Immortal Melodies

a silent movie by Heinz Paul

The Somme (also: The Tomb of the Millions) is the title of a silent documentary drama that Heinz Paul realized in 1930 for the Cando-Film Berlin based on his own script. Paul supplemented scenes with German actors with documentary footage from archive material of German, French and English origin. - Twelve years after the end of the First World War, Heinz Paul records the battle of the Somme in 1916 with original recordings, with over one million dead, the most lossy battle of the war. The archive images are supplemented by game scenes of a German mother who loses her three sons and by trailing front scenes. The Battle of the Somme, in which Allied troops bombarded the German front line, resulted in a months-long war of position. In documentary style, the film shows scenes of the most devastating battle of the First World War. It is narrated from the perspective of a mother who loses her three sons in battle.

a silent movie by Heinz Paul

Hans, Karl and Rudi haven't had much luck in their lives so far. One day, Hans receives a letter from his aunt Gudula. She demands that he reanimate her little theatre "Euterpia" in Büllesheim and threatens to disinherit him if he doesn't manage to outcompete her competitor, Wengen, from the theatre "Thalia". In addition, niece Hilde is sent to Büllesheim to support Hans.

1936: Fahnrich Peter serves on a torpedo boat. Peter loves Carmita, the pretty sister of a fellow seaman. But then his superior officer falls in love with her, too, who offers to marry Carmita and who accepts. Disappointed, Peter's relationship to his superior turns sour, but eventually improves after recognition of his heroic behaviour handling a fire on board his ship. Later on, his unit is sent off to fight in Spain against the Reds. In those same waters, Carmita and her father are taken prisoner by the Communists when they commandeer their cruise ship. Peter's commander receives the order not to take action against the Spanish communist pirates, but Peter and his buddies take it upon themselves to take the situation in hand. However, Peter and his buddies find themselves prisoners of the Commies, too and now his superior must decide what to do about it.

The First World War. The young, English Lieutenant Raleigh is sent to the company of a disillusioned Captain Stanhope. Stanhope is secretly engaged to Raleigh's sister and is intent on protecting his image of an exemplary officer. An attack on the German lines, in which Raleigh also takes part, has turned into a bloody fiasco. Now Raleigh, too, knows the horrors of war, which have already taken their toll on Stanhope.

Shortly after the outbreak of World War I August 1914, Eastern Front. The Russian surprise attack on the northeasternmost part of the country causes serious problems for the German defenders.

a silent war movie by Heinz Paul

The young farmer Andrä has fallen madly in love with the maid Maria. But she marries the son of the mayor. When Andrä meets the newlywed in the mountains and the latter falls into the depths after an argument, a murder charge is brought - but no one but Andrä knows the truth

Circus themed films usually provides a thrilling drama. The relatively obscure "Schatten der Manege" provides just what you'd expect. Doing the trapeze act angle, combining it with romance and jealousy for a darker plot, it has a lot of the right the ingredients. Does have moments where it spends too long of circus footage, which ruins some of the pacing, but otherwise a fine circus flick.

A young German boy meets his hero, a famous flying ace, and dreams of becoming a pilot. However, his mother--whose husband was a fighter pilot killed in battle during World War I--does not want to lose her son, too, and tries to persuade him to abandon his dreams of flying.

a movie by Heinz Paul