Salto Mortale 1954

Engel im Abendkleid 1951

The bailiff Engel is believed to be an heir to the millions via a fictitious newspaper advertisement. It is said to have a mink farm. Your debtors mean my nun that as a millionaire you can pay the debts. Some dowry hunters have seen it on them too. Paulchen, who shows the ad, has in Ms. Engel and in the end she also has a couple.

Gefährliche Gäste 1949

Marionette 1939

The Dream of Butterfly 1939

Italian filmmaker Carmine Gallone was still in his "operetta" mode when he helmed 1938's Il Sogno di Butterfly (Dream of the Butterfly) Maria Cebotari plays opera diva Rosa Belloni, currently starring in a production of Puccini's Madama Butterfly. The plot thickens when Rosa's backstage life begins to mirror the travails of the character she is portraying. The climax comes when Harry Peters (Fosco Giachetti), the American father of Rosa's illegitimate child, returns after four years with his new wife in tow, leading inexorably to a doleful ending both on- and offstage. Critics complained about the substandard photography in Il Sogno di Butterfly, but this might have been due to poor laboratory work.

The Stars Shine 1938

German all-star musical from 1938 that was a big commercial success.

Ihr Leibhusar 1938

Lucky Kids 1936

After completing work on the British musical Invitation to the Waltz, Lillian Harvey returned to her adopted country of Germany to star in the comedy-with-music Glueckskinder (Children of Fortune). Harvey plays Ann Garden, an unemployed actress who ends up in night court on a loitering charge. Here she meets Gil Taylor (Willy Fritsch), a struggling songwriter temporarily employed as a court reporter. Hoping to keep her out of jail, Gil impulsively tells the judge that he's engaged to Ann -- whereupon the judge, equally impulsively, marries the couple on the spot! After this inauspicious start, Ann and Gil embark upon a rocky (but tuneful) whirlwind romance.

Hot Blood 1936

Baroness Marika von Korossy dresses up as a man, in order to compete in a horse race. Her victorious horse, Satan, will only allow her to ride him and throws everyone else off of him. That includes the dandy lieutenant Tibor von Denes, who immediately recognizes that Marika isn't a man. It isn't long before he makes friends with her and even gets her to dance with him. It's then that Marika takes off her hat and shows she's a woman, which causes jealous Ilonka von Peredy to go into a rage. When Marika is forced to sell her estate to raise money, Ilonka is able to get Marika's beloved Satan.

A Man With a Heart 1932

A story about a series of confusions, in which Paul Ritter, a bank employee, is unaware that the girl he's fallen in love with is the daughter of his boss. No one bothers to tell him and he gets jealous of the boss, who seems to have a very good relationship with the girl.

M 1931

In this classic German thriller, Hans Beckert, a serial killer who preys on children, becomes the focus of a massive Berlin police manhunt. Beckert's heinous crimes are so repellant and disruptive to city life that he is even targeted by others in the seedy underworld network. With both cops and criminals in pursuit, the murderer soon realizes that people are on his trail, sending him into a tense, panicked attempt to escape justice.

Infidelities 1931

When both husband and wife find romance outside their marriage, it's a shock to everyone. Robert and Annemarie break up to elope with their respective lovers, only to be thrown together again when they show up at the justice of the peace.

The 3 Penny Opera 1931

In London at the turn of the century, underworld kingpin Mack the Knife marries Polly Peachum without the knowledge of her father, the equally enterprising 'king of the beggars'.

The Great Passion 1930

This is a real curiosity; at best a reasonable film, but also a charming little gem. There is a story (in the line of "A Star is Born"), but this merely serves as an excuse, as it is more importantly a kind of moving encyclopedia of about 35 stars making their debut in a talkie (although some of them had already made one talkie), of the technical sound possibilities and of film making. Besides all that, it is entertaining and sometimes hilarious and it has fine one-liners that split my side. The film is also remarkable for making mock of typical German film genres (like the overly sweet romances involving the military), of too heavy acting and of film making in general. I have to mention this one: a short, hysterically funny parody of "Der blaue Engel". What this film in fact says is: do not take any film too seriously. (J. Steed)