Three days of life and death
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| Original title | Three days of life and death |
| Country of production | Germany |
| original language | German |
| Publishing year | 1929 |
| length | 88 minutes |
| Rod | |
| Director | Heinz Paul |
| script | Hella Moja |
| production | Cinéma-Film-Vertriebs-Gesellschaft mbH (Berlin) |
| camera |
Viktor Gluck Karl Blumenberg |
| occupation | |
| |
Three Days of Life and Death is a German war silent film from 1929 with Carl de Vogt in the leading role of a submarine commander on a patrol. Directed by Heinz Paul based on a script by his wife Hella Moja .
action
First World War. The German submarine C. 1 is three days of life and death when it is on its way home from the war effort in the Atlantic. The journey home turns into a patrol when the C. 1 spots a French steamer over the water. The freighter is heading straight for the German submarine and tries to ram it. However, the German submarine captain can evade at the last moment. The next day, an enemy cruiser attacks the UC 1. Again, the German Kaleu acts very carefully and thus saves the lives of his men.
The last of the three days should prove to be the most dangerous for the crew: the submarine has to overcome a dangerous mine barrier when passing the English Channel. The propeller gets caught in a steel net. The crew believes their fate is sealed when a young sailor volunteers on board to dive into the sea and cut the net. The mission succeeds and the entire crew is returning home. The chef has even found his great love: he brings the pretty Jeannette home from a hijacked ship, who will be the new hotelier's wife at his side.
Production notes
The film was made in July and August in the Jofa studios (indoor shots) as well as in the port of Cartagena (Spain) and on the Adriatic Sea (outdoor shots). The six-stroke with a length of 2217 meters passed the film censorship on November 6, 1929 and was also approved for young people. The premiere of Three Days for Life and Death took place under the subtitle UC 1 on November 29, 1929 in the Düsseldorf Capitol. The Berlin premiere was on December 31, 1929 in the Primus-Palast.
Harry Dettmann was in charge of the production, the buildings were designed by Karl Machus .
Reviews
“The whole war is shown to us in sugar-coated form. (...) Carl de Vogt, stylized entirely on nobility, plays the submarine captain in this cozy and cozy affair, which is commonly known as World War II. (...) But all those who advocate true international understanding strongly reject this technically very well made film because it does not have the tendency to 'never again war'. "
“The author Hella Moja, inspired by the countless war films that have appeared so far, tried to create a mixture of big world events and small human things. She puts the idyll of love next to the heroic death, the sailor nonsense next to the threatening danger of mines. (…) That won't always be bearable for every audience. Because the film is not built on a pacifist or at least a people-reconciling basis, but rather portrays democratically subdued cheer patriotism. "
“It would be bad thanks if the German people forgot the silent, self-sacrificing heroism of the German submarine crews. The memory of those unprecedented achievements that blooming patriotism accomplished under the black-white-red war flag must always be kept awake. (…) The manuscript breathes a male spirit, although it was written by a woman, Hella Moja. The female sentimentality has been deliberately switched off, which devalues some otherwise pleasant patriotic films. 'Comradeship' is the leitmotif of the whole game of Submarine C. 1. "
Web links
- Three days on life and death in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Three days of life and death at filmportal.de