''The Merciful Lie'' (German: ''Die barmherzige Lüge'') is a 1939 German

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

directed by

Werner Klingler Karl Adolf Kurt Werner Klingler (23 October 1903 – 23 June 1972) was a German film director and actor. He directed 29 films between 1936 and 1968. He was born in Stuttgart and died in West Berlin, West Germany. Early life Klingler acquire ...

and starring

Hilde Krahl Hilde Krahl (10 January 1917 – 28 June 1999) was an Austrian film actress. She appeared in 70 films between 1936 and 1994. She was born Hildegard Kolačný in Brod, Austria-Hungary (now Slavonski Brod, Croatia) in 1917, and she died in Vien ...

Elisabeth Flickenschildt Elisabeth Ida Marie Flickenschildt (16 March 1905 – 26 October 1977) was a German actress, producer and author. She appeared in dozens of German language films and television productions between 1935 and 1976. Flickenschildt was born in Hambu ...

and

Ernst von Klipstein Ernst von Klipstein (3 February 1908 – 22 November 1993) was a German film and television actor. von Klipstein became a prominent actor during the Nazi era, appearing in a large number of action films. Partial filmography * ''Uproar in Damascu ...

.Waldman p.266 It was shot at the

Johannisthal Studios The Johannisthal Studios were film studios located in the Berlin area of Johannisthal. Founded in 1920 on the site of a former airfield, they were a centre of production during the Weimar and Nazi eras. Nearly four hundred films were made at Johan ...

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

and on location in

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (, ), is the capital of the States of Germany, German state of the Bremen (state), Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (), a two-city-state consisting of the c ...

. The film's sets were designed by the

art director Art director is a title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, live-action and animated film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supe ...

Karl Böhm Karl August Leopold Böhm (28 August 1894 – 14 August 1981) was an Austrian conductor. He was best known for his performances of the music of Mozart, Wagner, and Richard Strauss. Life and career Education Karl Böhm was born in Graz, St ...

and

Erich Czerwonski Erich Czerwonski (1889–1940) was a German art director.Kreimeier p.73 He designed the sets for around a hundred productions during his career. He died in 1940 after being struck by a train during a blackout. Filmography * '' The Black Panther ...

Synopsis

In a frontier town on the border between

Manchuria Manchuria is a historical region in northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day northeast China and parts of the modern-day Russian Far East south of the Uda (Khabarovsk Krai), Uda River and the Tukuringra-Dzhagdy Ranges. The exact ...

and

Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...

Anja, the niece of the owner of a rough local entertainment venue waits for the return of her lover Doctor Thomas Clausen with whom she has had a child. Clausen is part of an expedition planning to explore into the wild lands on the Soviet side of the border. To Anja's dismay, however, he returns with a new wife. When the new wife dies of food poisoning and Clausen is away on his expedition, Anja goes to

to stay with his wealthy family and masquerades as his wife. They welcome her as she has a child who will carry on the family line.

Cast

as Anja Hoster *

as Vera Holster *

as Dr.Thomas Clausen * Lieselott Klingler as Maria, sua Moglie *

Heinrich Schroth Heinrich August Franz Schroth (23 March 1871 – 14 January 1945) was a German stage and film actor. Career Schroth was born in Pirmasens, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. He made his acting debut at the Sigmaringen Royal Theatre in 1890. In 189 ...

as Berthold Clausen *

Agnes Windeck Agnes Windeck (; 27 March 1888 – 28 September 1975) was a German theatre and film actress. She appeared in more than 50 films between 1939 and 1973. She was born in Hamburg and started her career at the Deutsches Schauspielhaus in 1904. S ...

as Margherita *

Otto Gebühr Otto Gebühr (29 May 1877 – 13 March 1954) was a German theatre and film actor, who appeared in 102 films released between 1917 and 1954. He is noted for his performance as the Prussian king Frederick the Great in numerous films. Early li ...

as Dr. Henrici * Paul Dahlke as Jean Goban * Gertrud Meyen as Gerda Biehler, Sekretärin * Jaspar von Oertzen as Felix *

Olga Limburg Olga Limburg (5 April 1881 – 7 March 1970) was a German theater and film actress. She began her artistic career in 1901 with a commitment at the Municipal Theatre of Poznan. Since 1902, she played at several of Berlin's leading theaters includi ...

