Leibelei (1933) by Max Ophuls

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moira finnie
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Leibelei (1933) by Max Ophuls

Post by moira finnie »

I just found that an early Max Ophuls film, Leibelei (1933) has been posted on youtube in its entirety!

From what I have read, Ophuls' felt that the same themes and storytelling techniques influenced him throughout his life, but particularly when he made The Reckless Moment, A Letter From an Unknown Woman, and The Earrings of Madame de..... As always, there is an acknowledgment of the fatal power of love (or what looks like love) as it comes and goes in the lives of the characters.
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Leibelei, based on an Arthur Schnitzler story, begins below with English subtitles. I was surprised to see how many familiar Hollywood and internationally known actors appear in this movie, which was Ophuls next to last movie made in Germany before he was forced to flee to France and eventually America. Here is also a brief article from Senses of Cinema about the film's "rich simplicity". Enjoy!:

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Re: Leibelei (1933) by Max Ophuls

Post by charliechaplinfan »

It's a while since I saw Leibelei, it's worth following the link, it's a good film.
Failure is unimportant. It takes courage to make a fool of yourself - Charlie Chaplin
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Re: Leibelei (1933) by Max Ophuls

Post by feaito »

Moira I have never seen this film but being an admirer of Ophüls work, I'll definitely try to see it on youtube. Thanks for sharing these goodies -as always- with us.
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Re: Leibelei (1933) by Max Ophuls

Post by feaito »

Moira, I have just finished watching the film and I have to thank you for posting this link, because I enjoyed and liked the picture immensely. It's a beautifully filmed and exquisite tragedy by masterful Max Ophüls; a doomed love affair indeed. It reminded me quite a bit of my favorite Ophüls' film "Letter from an Unknown Woman" (1948), although it doesn't deal with unrequited love, but with the power of love and passion and the lengths it can take you to...

Magda Schneider, while not as flawlessly beautiful as her more famous daughter Romy is wonderful as the young, innocent and lovely Christine, who falls in love with a Lieutenant of the Austrian Imperial Army (Wolfgang Liebeneiner), who's involved in an adulterous affair with Baroness Eggersdorff (the alluring and extremely attractive Russian actress Olga Tschechowa). If I enjoyed the film's atmosphere and cinematography watching it on youtube I can only imagine what it would be to watch a fine print released on DVD! Carl Esmond -whom I saw recently as a scheming villain in "Sundown" (1941)- is superb as Liebeneiner's fellow Lieutenant and best friend, who in turn gets involved with the very liberal friend of Christine, Mizzi, expertly impersonated by Luise Ullrich. Kudos too must go to the impressive performance of Gustaf Gründgens as Baron Eggersdorff. This film was remade in France in 1958 with Romy Schneider in her mother's role and Alain Delon as the young Lieutenant.
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Re: Leibelei (1933) by Max Ophuls

Post by Sweeney Todd »

"Libelei" was filmed in 1932. Much before the 1958 remake, Ophüls remade his own movie the following year (1933) in France. More exactly, the French version was partly made of scenes re-shot (by Ophüls) with other actors, and other scenes were just dubbed.
Magda Schneider, Olga Tsechowa, Wolfgang Liebeneiner, Gustaf Gründgens, and Paul Otto remained in this French version.
Simone Héliard replaced Mizzi Schlager as Louise Ulrich. Pierre Stephen replaced Werner Finck as Binder.
Additional actors in French cast were Abel Tarride (as Weyring), Georges Rigaud (as Theodor Berg), Georges Mauloy (as the Colonel), André Dubosc (as the Concierge) but I don't know who they replaced, as the German Cast list on IMDb doens't always mentions the characters played.
It's unclear if Magda Schneider was dubbed or not in the French version. Gustaf Gründgens spoke French currently but could have been dubbed for this one, as the French version wasn't made in Germany (like "Le testament du Docteur Mabuse" for instance, with the same actor).
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