Georg Marischka Movies

In this slapstick satire, Fritz is a life-long forger of Nazi memorabilia. He got his start as a boy, selling items of clothing as something Hitler wore. His current income-generating scam is to sell "original" portraits by Hitler of his mistress Eva Braun to connoisseurs of Nazi art. He runs into an ambitious journalist who works for a tabloid-style magazine (a thinly disguised "Der Stern"), and the two of them concoct a scam which will garner headlines for the journalist and plenty of cash for the forger. With some care, Fritz creates "Hitler's Diaries," and his creations become a household word before the scam is uncovered. Film buffs may recognize the title of this film as a term Charlie Chaplin used in The Great Dictator to refer to Hitler. This satire hews pretty closely to the actual news story it is based on, but the movie plays it strictly for laughs, a tactic which won great popularity for it in Germany. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

In this fictionalized version of the sensational Marie Bachmeier case of the early 1980s, Marianne Grunwald (Bachmeier), played by Gudrun Landgrebe wears tight clothing and revealing blouses and occupies center stage from beginning to end. Director Burkhard Driest has placed his female star, rising in West Germany at this time, on the crest of the story. The drama opens with Marianne, her 7-year-old daughter Anna, and Marianne's live-in companion in their home in the country. Marianne has just sold a bar and has a little money to spend before she eventually buys a new place in the city -- which she does, and when the bar opens it is very popular because of Marianne's obvious physical appeal. But her personal life is not ideal, and her lover has talked about leaving. Meanwhile, a doctor and his wife want to adopt Anna. Marianne finally agrees to the adoption, and just as the couple are about to start the legal process, Anna disappears. Her strangled and sexually abused body was found later, with the accused criminal (Klaus Grabowski in real life) captured soon thereafter. Marianne is again the focus at the end of the movie, when the courtroom proceedings are set in motion and she pulls out her handgun, making a decision that will change her life forever. For some viewers, this version of Marie Bachmeier's story will trivialize the human tragedy at the core of the events, placing more emphasis on an actress' physical attributes than a mother's anguish. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

21 Hours at Munich is a grim reenactment of the darkest days of the 1972 Munich Olympics. A gang of eight Arab terrorists storm the Israeli dormitory, killing two and taking hostage nine athletes. The terrorist's demands include the release of 200 Arabs held in Israeli jails; Israel follows its standard policy in dealing with terrorism and refuses to capitulate. There can be only one way that this film will end, but the tragedy of the occasion is buoyed by isolated moments of inspirational heroism. William Holden and Franco Nero head the cast, while sportscaster Jim McKay, whose emotional coverage of the actual events has since become famous, narrates the film. 21 Hours at Munich first aired on November 7, 1976. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Maria Schneider is Michele, a young student sculptress assigned to look after the kidnapped baby of her ex-lover. She and the kid hit it off but are unable to escape until the kidnappers begin to kill one another off. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

The Odessa File is set in Hamburg in the winter of 1963. Jon Voight plays Peter Miller, a German reporter who is investigating the whereabouts of missing Nazi war criminals. After reading the diary of a Holocaust survivor who has recently committed suicide, Miller goes on the trail of in-hiding SS officer Eduard Roschmann (Maximilian Schell). The reporter finds his investigation blocked by members of a secretive group called Odessa. With the help of Israeli activists, Miller persists in his search. Schell's sister Maria also appears in The Odessa File as Miller's mother, the widow of a German soldier. Based on a nailbiting novel by Frederick Forsyth, The Odessa File is highlighted by the exquisitely Teutonic score of Andrew Lloyd Webber. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

What happens when a lone robber commits the perfect crime but cannot afford to tell anyone or spend his money? He either goes nuts from loneliness, or he tells someone he feels he can trust. In this black-and-white German thriller, the robber wants to have a good life with his wife, so he begins by telling her what's up. His perfect crime slowly unravels as the number of people who are let in on it increases. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

A fast-paced though routine drama by George Marischka, Peter Voss, der Held des Tages is a less-successful sequel to the popular Peter Voss, Thief of Millions. This time around, Voss (O.W. Fischer) is caught up in the hunt for eight wooden horses, masterpieces sculpted during the Ming dynasty that have been stolen by an international cartel of gangsters. Given the make-up of the organization, the horses have each been cut out from the herd and are residing in different parts of the world. Lucky Voss gets to travel through exotic North Africa, wild Las Vegas, and mysterious India in his search for the horse rustlers and their stolen property. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide