Berlin Express
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| Berlin Express | |
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 Theatrical poster |
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| Directed by | Jacques Tourneur |
| Produced by | Bert Granet |
| Written by | Curt Siodmak (Story) Harold Medford |
| Starring | Merle Oberon Robert Ryan Charles Korvin |
| Music by | Frederick Hollander |
| Cinematography | Lucien Ballard |
| Editing by | Sherman Todd |
| Distributed by | RKO Radio Pictures Inc. |
| Release date(s) | May 1, 1948 (U.S.A.) |
| Running time | 87 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Allmovie profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Berlin Express (1948) is a black-and-white film directed by Jacques Tourneur. The film was shot on location in post-World War II Frankfurt and Berlin, Germany as well as Paris, France. During the opening credits a full-screen notice read: "Actual scenes in Frankfurt and Berlin were photographed by authorization of The United States Army of Occupation, The British Army of Occupation, The Soviet Army of Occupation."[1]
The film is memorable today for showing the bombed out streets of Frankfurt, Germany. Costume designer Orry-Kelly dressed Oberon for the film. Actress Oberon was married to the films cinematographer Lucien Ballard at the time of shooting.
Also prominent in this film are fine exterior and interior shots of the IG Farben Building in Frankfurt.[2]
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[edit] Plot
While on a train to Berlin a German doctor is killed when a bomb goes off in his compartment. The murder is witnessed by an American, a French woman, a Russian soldier and a British man who are questioned in the killing. When it's found out that the man killed was a decoy for the real doctor, a man admired for trying to unite Germany, the group from the train begin working together trying to find the real doctor in the streets of post-war Germany. Not all on the team are whom they seem to be.
[edit] Cast
- Merle Oberon as Lucienne
- Robert Ryan as Robert Lindley
- Charles Korvin as Perrot
- Paul Lukas as Dr. Bernhardt
- Robert Coote as Sterling
- Reinhold Schünzel as Walther
- Roman Toporow as Lt. Maxim
- Peter von Zerneck as Hans Schmidt
- Otto Waldis as Kessler
- Fritz Kortner as Franzen
- Michael Harvey as Sgt. Barnes
- Tom Keene as Major
- Charles McGraw as USFET Col. Johns
[edit] Critical reception
The staff at Variety magazine gave the film a positive review, and wrote, "Most striking feature of this production is its extraordinary background of war-ravaged Germany. With a documentary eye, this film etches a powerfully grim picture of life amidst the shambles. It makes awesome and exciting cinema...Ryan establishes himself as a firstrate actor in this film, demonstrating conclusively that his brilliant performance in Crossfire was no one-shot affair." Variety, however, did criticize the screenplay for "its failure to break away from the formula of anti-Nazi films."[3]
[edit] Awards
Nominations
- Writers Guild of America, USA: WGA Award for the Screen, Best Written American Drama, Harold Medford; 1949.
[edit] References
- ^ Berlin Express at the Internet Movie Database.
- ^ I. G. Farben Building web site by Chip Chapin. Last accessed: January 15. 2008.
- ^ Variety. Film review, May 1, 1948. Last accessed: January 15, 2008.
[edit] External links
- Berlin Express at the Internet Movie Database
- Berlin Express at Allmovie
- Berlin Express at the TCM Movie Database
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