as Emilie Wallner *

Ernst Albert Schaach Ernst is both a surname and a given name, the German, Dutch, and Scandinavian form of Ernest. Notable people with the name include: Surname * Adolf Ernst (1832–1899) German botanist known by the author abbreviation "Ernst" * Anton Ernst (born ...

as Robert, Diener * Ekkehard Stibbe as Thomas, Anjas Sohn *

Lucie Euler Lucie is the French and Czech form of the female name Lucia. Notable people with the name include: Given name * Lucie Ahl (born 1974), British tennis player * Lucie Arnaz (born 1951), American actress * Lucie Aubrac (1912–2007), member of the ...

as Kinderfrau bei Anja *

Nien Soen Ling TripleS (; ; stylized as tripleS) is a South Korean 24-member multinational girl group formed by Modhaus. They aim to be the world's first decentralized idol group, where the members will rotate between the full group, sub-units, and solo activi ...

as Diener * Thea Zien as Olga, Barmädchen * Max Paetz as Mongole im Hotel *

Eugen von Bongardt Eugen is a masculine given name which may refer to: * Archduke Eugen of Austria (1863–1954), last Habsburg Grandmaster of the Teutonic Order from 1894 to 1923 * Prince Eugen, Duke of Närke (1865–1947), Swedish painter, art collector, and pa ...

as Polizeioffizier *

Franz Arzdorf Franz Arzdorf (5 May 1904 – 24 April 1974) was a German stage, film and television actor.Jacobsen & Prinzler p.276 Selected filmography * ''Love Can Lie'' (1937) * '' Dangerous Game'' (1937) * ''Talking About Jacqueline'' (1937) * ''A Night in ...

as 1. Kriminalkommissar * Georg A. Profé as 2. Kriminalkommissar * Charly Berger as 1. Kriminalbeamter * Albert Probeck as 2. Kriminalbeamter * Erik Radolf as Kriminalrat *

Eduard von Winterstein Eduard Clemens Franz Anna Freiherr von Wangenheim (1 August 1871 – 22 July 1961), known as Eduard von Winterstein, was an Austrian-German film actor who appeared in over one hundred fifty German films during the silent and sound eras. He was ...

as Professor Neumann * Willi Sande-Meyer as Dr. Fischer, Lawyer * Ilse Trautschold as Mädchen bei Clausen *

Fred Goebel Fred Goebel (3 April 1891 – 16 May 1964) was a German film actor. He was born as Walter Goebel and was sometimes credited as Fred Selva-Goebel. Selected filmography * '' Child on the Open Road'' (1919) * '' The Dance of Death'' (1919) * '' Bett ...

as Chauffeur bei Clausen *

Curt Cappi Kurt is a male given name in Germanic languages. ''Kurt'' or ''Curt'' originated as short forms of the Germanic Konrad/Conrad, depending on geographical usage, with meanings including counselor or advisor. Like Conrad, it can also a surname an ...

as Portier im Krankenhaus *

Hanns Waschatko Hanns is a given name. Notable people with the name include: *Hanns Blaschke (1896–1971), Austrian politician * Hanns Bolz (1885–1918), German expressionist and cubist painter *Hanns Brandstätter (born 1949), Austrian fencer *Hanns Braun (188 ...

as Deutscher Konsul *

Else Lüders Else may refer to: Places * Else (Lenne), a river in Germany, tributary to the Lenne * Else (Werre), a river in Germany, tributary to the Werre People * Else (given name) * Else (surname) Music * "Else" (song), a 1999 rock song * ''The Else'', ...

as Bridgepartnerin von Frau Wallner *

Else Valery Else may refer to: Places * Else (Lenne), a river in Germany, tributary to the Lenne * Else (Werre), a river in Germany, tributary to the Werre People * Else (given name) * Else (surname) Music * "Else" (song), a 1999 rock song * ''The Else'', ...

as Bridgepartnerin von Frau Wallner

References

Bibliography

* Heins, Laura. ''Nazi Film Melodrama''. University of Illinois Press, 2013. * Waldman, Harry. ''Nazi Films in America, 1933–1942''. McFarland, 2008.

External links

* 1939 films 1939 drama films German drama films Films of Nazi Germany 1930s German-language films Films directed by Werner Klingler Films set in Mongolia Tobis Film films Films shot at Johannisthal Studios 1930s German films German-language drama films {{1930s-Germany-film-stub