to life to protect his people from harm. Known as "Die Golem," the living statue (Ferdinand Hart) does indeed save the Jews from destruction, but in so doing becomes a creature of destruction itself -- until it is tamed by the one person who does not fear him. The American release print of The Golem retained most of its spectacle, but several of the more bloodcurdling scenes -- including a lengthy torture-chamber episode -- were removed. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Germaine Aussey, Jany Holt, (more)
- 1932
Ein Toller Einfall (A 'Phantastic' Idea) features comic actor Max Adelbert as a "poor rich man," who in spite of his magnificent mansion and priceless possessions hasn't a penny in the bank. Heading to England to negotiate the sale of his mansion, he leaves the place in the care of his nephew Willy Fritsch. In Adelbert's absence, Fritsh transforms the mansion into a hotel, packing in the customers with an elaborate floor show. Naturally, this helps to put Adelbert back on his feet, leading inexorably to a happy ending. Dorothea Wieck and Ellen Schwanecke, previously teamed in the controversial Maedchen in Uniform, portray entirely different characters in Ein Toller Einfall. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Willy Fritsch, Jacob Tiedtke, (more)
- 1932
Writer Emeric Pressburger is best known for his 1940s British film collaborations with producer/director Michael Powell. In a previous life, however, Pressburger toiled away in the German film industry. Beautiful Adventure was adapted by Pressburger and director Reinhold Schuenzel from a French stage play by Etienne Rey and Robert DeFlers. Ida Wuest stars as a lovely fraulein engaged to a corpulent man of wealth. She runs off on the day of her wedding with the man she really loves, sparking a merry chase throughout Europe. This was the sort of frothily foolish fare that German film fans ate up both before and after the advent of Hitler. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alfred Abel, Kurt Vespermann, (more)
- 1931
Panic in Chicago was the third talking-picture endeavor for Robert Wiene, the director responsible for the landmark horror film The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. By 1931, Wiene's best work was behind him, and he was busying himself with minor romances and crime pictures. Panic is a trifle about an American troublemaker joining forces with his German counterpart. It sounds like a comedy, but it wasn't, though critics felt it would have been a better picture if Wiene had played it for laughs. The film was based on an equally obscure novel by Robert Heymann. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Hans Rehmann, Ferdinand Hart, (more)
- 1931
A remake of the silent serial A Man Without Name, Abenteurin von Tunis (The Adventures of Tunis) stars Dr. Philip Manning in the title role. The adventures are many and varied, with thrills taking second place to humor. Featured in support are Karl Hussar-Puffy as the portly comedy relief Theo Schall as an accused murderer, and Senta Soeneland as a harridan of a wife. Critics in 1931 took director Willi Wolff to task for his confused continuity and haphazard scene transitions, though this may have been the fault of the studio editors. As was the case with the original serial, this 1931 feature-length remake was a box-office hit. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dr. Philip Manning, Karl Huszar-Puffy, (more)
- 1931
Allegedly based on a true story, Im Geheimdienst (Secret Service) takes place during WWI. German spy Willy Fritsch, posing as an American violinist, manages to move within the uppermost circles of Russian society with impunity. He inveigles Brigitte Helm, the wife of Russian general Oscar Homolka, into stealing a cache of secret documents. Facing death at every turn, Helm accomplishes her task, and together with her new lover Fritsch escapes to Sweden. This was considered to be a happy ending, but of course no one asked the poor general. Some sources indicate that Willy Fritsch did his own violin-playing in Im Geheimdienst, but this may not have been the case. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Brigitte Helm, Willy Fritsch, (more)
- 1931
This film was also released as Die Letzten Tag von dem Welt-brand (The Last Days Before the War). Director Richard Oswald and screenwriters Heinz Goldberg and Frtiz Wendhausen tackle the near-impossible task of establishing who exactly was responsible for the outbreak of WWI. The answer seems to be "everyone and no one," though the Russians are taken to task for their war-mongering instincts. The huge and stellar cast (including Albert Basserman, Reinhold Schunzel, Alfred Abel and Oskar Homolka) seem awe-struck by the famous characters they're called upon to play; as a result, they come off more as wax effigies than human beings. The American release version of 1914 was outfitted with a prologue and epilogue spoken in English by a renowned military historian. Coincidentally, the incredibly prolific Richard Oswald began his directorial career in 1914. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Albert Basserman
- 1931
Harry Piel is both star and director of Bobby Geht Los. The title translates as Bobby Starts Off, which indeed he does -- and what a start-off. Regarded by his fans as the Teutonic equivalent to Douglas Fairbanks, star Piel never stops moving, whether escaping the villains or rescuing the heroine. His peripatetic behavior is offset by the lugubrious antics of the two comic-relief characters, played by Kurt Lillen and Eugene Rex. Proof of Harry Piel's popularity in his native land was that Bobby Geht Los was his 89th vehicle, with number 90 still on the way. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Annie Markart, Hilde Hildebrand, (more)
- 1930
Das Gestohlene Gesicht (The Stolen Face) is an old-fashioned detective yarn given credence by its talented cast. A set of peculiar circumstances force the heroine of the story to assume the identity of another woman. When a murder occurs, the wrong person is held responsible, and it is up to a methodical detective to separate fact from falsehood. Edith Edwards and Fridel Haerlin essay the female leads, doing what they can (and more) with the dialogue they're given. The 1952 British melodrama A Stolen Face is not a remake. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Friedl Haerlin
- 1930
More formerly known as Das Floetenkonzert von Sanssouci, this German historical drama is set during the reign of Prussia's Frederick the Great (here played by Otto Gebuehr, who made a career out of the role). Forced against his will to go back to war by his enemies, the King stirs up the patriotism of his countrymen by staging the titular flute concert. At one point, Frederick rails against the iniquities of "peace treaties," an obvious -- and anachronistic -- swipe at the 1919 Treaty of Versailles. This propagandistic sidebar is quite surprising in a pre-Third Reich German film but should not be constituted as being pro-Nazi (indeed, director Gustav Uelcky was forced to flee Europe when Hitler came to power). Still, it cannot be denied that Floetenkonzert is a glorification of war and warfare, no matter how prettily it was put together. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Otto Gebuhr, Renate Mueller, (more)
