List of German films 1933–1945
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| Cinema of Germany |
|---|
| Lists of German films |
| 1895–1918 German Empire |
| 1919–1933 Weimar Germany |
| 1933–1945 Nazi Germany |
| 1945–1990 East Germany |
| German films since 1945 |
The List of German films of 1933–1945 are divided into this timeframe to reflect the period of Nazi Germany, between the time that Hitler rose to power, January 30, 1933, and when Admiral Karl Dönitz surrendered to the Allies, May 8, 1945.
While not as highly regarded as the Weimar Republic era films, the films of Nazi Germany, mainly made under control of Joseph Goebbels, hold a fascination for many, both as historical documents of one of the most important and disturbing periods of 20th century history, as well as for their own artistic merit. While some of them are popular only within the Neo-Nazi subculture, comedies starring Heinz Rühmann rank among the favourites of all Germans, and the documentaries of Leni Riefenstahl have been influential, though controversial.
For an alphabetical list of articles on films of the era see Category:Films of the Third Reich.
Contents |
[edit] 1933
-
- Note: This year could count both as part of the Weimar era and the Third Reich era
| Title | Director | Cast | Genre | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carmen | Lotte Reiniger | Animation | ||
| Der Choral von Leuthen | Carl Froelich, Arzén von Cserépy | Otto Gebühr, Olga Tschechowa | War /History | The Hymn of Leuthen; Depicting Friedrich the Great's victory at Leuthen |
| Der Deutsche Reichstag zu Nürnberg | Documentary | From the German Reichstag to Nuremberg; Special report on the Nuremberg Rally | ||
| Der schwarze Husar | Gerhard Lamprecht | Conrad Veidt, Mady Christians | Comedy/Action | The Black Hussar |
| Don Quichotte | Georg Wilhelm Pabst | German language version | ||
| F.P.1 | Karl Hartl | Hans Albers, Sybille Schmitz, Georg John | English version of the German 1932 film | |
| I.F.1 ne répond plus | Karl Hartl | French version of the German 1932 film | ||
| The Flower of Hawaii | Richard Oswald | Mártha Eggerth, Hans Fidesser | Musical | Based on the operetta The Flower of Hawaii by Paul Abraham |
| Flüchtlinge | Gustav Ucicky | Historical | Refugees; About the evacuation of the German settlement in China during the KMT revolution | |
| Gretel zieht das große Los | Carl Boese | Comedy | Gretel Wins the Jackpot | |
| Hans Westmar. Einer von vielen. Ein deutsches Schicksal aus dem Jahre 1929 |
Franz Wenzler | Hans Westmar: One of Many. A German Destiny from the Year 1929; Thinly veiled propaganda film extolling Horst Wessel. Based on the novel by Hanns Heinz Ewers. | ||
| Hitlerjunge Quex | Hans Steinhoff | Berta Drews, Heinrich George | nazi propaganda | Hitler Youth Quex; Dramatic propaganda film extoling the Hitler Youth |
| Hitlers Aufruf an das deutsche Volk |
Hitler's Address to the German People; 26 min film of Hitler's February 10 address urging Germans to vote for the NSDAP in German election, 1933 | |||
| Ich und die Kaiserin | Friedrich Hollaender | Featuring Lilian Harvey & Conrad Veidt | Musical comedy | The Empress and I |
| Lachende Erben | Max Ophüls | Featuring Lien Deyers | romantic comedy | Laughing Heirs |
| Liebelei | Max Ophüls | Flirting | ||
| Meisterdetektiv | Franz Seitz | Comedy | Master Detective | |
| Morgenrot | Vernon Sewell, Gustav Ucicky | Morning Red; Premiered 2 February 1933, considered the first film of the Nazi era - IMDb | ||
| Der Page vom Dalmasse-Hotel |
Victor Janson | Comedy | The Dalmasse Hotel Page Boy | |
| S.A.-Mann Brand | Franz Seitz | Brownshirt Brand; Dramatic propaganda film extoling the Stormtroopers | ||
| S.O.S. Eisberg | Arnold Fanck | |||
