Watch on the Rhine
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | Watch on the Rhine, also: Die Wacht am Rhein, also: Before the decision |
| Original title | Watch on the Rhine |
| Country of production | United States |
| original language | English , German |
| Publishing year | 1943 |
| length | 114 minutes |
| Rod | |
| Director | Herman Shumlin |
| script | Dashiell Hammett |
| production | Hal B. Wallis |
| music | Max Steiner |
| camera |
Merritt B. Gerstad Hal Mohr |
| cut | Rudi Fehr |
| occupation | |
| |
Watch on the Rhine (alternative title: Die Wacht am Rhein, also: Before the Decision) is an American film drama from 1943 that deals with the topics of espionage and National Socialism. The script is based on the play of the same name by Lillian Hellman .
action
The German Kurt Müller is married to the American Sara. The couple have three children - Joshua, Babette and Bodo. In 1940 the family traveled to the USA via Mexico to visit Sara's family. In Washington, Sara, who has not seen her family for 17 years, is expected by her brother David Farrelly and her mother Fanny. Fanny has other guests in the house. In addition to the good friend Anise, the Romanian Count Teck de Brancovis and his American wife Marthe are also guests.
Kurt, a former engineer, has joined the resistance movement against the Nazi regime in Germany. Sara explains to her mother what Kurt did and that he urgently needs to rest. However, Kurt does not know that the Romanian count sympathizes with the Nazis. Marthe has fallen in love with David, but does not answer his questions about Kurt. At the same time the count searches the miller's room and finds a locked briefcase there. He breaks it open and finds a gun and money.
Sara notices the broken briefcase. Shortly afterwards she found out about the arrest of the resistance fighter Max Freidech. The count and his wife go to the German embassy for dinner. Sara informs Fanny and David that she and her husband are transporting money that is intended for the German underground. Kurt wants to go back to Germany to help Max, who previously saved him from the Gestapo. Joshua wants to accompany his father, but he rejects him, saying that his time will come later.
The count returns from the reception with his wife. Marthe wants to separate from her husband. Teck knows that Kurt will be in danger if the Nazis find out about his return to Germany. He demands $ 10,000 for his silence. Kurt refuses to pay, but David and Fanny agree. As the two leave the room, Kurt draws his gun and leads the count outside, where he kills him. Fanny and David come back, Kurt confesses to them what he has done. He asked them to give two days' respite before notifying the police. Both understand the danger Kurt is in and give him the money intended for the count.
After a while, when there is still no message from Kurt, Joshua declares that he will look for him after his eighteenth birthday. Sara doesn't want to lose her son too, but she promises to be brave as soon as circumstances require.
criticism
The Lexicon of International Films sees the work as an "exciting film adaptation of a Broadway stage success from 1940, which, however, roughly simplifies the political realities in Europe in favor of human conflicts".
Bosley Crowther of the New York Times described the film as "soulful, strong and beautiful".
The Variety praised the production as an excellent film, better than the strong stage version. The film treats the subject in a more advanced and deeper way. And that is done with enormous skill and passionate judgment.
Awards
In 1944 Paul Lukas won the Oscar for Best Actor . There were further nominations in the categories of Best Film , Best Supporting Actress (Lucille Watson) and Best Adapted Screenplay .
Paul Lukas won two other film awards. For best actor he received the Golden Globe in the category Best Actor (Drama) and the NYFCC Award . There was another NYFCC award in the Best Film category .
background
The world premiere took place on August 27, 1943. In Germany the film first appeared in cinemas in 1977 - in the original version with German subtitles. In later TV broadcasts it was broadcast under the title Die Wacht am Rhein . Lillian Hellman revealed in an interview in 1968 that she had met the hero of the play - Kurt Müller - in Spain, although of course the character had undergone changes before it was written in August 1939. The film was to a certain extent dedicated to Otto Katz , about whom it says in the opening credits that he was one of the people who fought against this great tragedy from the start.
In the US, the Warner Bros. production grossed $ 2.5 million.
The film was set up by Carl Jules Weyl as the art director and Julia Heron as the set decorator; the costumes were from Orry-Kelly .
The play premiered on Broadway on April 1, 1941 and attracted 378 performances. In the film adaptation, Paul Lukas, George Coulouris, Lucille Watson and Eric Roberts repeat their stage roles. Film director Herbert Shumlin was the producer and director of the play. For him it was his debut as a film director.
Paul Lukas was a well-respected stage actor. Born in Hungary, he was able to convince in silent films, but after switching to talkies, he decided to seek his luck in the theater because he had not succeeded in becoming a star in Hollywood. Producer Wallis now brought a big name. His choice fell on Bette Davis, who was still working on the film Journey from the Past . Director Shumlin suggested Margaret Sullavan and Helen Hayes as replacements, but Sullavan wanted to return to the theater, while Hayes - like Lukas - did not have a big name. Wallis now wanted to sign Irene Dunne , but she rejected the offer as "too unimportant". An injury to screenwriter Hammett delayed production. But now Bette Davis was also available, who gladly accepted the role because she saw the film as important. Since she played a supporting role, she wanted Lukas to be named in the first place on the posters as the leading actor. But Warner's publicity department saw Davis as the bigger name. Her name helped make the film one of the biggest hits of the year.
Web links
- Watch on the Rhine in the Internet Movie Database (English)
Individual evidence
- ^ Watch on the Rhine. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed March 2, 2017 .
- ↑ Critique of the New York Times (Eng.)
- ↑ Critique of Variety
- ↑ Jonathan Miles: The Nine Lives of Otto Katz. The Remarkable Story of a Communist Super-Spy. Bantam Books, London et al. 2010, ISBN 978-0-553-82018-8 , p. 279.
- ↑ gross profit
- ↑ Watch on the Rhine at Turner Classic Movies (English)