''Alter Kahn und junge Liebe'' (English-language title: ''Old Barge, Young Love'') is an

East German East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...

(then GDR)

romance film Romance films or movies involve romantic love stories recorded in visual media for broadcast in theatres or on television that focus on passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters. Typically their journey ...

directed by Hans Heinrich. It was released in 1957.

Plot

Skipper Vollbeck leads a small group of barges traveling down the

Havel The Havel () is a river in northeastern Germany, flowing through the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Brandenburg, Berlin and Saxony-Anhalt. It is a right tributary of the Elbe and long. However, the direct distance from its source to its mo ...

from Berlin to Waren. To meet his debtors' demands, he loaded his ship with cement almost beyond its capability to carry. Horst, the skipper of one of the other boats, and Vollbeck's son Kalle both fall in love with the older skipper's niece Anna, who joined the journey. Eventually, she chooses Kalle and they marry, after the barges manage to make it to Waren.

Cast

Alfred Maack Alfred Maack (5 April 1882 – 14 February 1961) was a German stage and film actor. He appeared in more than fifty films from 1937 to 1958. Selected filmography References External links * {{DEFAULTSORT:Maack, Alfred 1882 births 1961 ...

as Heinrich Borchert *

Erika Dunkelmann Erika Dunkelmann (17 November 1913 – 14 February 2000) was a German film and television actress.Cowie & Elley p.168 Based in East Germany, she worked regularly for the state-controlled DEFA studios. Selected filmography * ''Das geheimnisvolle W ...

as Marie *

Götz George Götz George (; 23 July 1938 – 19 June 2016) was a German actor, the son of actor couple Berta Drews and Heinrich George. His arguably best-known role is that of Duisburg detective Horst Schimanski in the TV crime series ''Tatort''. Early lif ...

as Karl 'Kalle' *

Gustav Püttjer Gustav Püttjer (15 May 1886 – 11 August 1959) was a German film actor who appeared in around 150 feature films between 1927 and 1959. He largely played character parts. After the Second World War he settled in East Germany appearing in the fil ...

as Herrmann Vollbeck * Maria Häussler as Anne Vollbeck * Kurt Schmidtchen as Ernst *

Horst Naumann Horst Naumann (born 17 November 1925 in Dresden, Germany) is a German actor. Selected filmography * ''Das geheimnisvolle Wrack'' (1954) * '' Carola Lamberti - Eine vom Zirkus'' (1954) * '' Just Once a Great Lady'' (1957) * '' Alter Kahn und junge ...

as Horst Richter * Uwe Torsten as Buttje * Elfie Dugal as lady * Waltraud Kogel as the assistant *

Alice Prill Alice may refer to: * Alice (name), most often a feminine given name, but also used as a surname Literature * Alice (''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland''), a character in books by Lewis Carroll * ''Alice'' series, children's and teen books by ...

as secretary

Production

The film was one of the more light-hearted DEFA productions of the second half of the 1950s, created after a wave of highly ideological films were negatively received by the public. According to author Heinz Kersten, it had only "a modest saying on the matters of society" and was "entertainment". It was

's first major role on the screen.

Reception

The West German Catholic Film Service described the film as "having several clumsy moments. Generally, an undemanding piece of entertainment." The ''World Stage'' newspaper's critic dubbed as "dramatically dull."''Die Weltbühne'', no.11, 1957.