''Knall and Fall as Imposters'' (German: ''Knall und Fall als Hochstapler'') is a 1952 Austrian-German
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
Ulrich Bettac
Ulrich Ewald Berthold Bettac (2 May 1897 – 20 April 1959), was an Austrian actor and theatre director. He was especially well known for his work as a character actor at the Burgtheater in Vienna; he also had a fairly extensive film career.
...
and
Hubert Marischka
Hubert Marischka (27 August 1882 – 4 December 1959), brother of Ernst Marischka, was an Austrian operetta tenor, actor, film director and screenwriter.
Career
Marischka was born in Brunn am Gebirge, the son of Jiří (or Johann) Mari ...
and starring
Hans Richter,
Rudolf Carl
Rudolf Carl (19 June 189915 January 1987) was an Austrian actor who appeared in more than 150 German language films between 1934 and 1969. He also directed two films '' Der Leberfleck'' and '' Dort in der Wachau''.
Selected filmography
* '' Poli ...
and
Curd Jürgens
Curd Gustav Andreas Gottlieb Franz Jürgens (13 December 191518 June 1982) was a German-Austrian stage and film actor. He was usually billed in English-speaking films as Curt Jurgens. He was well known for playing Ernst Udet in '' Des Teufels Gene ...
.
It was followed by a 1953 sequel ''
Knall and Fall as Detectives
''Knall and Fall as Detectives'' (german: Knall und Fall als Detektive) is a 1953 Austrian-West German comedy film directed by Hans Heinrich and starring Hans Richter, Rudolf Carl, and Ingrid Lutz. It was made as a sequel to the 1952 film '' ...
''.
It was shot at the
Sievering Studios
Sievering Studios were film production studios located in Sievering, a suburb of the Austrian capital Vienna.
The studios were established in 1916 by the film pioneer Alexander Kolowrat for use by his Sascha-Film. After the First World War they f ...
in
Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
and
on location across the city. The film's sets were designed by
Fritz Jüptner-Jonstorff
Fritz Jüptner-Jonstorff (1908–1993) was an Austrian art directorDassanowsky p.130 who worked on more than a hundred films during his career. Jüptner-Jonstorff was one of the leading figures in his field in Europe, designing sets for films such ...
.
Plot
Two rural men are picked at random for parts in a film production in which they are to play a
millionaire
A millionaire is an individual whose net worth or wealth is equal to or exceeds one million units of currency. Depending on the currency, a certain level of prestige is associated with being a millionaire. In countries that use the short scal ...
and his
chauffeur. After an accident while shooting a scene, the car they are in runs out of control and ends up crashing into a
sanatorium
A sanatorium (from Latin '' sānāre'' 'to heal, make healthy'), also sanitarium or sanitorium, are antiquated names for specialised hospitals, for the treatment of specific diseases, related ailments and convalescence. Sanatoriums are often ...
. The director, believing that a real millionaire has arrived at the financially struggling establishment, puts them up. They are forced for a while to live as imposters until matters are eventually resolved.
Cast
*
Hans Richter as Knall
*
Rudolf Carl
Rudolf Carl (19 June 189915 January 1987) was an Austrian actor who appeared in more than 150 German language films between 1934 and 1969. He also directed two films '' Der Leberfleck'' and '' Dort in der Wachau''.
Selected filmography
* '' Poli ...
as Fall
*
Curd Jürgens
Curd Gustav Andreas Gottlieb Franz Jürgens (13 December 191518 June 1982) was a German-Austrian stage and film actor. He was usually billed in English-speaking films as Curt Jurgens. He was well known for playing Ernst Udet in '' Des Teufels Gene ...
as John Vandergold
*
Friedl Czepa as Direktorium des Sanatoriums
*
Waltraut Haas
Waltraut Haas (born 9 June 1927) is an Austrian actress and singer.
Born in Vienna, Haas grew up at Schloss Schönbrunn, where her mother was a restaurateur. Haas made her stage debut in Linz but was soon won over to the big screen. She achieved ...
as Bettina Brandtner
*Ilka Windish as Irene Dahlen
*
Ulrich Bettac
Ulrich Ewald Berthold Bettac (2 May 1897 – 20 April 1959), was an Austrian actor and theatre director. He was especially well known for his work as a character actor at the Burgtheater in Vienna; he also had a fairly extensive film career.
...
as Regisseur
*
Viktor Braun
*
Heinz Conrads as Scheich
*
Peter Gerhard
*
Fritz Imhoff
Fritz Imhoff, real name: Friedrich Arnold Heinrich Jeschke (January 6, 1891, Alsergrund February 24, 1961, Wieden) was an Austrian actor. He was a brother of the Wienerlied composer (18901962).
Selected filmography
* '' Daughter of the Regi ...
as Portier
*
Franz Marischka as Aufnahmeleiter
*
Hans Olden
Hans Olden (1892–1975) was an Austrian stage and film actor. Olden appeared in more than eighty films during his career, mostly in Austria but occasionally also in Germany. He was a supporter of the Austrian Nazi Party, his interest in Nazism p ...
as Bankvorsteher
*
Peter W. Staub
Peter W. Staub (1910–2000) was a Swiss singer, stage, film and television actor.Gänzl p.1317
Partial filmography
* ''Mein Traum'' (1940) - Jimmy
* ''Gilberte de Courgenay'' (1941) - Korporal
* ''Emil, mer mues halt rede mitenand'' (1941) - V ...
as Studienrat Hegetschweiler
*Hermann Laforet as Produzent
*
Ady Berber as Bademeister
*
Johannes Roth as Sambu, Diener
References
External links
*
1952 comedy films
Austrian comedy films
German comedy films
West German films
Films directed by Hubert Marischka
Films scored by Hans Lang
Buddy comedy films
Films shot in Vienna
Films shot at Sievering Studios
Austrian black-and-white films
German black-and-white films
1950s German films
{{Austria-film-stub