Harry Baur Movies

Originally released in 1941 as L'Assasinat du Pere Noel, this labyrinthine thriller was finally distributed in the U.S. in 1948, five years after its star, Harry Baur, died while in the custody of the Gestapo. Per the title, the film takes place at Christmastime in a small French village where the local children eagerly await the annual arrival of Santa Claus -- actually toymaker Cornuese (Harry Baur) in disguise. This year, however, a pall has been cast on the festivities: a valuable ring has been stolen from a reclusive baron, and another man dressed up like Santa has been found murdered. What, if anything, this has to do with the jovial Cornuese is a mystery that everyone is eager to solve. Meanwhile, a brace of subplots involving a gravely ill child and a mildly addled young girl are neatly woven into the continuity. Who Killed Santa Claus can be described as a "romantic mystery," a specialty of director Christian-Jaque. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this melodramatic historical drama, the lives of Mexico's Maximilian and Carlotta are chronicled. The story follows their brief reign as figureheads for Napoleon III. The two doomed rulers were terribly naive and had no idea that they were universally despised by the native population. Upon her return to Europe, Carlotta goes mad with grief when she realizes that her beleaguered husband, trapped by a rebel uprising in Mexico City, will receive no aid from their backers. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

The same year that the great European actor Harry Baur played mad Czar Paul I in Le Patriote, he also played another celebrated Russian looney in Rasputin (original title: La Tragedie Imperiale). Unlike most interpretations of the infamous peasant-monk, Baur's Rasputin is a multifaceted character, as much saint as sinner. He is shown to be sincere in his belief that his self-styled magic powers are best utilized in the service of Czar Nicholas and the Royal Family. Alas, Rasputin is also prone to a multitude of human frailties, notably the temptation to allow absolute power to corrupt him absolutely. Whatever one might think of the life of Rasputin, one cannot deny that he left that life in a grostequely spectacular fashion, which Baur and director Marcel L'Herbier recreate in all its vividly gory splendor. Rasputin was based on a novel by Alfred Neumann. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Harry Baur, who in the 1930s was the most distinguished character actor in Europe, was the star of the 1936 French historical epic Tarass Boulba. Based on a story by Gogol, the film depicted the 16th century struggle between the Poles and the Russian Cossacks, with emphasis on the rift between Tartar leader Tarass Boulba and his scholarly son. The film did well enough on the continent to prompt an English-language version in 1939, The Rebel Son, which also starred Harry Baur. The film utilized generous portions of the 1936 French production; the result was a hodgepodge of contrasting styles. Andre Brunel, director of the English version, failed to properly match the film work of the original French version's director Alexis Granowsky; in turn, the additional scenes directed by an uncredited Albert de Coureville bore little relation to Brunel's work. Even at 88 minutes, The Rebel Son was tough sledding, with many filmgoers walking out after half an hour. In desperation, the British distributors pared the film down to 70 minutes and shipped it out to double bills under the title The Barbarian and the Lady (the "lady" in the film is the girlfriend of barbarian Tarass Boulba's son--the daughter of his hated rival). Despite the utter failure of this enterprise, producer Samuel Bronston had another go at the Gogal original with his 1962 production Taras Bulba, starring Yul Brynner and Tony Curtis. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Le Patriote (The Patriot) was the first of director Maurice Tourneur's two 1938 productions. The incomparable Harry Baur heads the cast as the demented Czar Paul I of Russia. Drunk with power, Paul becomes not only a detriment to his countrymen, but also a clear and present danger. Pahlen (Pierre Renoir), military governor of St. Petersburg, sadly realizes that the only hope for Russia's salvation is Paul's death. Despite his patriotic motives, Pahlen is accused of murdering the Czar for his own political gain, forcing him to take very extremes measure to prove his loyalty and sincerity. A silent version of The Patriot, directed by Ernst Lubitsch and starring Emil Jannings, was filmed in 1927. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Le Juif Polonais (The Polish Jew) was adapted from the old theatrical warhorse The Bells, previously filmed in 1925 with Lionel Barrymore and Boris Karloff. Harry Baur hams his way through the role of Matthias, a mittel-European burgomeister with a horrible secret. Fifteen year ago, Matthias murdered a wealthy Jewish merchant, using the dead man's money as the foundation for his own fortune. Now, a police inspector is nosing around the village, asking a lot of troublesome questions. Matthias is able to hide his guilt from the Law, but cannot escape his own conscience -- which shifts into overdrive whenever he hears the peal of the local church bells. Most reviewers in 1937 were unimpressed by Le Juif Polonais, with some evincing a preference for the then-unavailable American silent version. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Sarati le Terrible is the wealthy and callous absentee landlord (Harry Baur) of a cheap Algiers rooming house near a coal mine. With little money of their own, the local coal-haulers have no choice but to accept Sarati's usurious rental rates. As ruthless at home as he is in business, Sarati refuses to allow his pretty niece (Jacqueline Laurent) to marry the man of her dreams -- not because of avuncular devotion, but because he's got designs on the girl himself! The despotic Sarati gets his comeuppance when he's driven out of business by the increased mechanization of the Algerian coal industry, depleting his tenant pool and driving him to suicide. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Sampson was the second of filmmaker Maurice Tourneur's three cinematic contributions to the calendar year 1936. Based on a play by Henry Bernstein, the film stars Harry Baur as ruthless stock-market manipulator Jacques Branchart. Feared by his enemies and mistrusted by his friends, Branchart hopes nonetheless to win the love of the beautiful Anne-Marie d'Andeline (Gaby Morlay). When she spurns him in favor of his business-rival Jerome le Govain (Andre Luguet), Branchart vengefully sets about to destroy Le Govain financially -- and in the process, destroys himself. Incredibly, Branchart comes out ahead romantically at the end, though it's a pyrrhic victory at best. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

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

Anthony Asquith evokes a vivid impression of Russia in 1916 in I Stand Condemned. The story follows handsome Russian officer Captain Ignatoff (Laurence Olivier), who is carried into a hospital in a delirious condition from severe war wounds. When he comes to his senses, he sees the beautiful Red Cross nurse Natasha (Penelope Dudley-Ward) staring down at him and he is immediately smitten. Although she feels the same way about Ignatoff, she is unhappily engaged to Brioukov (Harry Baur), a middle-aged war profiteer who has paid off the mortgage on her parent's home. Since she owes so much to Brioukov, she is reluctant to leave him and take up with the comely captain. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide