''Clothes Make the Man'' (german: Kleider machen Leute) is a 1940 German
historical comedy film
A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...
directed by
Helmut Käutner
Helmut Käutner (25 March 1908 – 20 April 1980) was a German film director active mainly in the 1940s and 1950s. He entered the film industry at the end of the Weimar Republic and released his first films as a director in Nazi Germany. Käu ...
and starring
Heinz Rühmann,
Hertha Feiler and
Hilde Sessak
Hilde Sessak (27 July 1915 – 17 April 2003) was a German actress who appeared in more than ninety film and television series during her career. She appeared in a number of films during the Nazi era including ''Quax the Crash Pilot'' (1941).Rei ...
.
The film is based on the
Novella ''
Kleider machen Leute'', published by realist author
Gottfried Keller
Gottfried Keller (19 July 1819 – 15 July 1890) was a Swiss poet and writer of German literature. Best known for his novel '' Green Henry'' (German: ''Der grüne Heinrich'') and his cycle of novellas called ''The People from Seldwyla'' (''Die Leu ...
in 1874. It was shot at the
Barrandov Studios
Barrandov Studios is a set of film studios in Prague, Czech Republic. It is the largest film studio in the country and one of the largest in Europe.
Several major Hollywood productions have been made here, including '' Mission Impossible'', ' ...
in German-occupied
Prague
Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...
as well as at the
Babelsberg
Babelsberg () is the largest quarter ('' Stadtteil'') of Potsdam, the capital city of the German state of Brandenburg. The affluent neighbourhood named after a small hill on the Havel river is famous for Babelsberg Palace and Park, part of the Pala ...
and
Tempelhof Studios
The Tempelhof Studios are a film studio located in Tempelhof in the German capital of Berlin. They were founded in 1912, during the silent era, by German film pioneer Alfred Duskes, who built a glass-roofed studio on the site with financial bac ...
in
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...
.
Cast
Release
The film was released in the USA only in 1958, in German but with no subtitles.
Reception
Thomas Kramer of the ''Reclams Lexikon of the German Films''
References
External links
*
Films of Nazi Germany
Films directed by Helmut Käutner
Films based on Swiss novels
Films based on works by Gottfried Keller
Films set in the 1830s
Films about con artists
1940s historical comedy films
German historical comedy films
Films shot at Barrandov Studios
Films shot at Babelsberg Studios
Films shot at Tempelhof Studios
Terra Film films
German black-and-white films
1940s German-language films
1940s German films
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