''Knall and Fall as Imposters'' (German: ''Knall und Fall als Hochstapler'') is a 1952 Austrian-German

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

directed by

Ulrich Bettac Ulrich Ewald Berthold Bettac (2 May 1897 – 20 April 1959), was an Austrian actor and theatre director. He was especially well known for his work as a character actor at the Burgtheater in Vienna; he also had a fairly extensive film career. S ...

and

Hubert Marischka Hubert Marischka (27 August 1882 – 4 December 1959), brother of Ernst Marischka, was an Austrian operetta tenor, actor, film director and screenwriter. Career Marischka was born in Brunn am Gebirge, the son of Jiří (or Johann) Marisch ...

and starring Hans Richter,

Rudolf Carl Rudolf Carl (19 June 189915 January 1987) was an Austrians, Austrian actor who appeared in more than 150 German language films between 1934 and 1969. He also directed two films ''Der Leberfleck'' and ''Dort in der Wachau''. Selected filmography * ...

and

Curd Jürgens Curd Gustav Andreas Gottlieb Franz Jürgens (13 December 191518 June 1982) was a German-Austrian stage and film actor. He was usually billed in English-speaking films as Curt Jurgens. He was well known for playing Ernst Udet in ''Des Teufels Gener ...

. It was followed by a 1953 sequel ''

Knall and Fall as Detectives ''Knall and Fall as Detectives'' () is a 1953 Austrian-West German comedy film directed by Hans Heinrich and starring Hans Richter, Rudolf Carl, and Ingrid Lutz. It was made as a sequel to the 1952 film '' Knall and Fall as Imposters''. It was ...

''. It was shot at the

Sievering Studios Sievering Studios were film production studios located in Sievering, a suburb of the Austrian capital Vienna. The studios were established in 1916 by the film pioneer Alexander Kolowrat for use by his Sascha-Film. After the First World War they f ...

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

and on location across the city. The film's sets were designed by

Fritz Jüptner-Jonstorff Fritz Jüptner-Jonstorff (1908–1993) was an Austrian art directorDassanowsky p.130 who worked on more than a hundred films during his career. Jüptner-Jonstorff was one of the leading figures in his field in Europe, designing sets for films such ...

Plot

Two rural men are picked at random for parts in a film production in which they are to play a

millionaire A millionaire is an individual whose net worth or wealth is equal to or exceeds one million units of currency. Depending on the currency, a certain level of prestige is associated with being a millionaire. Many national currencies have, or ...

and his

chauffeur A chauffeur () is a person employed to drive a passenger motor vehicle, especially a luxury vehicle such as a large sedan or a limousine. Initially, such drivers were often personal employees of the vehicle owner, but this has changed to s ...

. After an accident while shooting a scene, the car they are in runs out of control and ends up crashing into a

sanatorium A sanatorium (from Latin '' sānāre'' 'to heal'), also sanitarium or sanitorium, is a historic name for a specialised hospital for the treatment of specific diseases, related ailments, and convalescence. Sanatoriums are often in a health ...

. The director, believing that a real millionaire has arrived at the financially struggling establishment, puts them up. They are forced for a while to live as imposters until matters are eventually resolved.

Cast

* Hans Richter as Knall *

as Fall *

as John Vandergold *

Friedl Czepa Friedl Czepa (1898–1973) was an Austrian stage, film and television actress. Czepa made her film debut in 1935, and went on to appear in roughly thirty cinema and television films during her career. Along with Oskar Sima, Fred Hennings and Leni ...

as Direktorium des Sanatoriums *

Waltraut Haas Waltraut Haas (9 June 1927 – 23 April 2025) was an Austrian actress and singer who appeared in around 70 films. She gained recognition in her first film, as Mariandl in '' Der Hofrat Geiger'' in 1947, and starred alongside Peter Alexander in 1 ...

as Bettina Brandtner *Ilka Windish as Irene Dahlen *

as Regisseur * Viktor Braun *

Heinz Conrads Heinz Conrads (December 21, 1913 – April 9, 1986) was an Austrian actor, radio and television host, and Wienerlied performer. He appeared in more than thirty films during his career including the 1947 historical '' It's Only Love''. Selected f ...

as Scheich * Peter Gerhard *

Fritz Imhoff Fritz Imhoff, real name: Friedrich Arnold Heinrich Jeschke (January 6, 1891, Alsergrund February 24, 1961, Wieden) was an Austrian actor. He was a brother of the Wienerlied composer (18901962). Selected filmography * '' Daughter of the Re ...

as Portier *

Franz Marischka Franz Marischka (1918–2009) was an Austrian actor, screenwriter and film director. He was the son of the director Hubert Marischka.Goble p.84 Selected filmography Screenwriter * '' The Daughter of the Regiment'' (1953) * '' Victoria and Her Hus ...

as Aufnahmeleiter *

Hans Olden Hans Olden (1892–1975) was an Austrian stage and film actor. Olden appeared in more than eighty films during his career, mostly in Austria but occasionally also in Germany. He was a supporter of the Austrian Nazi Party, his interest in Nazism ...

as Bankvorsteher * Peter W. Staub as Studienrat Hegetschweiler *Hermann Laforet as Produzent *

Ady Berber Ady Berber (4 February 1913 – 3 January 1966) was an Austrian film actor, professional wrestler and café owner. He appeared in more than 40 films between 1936 and 1966. He was born and died in Vienna, Austria. Selected filmography * '' C ...

as Bademeister * Johannes Roth as Sambu, Diener

References

External links

* 1952 comedy films Austrian comedy films German comedy films West German films Films directed by Hubert Marischka Films scored by Hans Lang Buddy comedy films Films shot in Vienna Films shot at Sievering Studios Austrian black-and-white films German black-and-white films 1950s German films {{1950s-Austria-film-stub