| S.O.S. Iceberg | Tay Garnett | English version of above | ||
| Der Sieg des Glaubens | Leni Riefenstahl | Documentary | Victory of Faith; propaganda film of 1933 Nazi Party Congress. One complete print survives - IMDb | |
| The Testament of Dr. Mabuse | Fritz Lang | Das Testament des Dr. Mabuse; Last Fritz Lang film made in Germany before the war | ||
| Le Testament du Dr. Mabuse | Fritz Lang, René Sti | French version of the above | ||
| Der Tunnel | Curtis Bernhardt | French version: Le Tunnel | ||
| Viktor und Viktoria | Reinhold Schünzel | Inspiration for Victor Victoria (1982) | ||
| Was Frauen träumen | Géza von Bolváry | Featuring Peter Lorre | Romantic comedy | What Women Dream |
| Zwei gute Kameraden | Max Obal | Comedy | Two Good Comrades; Set in First World War |
[edit] 1934
[edit] 1935
[edit] 1936
[edit] 1937
| Title | Director | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Alles Leben ist Kampf | Herbert Gerdes | All Life Is Struggle; advocates involuntary sterilization of the disabled and those with hereditary diseases |
| Die Ganz großen Torheiten | Carl Froelich | All the Great Foolerie |
| Gasparone | Georg Jacoby | Starring Marika Rökk |
| Gewitterflug zu Claudia | Erich Waschneck | Stormy Flight to Claudia |
| La Habanera | Douglas Sirk | Zarah Leander falls in love with a Puerto Rican landowner |
| Der Herrscher | Veit Harlan | The Ruler; film extoling leadership principle; featuring Emil Jannings |
| Juden ohne Maske | Walter Böttcher and Leo von der Schmiede | The Jews Unmasked; 36 min Anti-Semitic documentary propaganda film |
| Kapriolen | Gustaf Gründgens | romantic comedy with newly-wed Gustaf Gründgens and Marianne Hoppe |
| Man spricht über Jacqueline | Werner Hochbaum | People are talking about Jacqueline |
| Der Mann, der Sherlock Holmes war | Karl Hartl | The Man Who was Sherlock Holmes starring Hans Albers and Heinz Rühmann |
| Mädchen für alles | Carl Boese | A Girl for Everything |
| Mein Sohn, der Herr Minister | My Son the Minister | |
| Mussolini in Deutschland | Mussolini in Germany; 31-minute documentary propaganda film about Benito Mussolini's September 1937 visit to Munich | |
| Opfer der Vergangenheit | Gernot Bock-Stieber | Victims of the Past; Euthanasia propaganda film |
| Die Postkutsche | This was the first experimental short movie in Agfacolor. It was shot on 35 mm reversal film. | |
| Die Tochter des Samurai | Arnold Fanck and Mansaku Itami | The Daughter of the Samurai aka Atarashiki tsuchi; German-Japanese co-production |
| Truxa | Hans H. Zerlett | |
| Sherlock Holmes und die graue Dame | Erich Engels | Sherlock Holmes and the Gray Lady |
| Unternehmen Michael | Karl Ritter | Operation Michael |
| Urlaub auf Ehrenwort | Karl Ritter | Leave on Parole |
| Weltraumschiff 1 startet... | Anton Kutter | |
| Wenn Frauen schweigen | Fritz Kirchhoff | When Women Remain Silent |
| Der zerbrochene Krug | Gustav Ucicky | The Broken Jug ; featuring Emil Jannings |
| Zu neuen Ufern | Douglas Sirk | To New Shores |
| Festliches Nürnberg | Hans Weidemann | Festive Nuremberg; 21 minute compilation of footage from the 1936 and 37 Nazi Party Congresses |
[edit] 1938
| Title | Director | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Die Bauten Adolf Hitlers | Albert Speer | Adolf Hitlers Constructions; 17-minute propaganda film about "racial aspects" of architecture |
| Der Berg ruft! | Luis Trenker | The Mountain Calls! |
| Der Blaufuchs | Viktor Tourjansky | The Blue Fox starring Zarah Leander |
| Carmen, la de Triana | Florián Rey | A Spanish-German version of Carmen shot in Germany because of the war in Spain. |
| España heroica | Paul Laven | Heroic Spain; 86-minute documentary propaganda film about Spanish Civil War |
| Gastspiel im Paradies | Karl Hartl | |
