Masquerade in Vienna

A GIRL YOU DON'T FORGET can be thought of as a backstage musical that treats the whole world as backstage. Melodies seem to be buzzing through the air, available to anyone in the right state of mind. Willi Forst always is, and he is also an actor who can transform any space into a stage. Fritz Kortner, one of the defining personalities of the German theatre scene of the 1920s, makes the most of his star’s talent in an intricately constructed romantic comedy that believes in the truth of artifice. Forst plays Paul Hartwig, a wannabe actor who is reduced to selling books in the cold streets of Berlin. While pursuing his big break, he meets Lisa Brandes (Dolly Haas), another victim of the global financial crisis who has just learned a new trick: cheating horny old men out of their money by selling promises she does not intend to keep. Dedicated theatre man Paul decides to win her over by putting on an act, but a misplaced slap leads to unintended consequences. - Lukas Foerster

Jimmy Bolt, a singer and dancer (and occasionally as a waiter) works at a varieté. The man may be talented, but he’s not exactly a big success, and things get complicated when a young orphan girl falls in love with the voice of another singer but then mistakes Bolt for him…

In this convoluted melodrama, an elderly thespian falls for a rising young starlet. He admits his love for her and then announces that he will retire. The young woman pretends she loves him too, but her real motive is to give her struggling lover, also an aspiring actor, a break.

Young Count Georg Wolkersheim is sent to the Congress of Vienna to represent the interests of his country, Reuss-Schleiz-Greiz. Tensions arise between the count, his wife Melanie, and their two chamberlains, and when the four attend a court ball, Melanie leaves Georg, assumes the identity of a famous actress, and attracts the affections of Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria.

Retired Hofrat Geiger discovers by chance that he has an illegitimate daughter. He goes to visit her, but is turned away, even though she is in financial difficulties (her inn is very run-down and has no customers). To obtain Austrian citizenship, she marries the Hofrat—planned only on paper—but he is responsible for processing her naturalization and delays it to ensure she stays close to him. At the same time, behind her back, he ensures that her inn is renovated.

A woman is put on trial for murdering a musician who ruined her marriage.

Begun in 1944/45, finished and released in 1949, this is a biography of the composer Carl Michael Ziehrer, who overcomes hypersensitivity in competitive situations which leads initially to failures in both career and romance.

Nicky and Vicky, two librettists who also happen to be brothers, are presently in collaboration with composer Toni. All too aware of Toni's amorous escapades, Nicky and Vicky try to keep the existence of their pretty sister Hedi a secret. Suffering from an acute case of writers' block (he has yet to find an inspiration for his next production), Toni throws a huge party, which is boycotted by his friends and associates so that he'll keep his mind on his work.

In the made-up country of Alanien, King Alexander I has been overthrown while abroad. Now, he's in Vienna with his daughter, the city of his fondest memories since studying there as a boy. It doesn't take long for the charm of Vienna to work its magic on the former king: he quickly comes to terms with the new situation and is able to enjoy the Austrian capital sans all the ceremony and trappings which would otherwise accompany him on a state visit. The princess is content with preparing herself for a career as a pianist concert, while the former king takes a job as a chauffeur in the embassy of the country he once ruled. The revolutionaries are shocked; and his days in Vienna are numbered.

German all-star musical from 1938 that was a big commercial success.

Zezi, on being released from prison for smuggling, is ordered to leave the country. His incarceration has not lessened his craving for female society, but he finds his mistress false. A young girl, trying to sell vacuum-cleaners, calls at his home. Half-starved, she collapses. The blackleg’s heart is touched, and he befriends her. Gratitude on her side develops to love. Though she takes the place of the false one, she urges the man to marry her. This he does, though he has a wife, from whom he is separated.

The political advisor to the French emperor Napoleon, and the Austrian emperor Franz I, arrange a marriage between Napoleon and the Austrian archduchess Marie-Luise in order to prevent another war.

Director Richard Anden and his screenwriter take a cruise on a luxury liner, avoiding all feminine attempts to get a movie contract, including the ship singer. When he unexpectedly discovers that a beautiful passenger is involved in a murder mystery and chased by the police he'll try to save her from jail.

A painter working at the Louvre is struck by the Mona Lisa. When he meets a girl whom he believes bears a resemblance to the painting, and who wants him to become famous, he comes up with the idea of stealing the painting. Based on the real-life theft of 1911.