''The Avenger'' (german: Der Rächer) is a 1960 West German

crime film Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine ...

directed by Karl Anton and starring Heinz Drache, Ingrid van Bergen and Ina Duscha. It is based on the 1926 novel '' The Avenger'' by Edgar Wallace. It was shot at the Bavaria Studios in Munich. The film's sets were designed by the art director Willi Herrmann.

Plot

A number of packaged disembodied heads have been in random areas of the English countryside. In each package is a letter to the police from the killer, who dubs himself "The Executioner." Each victim is seemingly unrelated to one another. When a

Scotland Yard Scotland Yard (officially New Scotland Yard) is the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police, the territorial police force responsible for policing Greater London's 32 boroughs, but not the City of London, the square mile that forms London's ...

employee is killed, Detective Mike Brixan ( Heinz Drache) of Special Branch is called in to investigate. The only clue is that a black, four-door sedan has been seen at the scene of the crime and that the typewriter that the letters have been written on have two offset letters. When Ruth Sanders ( Ina Duscha), the niece of the man killed and the last person to see him alive, is located as an extra working on location, Brixan discovers a page of a script that has been written on the same typewriter as the Executioner's letters. Consequently, Brixan believes that the Executioner is among the cast, crew, or parties involved in the film shoot.

Cast

* Heinz Drache as Michael Brixan * Ingrid van Bergen as Stella Mendoza * Benno Sterzenbach as Sir Gregory Penn * Ina Duscha as Ruth Sanders * Ludwig Linkmann as Henry Longvale * Siegfried Schürenberg as Major Staines *

Klaus Kinski Klaus Kinski (, born Klaus Günter Karl Nakszynski 18 October 1926 – 23 November 1991) was a German actor, equally renowned for his intense performance style and notorious for his volatile personality. He appeared in over 130 film roles in a c ...

as Lorenz Voss * Rainer Brandt as Reggie Conolly * Friedrich Schoenfelder as Jack Jackson (as Friedrich Schönfelder) * Al Hoosmann as Bhag (as Al Hoosman) *

Maria Litto Maria Litto (1919–1996) was a German ballet dancer, choreographer and film actress. In 1970, she pioneered dance programming on German television. Early life Born in Ovenhausen, Höxter, on 9 September 1919, Litto attended the town's primary an ...

as Malaiische Tänzerin *

Franz-Otto Krüger Franz-Otto Krüger (1 April 1917 – 17 March 1988) was a German film and television actor. Krüger already started his acting at Berlin theatres in 1934, but his career was interrupted by his service in the Second World War. He appeared in over ...

as Regie-Assistant Frankie * Rainer Penkert as Camera Man * Albert Bessler as News Hound

Reception

Author and film critic Leonard Maltin awarded the film two and a half out of four stars, calling it " nAbove-par shocker". Dave Sindelar, on his website ''Fantastic Movie Musings and Ramblings'' gave the film a mixed review, criticizing the film's poor dubbing, and pacing. However, Sindelar also wrote, "Some of the other Edgar Wallace movies from this time feel the same way, and I sometimes wonder if the movie would fare better in subtitled form. Still, there is a sense of dark, morbid fun to the stories, and I suspect that some time in the future, another enterprising movie company will see the appeal of Wallace’s work and make their own series. And, you know, I wouldn’t mind that at all." TV Guide awarded the film a mixed two out of four stars, calling it "A charming mix of old dark house cliches and behind-the-scenes drama".

Release

''The Avenger'' was released on August 5, 1960 in Frankfurt.

References

Bibliography

* Bergfelder, Tim. ''International Adventures: German Popular Cinema and European Co-Productions in the 1960s''. Berghahn Books, 2005.

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Avenger, The 1960 films 1960s mystery films 1960s crime thriller films German mystery films German crime thriller films West German films 1960s German-language films German black-and-white films Films directed by Karl Anton Films based on works by Edgar Wallace Films based on British novels Films shot in Munich Films set in London Films shot at Bavaria Studios Films about filmmaking 1960s German films