| Les Gens du voyage | Jacques Feyder | |
| Das Indische Grabmal | Richard Eichberg | The Indian Tomb |
| Kameraden auf See | Heinz Paul | Comrades at Sea |
| Der Maulkorb | Erich Engel | |
| Nanu, Sie kennen Korff noch nicht? | Fritz Holl | So You Don't Know Korff Yet? |
| Olympia 1. Teil - Fest der Völker | Leni Riefenstahl | Olympics, Part 1 - Celebration of the People; documentary of 1936 Summer Olympics. Shows Opening Ceremonies, Jesse Owens race, marathons |
| Olympia 2. Teil - Fest der Schönheit | Leni Riefenstahl | Olympics, Part 2 - Celebration of Beauty; includes field hockey, soccer, bicycling, equestrian, aquatic and gymnastic events, the Pentathlon, the Decathlon and Closing Ceremonies. |
| Pour le Mérite | Karl Ritter | In praise of war veterans rejecting the Weimar Republic and the illegal rearmament. |
| Le Récif de corail | Maurice Gleize | |
| Wort und Tat | Fritz Hippler | Words and Deeds; 10-minute documentary propaganda film shows economic progress of Germany under Hitler by a series of montages |
| Es leuchten die Sterne | Hans H. Zerlett | Musical revue; released in the U.S. as The Stars Shine and in other countries under various titles |
[edit] 1939
[edit] 1940
[edit] 1941
| Title | Director | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Annelie | Josef von Báky | Story of a heroic World War II German mother. |
| Auf Wiedersehen, Franziska | Helmut Käutner | Goodbye, Franziska; film about a wife reminding her husband of his duty to go to war. |
| Bunte Kriechtierwelt | Wolfram Junghans | The Colorful World of Animals that Crawl; nature documentary; in Agfacolor |
| Carl Peters | Herbert Selpin | A film about the pioneer instilling nationalistic ideology into the plot. |
| Frauen sind doch bessere Diplomaten | Georg Jacoby | Women are better Diplomats; in Agfacolor |
| Der Gasmann | Carl Froelich | |
| Die Englische Krankheit | Kurt Stefan | The Sickness of Being English; 13 min documentary anti-British propaganda film |
| Heimkehr | Gustav Ucicky | Homecoming; dramatic anti-Polish propaganda film |
| Ich klage an | Wolfgang Liebeneiner | I Accuse You; pro-euthanasia propaganda film |
| Immer nur Du | Karl Anton | Only Ever You; musical romantic comedy |
| Jenny und der Herr im Frack | Paul Martin | Jenny and the Gentleman in Coattails; comedy; features brief nudity; involves philately (stamp collecting) |
| Kampfgeschwader Lützow | Hans Bertram | Battle Squadron Lützow |
| LAH Im Einsatz | LAH in Action; 39-minute propaganda film about 1st SS Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler | |
| Liebe ist zollfrei | E.W. Emo | comedy |
| Mamma | Guido Brignone | Mother; German-Italian co-production |
| Mein Leben für Irland | Max W. Kimmich | My Life for Ireland; dramatic anti-British propaganda film |
| Menschen im Sturm | Fritz Peter Buch | Men in the Storm; propaganda film justifing the German annexation of northern Slovenia, dramatizing the "oppression" of the Volksdeutsch community there |
| Ohm Krüger | Hans Steinhoff | about Paul Kruger, the South African leader in the Boer War; features Emil Jannings and Gustaf Gründgens; anti-British propaganda |
| Quax, der Bruchpilot | Kurt Hoffmann | dramatic pro-Luftwaffe and anti-individualist film with propaganda tendencies starring Heinz Rühmann |
| ...reitet für Deutschland | Arthur Maria Rabenalt | Riding for Germany; blacklisted film; director banned for 2 years by the Americans for this film about a tournament runner with blatant patriotic and nationalistic undertones. |
| Sechs Tage Heimaturlaub | Jürgen von Alten | Six Days of Home Leave |
| Sieg im Westen | Svend Noldan | Victory in the West; documentary/propaganda film about Blitzkrieg in Western Europe |
| Sowjetparadies | The Soviet Paradise, 14-minute anti-Soviet documentary propaganda film | |
