Conrad Veidt on TCM: More Than Major Strasser

[feaito]

Thanks for your reply Paula, I'll look for that novel. I love period films set in the Old France...I've seen a remake of "Fanfan la Tulipe", for instance, but it does not surpass the original with Gérard Philippe and also I saw "Jacquou Le Croquant" (2007) set during the Restoration, which I enjoyed more. As a youngster I enjoyed "Le Bossu" (1959) with Jean Marais, but I guess that if saw it now with adult eyes I wouldn't find it as good... My dream is that the Miniseries filmed in France in the 1960s or 1970s of Maurice Druon's "Les Roix Maudits" would become available with subs. The new Miniseries filmed during the 2000s with Jeanne Moreau and others has bad reviews.

[feaito]

A watchable but somewhat fuzzy public domain version of Under the Red Robe (1937) is on the Internet Archive here. How sad that this was Victor Sjöström's last film as a director. I liked the odd relationship between Veidt's brooding swashbuckler and Romney Brent, who initially seems to be slightly nerdy, though he turns out to be quite adept as Gil de Berault's sidekick.

I think that the print I have is definetily PD...I concur with your appreciation of the odd relationship with de Berault and his sidekick...one of the good things of the film.

[moira finnie]

A new video drawn from The Indian Tomb (1921) has been posted on youtube. This film was one of the many silent movies that offered a forbidden glimpse of Eastern (as in Indian) exotica, featuring a very tan Conrad Veidt, whose subtlety of expression and dazzling appearance bolster this movie's now more old-fashioned qualities. Directed by Joe May (Asphalt(1929), Confession (1937), The Invisible Man Returns (1940)) and written by Thea von Harbou and Fritz Lang (who would eventually marry and part once the Nazis arrived on the scene), this movie may have been one of the first that earned Veidt some unexpected fame, since his earlier movies tended to be more challenging and appealing to a more esoteric crowd. His mysterious Maharajah in The Indian Tomb is a sympathetic, lonely figure, even though he is also a devious, manipulative man as well, bent on revenge. Veidt wrote years later that this role "brought me a much larger public, and was the beginning of fan mail." You can see a very entertaining review of this film here.

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[pvitari]

Well, that certainly distills The Indian Tomb down to its essential essence, i.e., the hypnotic power (and powerfully ambiguous sexuality) of Conrad Veidt, which is amplified, rather than subdued, by the opulence of the settings and costumes.

Though did they really have to use Carmina Burana for the music?

[moira finnie]

Well, that certainly distills The Indian Tomb down to its essential essence, i.e., the hypnotic power (and powerfully ambiguous sexuality) of Conrad Veidt, which is amplified, rather than subdued, by the opulence of the settings and costumes.

Though did they really have to use Carmina Burana for the music?

Well, no, since Carl Orff wrote the piece in 1935-1936. Carmina Burana was just what the person posting this on youtube chose to use. It sure lets you know something portentous is coming down the pike, no?

[moira finnie]

Monique has posted another well done tribute to Veidt on the April 3rd anniversary of the actor's demise. As long as people love movies, he will live.

[youtube][/youtube]

[JackFavell]

That was beautiful!

[feaito]

Another film I recommend to watch, in order to witness Conrad Veidt's talent and skill in portraying multidimensional characters, is Mervyn Le Roy's "Escape" (1940), in which he plays a German Officer who's not so fond of the Nazis as he appears to be...and the lover of an American-born Countess aptly portrayed by Norma Shearer, which I saw recently.

[Ann Harding]

I have been watching (and re-watching) a number of Conrad Veidt features recently. (Thanks Wendy! )
First, I re-watched the two Michael Powell pictures with Conrad Veidt in the lead. First, The Spy in Black (1939) is as wonderful after several viewings as the first time. Veidt sparkles with humour and charm and his partner Valerie Hobson is just perfect. They make a wonderful couple with a brilliant battle of wits. The film is peppered with wonderfully funny characters such as the parson with the huge gramophone who does a wonderful double-take as Veidt tells him his medal is 'the iron Cross, second class'. But the film belongs to Veidt. He has never been more charming as Captain Hardt.

I had to see again Contraband (1940) again afterwards. Hobson and Veidt are just as wonderful and the film creates even more fun showing the spies in 1940 London. I adore the scene where Veidt sings a Danish song accompanied by his watch. But the great laugh is when he knocks down a German spy with a bust of Neville Chamberlain. "They said he was tough!" quips Veidt. Delightful!

Dark Journey (1937, Victor Saville) hasn't got quite the same sparkle. But it's still a nice spy movie with a young -and unknown- Vivien Leigh as double agent in love with the mysterious Von Marwitz (Veidt).

A Woman's Face (1941, G. Cukor) proved far superior to the original Swedish picture with Ingrid Bergman. This hoary melodrama gains immensely thanks to Veidt and Crawford plus Donald Ogden Stewart's clever screenplay. It's still an overblown melodrama, but the flash-back structure and the supporting actors give the film a distinctive flavour. Veidt is devilishly charming.

I Was a Spy (1933, V. Saville) is the real-life story of Martha Cnockaert (M. Carroll) a Belgian nurse who spied on Germans in occupied Belgium during WWI. Veidt's part is rather small. But he manages to make the best of his scenes as he seduces poor Martha.

Still a few more to watch, but I can't get enough of Conrad!

[JackFavell]

I agree there is something just a tad lacking in Dark Journey, but Veidt and Leigh make it a worthwhile adventure, and it has it's charms, especially in the romance department.

A Woman's Face is a great favorite of mine, and I think Joan Crawford was tremendously proud of it - as she should have been. I think she loved working with Veidt, and felt that she was all the better when on screen with him. Her performance is gritty, I really love it. Veidt is so devilish in this film, he charms, seduces and withholds love better than anyone. One really can see why Joan's character would be in his thrall.

[Jezebel38]

Just bumping this thread up, as tomorrow is Conrad Veidt Day on SUTS. Several films will be premiers, and it looks like SPY IN BLACK will make it's appearance, having been dropped off the TCM schedule in the past. I am looking forward to viewing JEW SUSS again; although it may not appeal to some as it is a historical/costume drama, it contains a very strong and moving performance by CV, especially the ending which has haunted me since my sole viewing of this film several years back. I hope TCM screens a good clear print of this!

[JackFavell]

Thanks Jezebel! I'll be recording and watching.... it's so exciting that Connie gets a day of his own this year!

[Ann Harding]

Yesterday I watched Nazi Agent (1942, J. Dassin) where Conrad plays a double role. He is the gentle Otto, a German refugee in NY, and also the nasty and threatening Hugo, a Nazi. He seems to have fun playing the twin brothers, contrasting their behaviour. But when Hugo tries to kill his brother who refuses to be a Nazi agent, Otto kills Hugo. Otto has only one choice: he decides to impersonate his brother so that the Nazi spies can be uncovered and arrested. The plots works well and soon many of the spies are arrested. Though in the end, Otto gives his own life willingly to protect a woman. He embarks to Germany and wayches misty eyed the Statue of Liberty disappearing in the distance. The plot is the kind of regular fare from the period, but Conrad's great acting makes it extremely palatable.

[CineMaven]

JackaaaAaaay, that pix you posted of Conrad Veidt is mesmerizing...

[Rita Hayworth]

I agree with you CineMaven ... you get my full support!