Vampyr

Vampyr 1932

7.30

A student of the occult encounters supernatural haunts and local evildoers in a village outside of Paris.

1932

Titanic

Titanic 1943

6.10

In 1912, the Titanic embarks on its inevitable collision course with history. In the wake of the over-spending required to build the largest luxury ship in the world, White Star Line executive Sir Bruce Ismay schemes to reverse the direction of his company's plummeting stock value. Onboard the Titanic, brave German 1st Officer Petersen struggles to convince his self-important British superiors not to overexert the ship's engines.

1943

The 3 Penny Opera

The 3 Penny Opera 1931

7.10

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'.

1931

The Great King

The Great King 1942

6.90

King Frederick II (aka "Frederick the Great") of Prussia is engaged in a major battle against the Austrian army at Kunersdorf, and things aren't going well. The Austrians are inflicting major casualties, and his army is beginning to crumble. Defeat seems inevitable when a combination of events gives him hope that he may pull victory from the jaws of defeat after all.

1942

Bismarck

Bismarck 1940

5.70

A biographical film of Otto von Bismarck, the Prime Minister of Prussia, and how he and his policies - including aggressive war - helped to unite Germany.

1940

The Threepenny Opera

The Threepenny Opera 1931

6.60

The French-language version of the The Threepenny Opera with a different cast from the German version.

1931

The Stars Shine

The Stars Shine 1938

6.20

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

1938

Die Fledermaus

Die Fledermaus 1937

4.00

The delightful Johann Strauss comic opera Die Fledermaus was mercilessly lampooned in this truly bizarre production. For starters, a framing device has been added: After appearing in 300 consecutive appearances of Fledermaus (which translates as The Bat) the lead tenor (Georg Alexander) imagines that he's seeing bats everywhere. Driven a bit over the edge by all this, he falls asleep and has a nightmare about the opera, with a group of non-singers cast in the leading roles. The original libretto about romantic assignations, political imprisonments and mistaken identity is burlesqued to the hilt: at one point, the hero finds out that his prison cell is surrounded by rubber tubes!

1937

I Accuse

I Accuse 1941

6.00

In this film, the wife of a renowned doctor becomes ill with multiple sclerosis. Trying to spare her beloved husband the ordeal, the woman turns to a family friend, Dr. Lang, to help end her life. When this doctor declines to help with the assisted suicide, however, she is forced to turn to her husband. After much soul-searching, Dr. Heyt, her husband, assists in her suicide. The act, however, is witnessed by a chambermaid, who reports him to the police. Dr. Heyt is put on trial for murder and, at first, Dr. Lang testifies against him in court. Soon, however, Dr. Lang is faced with a similar case in his professional practice and this, along with Dr. Heyt’s impassioned performance in court, convinces Dr. Lang that, in some instances, mercy killing may be the right thing to do.

1941

Masquerade in Vienna

Masquerade in Vienna 1934

5.39

After a masked carnival ball, Gerda Harrandt, wife of the surgeon Carl Ludwig Harrandt, allows the fashionable artist Ferdinand von Heidenick to paint a portrait of her wearing only a mask and a muff. This muff however belongs to Anita Keller, in secret the painter's lover but also the fiancée of the court orchestra director Paul Harrandt. The picture is then published in the newspaper. When Paul sees it and asks von Heidenick some questions about the identity of the model, the artist is forced to improvise a story and on the spur of the moment invents a woman called Leopoldine Dur as the alleged model. Leopoldine Dur however turns out to be a real woman whose acquaintance Heidenick makes shortly afterwards.

1934

My Life for Ireland

My Life for Ireland 1941

6.20

A Nazi propaganda movie from 1941 directed by Max W. Kimmich, covering a story of Irish heroism and martyrdom over two generations under the occupation of the British.

1941

Two in a Big City

Two in a Big City 1942

5.80

A German soldier on leave in Berlin goes looking for his pen pal who he has never met called Gisela. He meets instead a woman with the same name and falls in love with her.

1942

Trenck, der Pandur

Trenck, der Pandur 1940

5.20

Film about the fictitious adventures of Franz Freiherr von Trenck, who lived during the times of empress Maria Theresia of Austria garnished with espionage and twisted love affairs.

1940

Napoleon Is to Blame for Everything

Napoleon Is to Blame for Everything 1938

1

English Lord Arthur Cavershoot is a passionate Napoleon scholar who badly neglects his wife Josephine for his obsession with the French emperor. When the cranky historian travels to a Napoleon conference in Paris, his smart spouse secretly follows him. Unnoticed by her, the city of love threatens to spark a romance between Arthur and a chorus girl.

1938

Fahrendes Volk

Fahrendes Volk 1938

4.00

Fernand has escaped from prison and finds shelter in the traveling circus Barlay, where his former wife Flora works as a predator trainer. Their son, now grown up, Marcel is an art rider and does not know that Fernand is his father. Marcel loves Yvonne, the daughter of director Barlay. He is against the connection, sends his daughter to Italy and convinces Marcel that Yvonne does not return his feelings.

1938

Akrobat schö-ö-ö-n

Akrobat schö-ö-ö-n 1943

7.00

Charlie, a very gifted, young acrobat, cannot find employment. A dancer and colleague, whom he trained, has gotten him a job as a stagehand at a vaudeville theatre. After a number of chaotic events and some highs and lows - none of which ever discourage him - his hour arrives: an act can't go on and "Akrobat schööön" can finally make his grand entrance.

1943

Peter Voss, der Millionendieb

Peter Voss, der Millionendieb 1946

7.20

Adaptation of Seeliger's novel, starting production in 1943, finished by DEFA studios after the war.

1946

Uncle Krüger

Uncle Krüger 1941

7.50

An anti-British propaganda film from Nazi Germany which depicts the life of the South African politician Paul Kruger and his eventual defeat by the British during the Boer War.

1941