| Spätrupp Hallgarten | Herbert Fredersdorf | Hallgarten Patrol; soldier's death propaganda. |
| Stukas | Karl Ritter | pro-Luftwaffe propaganda film; "Stuka" was a slang term for a German dive bomber |
| U-Boote westwärts | Günther Rittau | U-Boats Westward; about U-Boats in the Battle of the Atlantic |
| Vertigine | Guido Brignone | Tragödie einer Liebe; Broken Love; German-Italian co-production |
[edit] 1942
| Title | Director | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Andreas Schlüter | Herbert Maisch | A film about the sculptor Andreas Schlüter; subliminal Nazi propaganda throughout. |
| Anschlag auf Baku | Fritz Kirchhoff | Attack on Baku; anti-British propaganda. |
| Berlin-Wie Es War | Berlin the Way it Was; 87 min documentary about pre-war Berlin | |
| Boote mit Flügeln | Nicholas Kaufmann | 14 min documentary |
| Die Entlassung | Wolfgang Liebeneiner | The Dismissal; Sequel to Bismark (1940); features Emil Jannings |
| GPU | Karl Ritter | Anti-Communism propaganda. |
| Die goldene Stadt | Veit Harlan | The Golden City; in Agfacolor |
| Der Große König | Veit Harlan | The Great King; historical drama about King Frederick the Great of Prussia |
| Die Große Liebe | Rolf Hansen | The Great Love; featuring Zarah Leander; highest grossing film of the Third Reich. |
| Himmelhunde | Roger von Norman | Sky Dogs; about a young glider pilot who becomes a military pilot; targeted toward youths. |
| Kleine Residenz | Hans H. Zerlett | |
| Männer, Meer und Stürme | Heinrich Hauser and Hubert Schonger | Men, Sea and Storm: A Film of the Romance and the Life Onboard a Segelship; 18 min documentary about Kriegsmarine |
| Rembrandt | Hans Steinhoff | |
| Rund um die Freiheitsstatue | 15-minute Anti-American propaganda film. aka Round the Statue of Liberty,Corruption of America | |
| Die Sache mit Styx | Karl Anton | |
| Die See ruft | Hans Fritz Köllner | Documentary |
| Sprung in den Feind | Wilhelm Stöppler | 22-minute propaganda film, showing the invasion of the Netherlands. The bridge of Moerdijk is taken with Fallschirmjäger. |
| Das Tapfere Schneiderlein | Hubert Schonger | |
| Wiener Blut | Willi Forst | Viennese Blood |
| Wir machen Musik | Helmut Käutner | We Make Music; musical comedy featuring Ilse Werner and her whistling talent |
| Zwei in einer großen Stadt | Volker von Collande | Two in a Big City |
[edit] 1943
[edit] 1944
[edit] 1945
| Title | Director | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Dumme Gänslein, Das | Hans Fischerkoesen | The Silly Little Goose, Animation |
| Das kleine Hofkonzert | Paul Verhoeven | The Little Court Concert; In Agfacolor |
| Hochzeit im Korallenmeer | Horst von Möllendorff | Wedding in the Coral Sea |
| Kolberg | Veit Harlan | propaganda film in Agfacolor |
| Das Leben geht weiter | Wolfgang Liebeneiner | Life Continues |
| Shiva und die Galgenblume | Hans Georg Andres and Michaela Krützen | In Agfacolor |
[edit] Unclassified
Note: The year of these films may be unknown or they may span multiple years.
| Title | Director | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Die Deutsche Wochenschau | The German Weekly Show; newsreel series | |
| Die Frontschau | Fritz Hippler | The Front Show; Series of technical films shown to soldiers before they were sent to the Eastern Front |
[edit] Uncompleted
| Title | Director | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Tiefland | Leni Riefenstahl | Filmed 1940-44 the movie was completed after World War II and released 1954 |
[edit] See also
- Nazism and cinema
- Department of Film (Nazi Germany)
- Cinema of Germany
- List of films set in Berlin
- List of films made in France 1919-1940
- List of World War II films
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