Karl Skraup Movies
- 1955
Herr Puntila und sein Knecht Matti (aka Herr Puntila and his Chauffeur Matti and Puntilla and His Hired Man) is based on the same-named play by Bertoldt Brecht. Curt Bois, best remembered as the oily pickpocket in Casablanca, stars as Puntila, a nasty Finnish landlord who turns into a nice guy whenever he's drunk (shades of Chaplin's City Lights). Puntila's chauffeur Matti (Heinz Engelman) shares several ribald adventures with his master, and at one point finds himself engaged to Puntila's nubile daughter Eva (Maria Emo). Brecht's merciless satire of class distinctions isn't quite as pungent as in the original, but audiences will get the point. Herr Puntila und sein Knect Matti was adapted for the screen by Vladimir Pozner (yes, that Vladimir Pozner!) ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Curt Bois, Heinz Engelmann, (more)
After spending the 1930s as the Third Reich's principal cinematic chronicler, Leni Riefenstahl returned to fictional films with Tiefland. According to Riefenstahl, she had refused to make any more propaganda pictures--"for good reasons," she explained enigmatically--choosing instead to direct a period romance, based on an old Spanish play and opera by Eugen d'Albert. Riefenstahl cast herself as the central character, Marta, a Spanish dancer who becomes the romantic bone of contention between humble shepherd Franz Eichberger and imperious marquis Bernhard Minetti. While the material seems to cry out for music, Riefenstahl plays the story straight, though much of the acting can certainly be described as operatic. In one scene, the director utilized a band of gypsies as atmosphere extras; as soon as their scenes were completed, the gypsies were returned to their Nazi concentration camp--where most of them were doomed to extermination. Personally financed by Riefenstahl, Tiefland was filmed between 1942 and 1944, which explains the presence of Maria Koppenhofer (who died in 1948). Final editing was not completed until around 1953, at which time Riefenstahl personally accompanied her print of the film to selected showings in Germany and Austria. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Leni Riefenstahl, Franz Eichberger, (more)
- 1953
Literally translated as Flight into the Reeds, Flucht ins Schilf was released in England and the U.S. as Brutality. The film is a surprisingly neorealist exercise from the Austrian film industry, which in the early 1950s tended to specialize in escapist operettas. Location-filmed in a bizarre reed jungle on the Austro-Hungarian border, the film is populated with Swamp Water-type Slavic eccentrics who seem cut off from civilization. The main character is Alexander Riss (Alexander Kerszt), a constable who tries to learn the reasons behind the brutal killing of a local youth. Riss' girlfriend Elizabeth (Ilka Windisch, in her first major role) can provide an alibi for one of the accused, but her words will mean lasting unhappiness for the people the audience cares about. The last few reels are a maelstrom of flashbacks which either clear or exonerate suspects (these scenes are rather confusing in the heavily re-edited American version). Cheaply produced, and enacted mostly by local amateurs, Flucht ins Schilf has its own raw power. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kurt Jaggberg
- 1950
Popular Austrian operetta star Marika Rockk does not disappoint her fans in Das Kind der Donau. Though a bit long in tooth for her role, Rockk is reasonably convincing as Marika, the daughter of Danube boatmaster Christof Josef Egger. While singing to herself one day, Marika is discovered by a journalist Karl Straup who is so entranced by her beauty and talent that he puts up his own money to build an opera company around her. A few minor complications later, Marika and the journalist head for the altar. It was still possible to pull off a hackneyed plot like this one in 1950, especially with the stunning Marika Rockk in the lead. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Fred Liewehr, Josef Egger, (more)
- 1947
Die Welt Dreht Sich Verkehrt was the original title for this Austrian comedy. The film is a showcase for European comedian Hans Moser, a bibulous blowhard very much in the tradition of W. C. Fields. In an alcoholic stupor, Moser ruminates on the "good old days" of his youth. An extended flashback demonstrates that our hero's memory isn't quite as clear as he thinks it is. Producer-director J. A. Hulber-Kahla sagaciously includes several toothsome young ladies in the proceedings, for the benefit of those not interested in the well-lubricated ramblings of star Moser. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Hans Moser, Karl Skraup, (more)
- 1947
Das Singende Haus (The Singing House) was financed in Germany but filmed in Vienna. The heroine (Herta Mayen) is the daughter of a hidebound classical musician (Paul Kemp). She prefers jazz music, but he prefers that she stay locked up at home far away from such music. In true Hollywood B-musical fashion, the old man is won over to his daughter's musical point of view, while she finds romance in the arms of a handsome swing musician (Hans Moser). Future international star Curt Jurgens (here billed as Kurd Jurgens) plays a supporting role. Chances for an American release of Das Singende Haus were hurt by the questionable political status of writer-director Franz Antel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Hannelore Schroth, Susi Nicoletti, (more)
- 1943
This German only video tells the story of Paracelsus nefarious activities after quarantining the city of Basel from the plague and using unusual means of healing, saves a man. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1936
In this convoluted melodrama, an elderly thespian falls for a rising young starlet. He admits his love for her and then announces that he will retire from the stage. The young woman pretends she loves him too, but her real motive is to give her struggling lover, also an aspiring actor, a break. The old actor learns the painful truth and though wounded, understands that the relationship would never have worked. When the young actor attempts to end his life, following the loss of his job at the Burg Theatre, it is the elderly actor who saves him. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Werner Krauss
