''Refugees'' (German: ''Flüchtlinge'') is the 1933

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...

, directed by

Gustav Ucicky Gustav Ucicky (6 July 1899 – 27 April 1961) was an Austrian film director, screenwriter, and cinematographer. He was one of the more successful directors in Austria and Germany from the 1930s through to the early 1960s. His work covered a wid ...

and starring Hans Albers,

Käthe von Nagy Ekaterina Nagy von Cziser, better known by her stage name Käthe von Nagy (4 April 1904 – 20 December 1973), was a Hungarian actress, model, dancer, and singer who worked in the German and French cinema. Early life and education Käthe von Nag ...

, and

Eugen Klöpfer Eugen Gottlob Klöpfer (10 March 1886 in Talheim, Heilbronn – 3 March 1950 in Wiesbaden) was a German actor. Early life Born to Karl Klöpfer and his wife Karoline, née Hörsch, Eugen attended the Realschule ("secondary school") in Heilbro ...

. It depicts

Volga German The Volga Germans (german: Wolgadeutsche, ), russian: поволжские немцы, povolzhskiye nemtsy) are ethnic Germans who settled and historically lived along the Volga River in the region of southeastern European Russia around Saratov ...

refugees persecuted by the

Bolsheviks The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...

on the

Sino Sino as a prefix generally refers to: * China * Chinese people * Two Chinas * Culture of China * History of China Sino may also refer to: * Sino Group, a property company in Hong Kong * ''Sino'' (Café Tacuba album), the 7th studio album by M ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

n border in

Manchuria Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym " Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East (Outer M ...

in 1928. Erwin Leiser, ''Nazi Cinema'' p. 29. . The screenplay was written by

Gerhard Menzel Gerhard Menzel (29 September 1894 – 4 May 1966) was a German screenwriter. He wrote for nearly 40 films between 1933 and 1965. He was supportive of Nazism and worked for Nazi propaganda. He was responsible for writing the script of ''Heimk ...

and was based on his own novel of the same title.Cinzia Romani, ''Tainted Goddesses: Female Film Stars of the Third Reich'' p. 150. . It was shot at the

Babelsberg Studios Babelsberg Film Studio (german: Filmstudio Babelsberg), located in Potsdam-Babelsberg outside Berlin, Germany, is the second oldest large-scale film studio in the world only preceded by the Danish Nordisk Film (est. 1906), producing films since ...

with sets designed by the art directors

Robert Herlth Robert Herlth (2 May 1893 – 6 January 1962) was a German art director. He was one of the leading designers of German film sets during the 1920s and 1930s.Reimer & Reimer p.146 Filmography * ''Masks'' (1920) * '' Island of the Dead'' (1921) * ...

and

Walter Röhrig Walter Röhrig (13 April 1897 – 1945) was a German art director.Stephens p.163 Selected filmography * '' The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari'' (1920) * ''Masks'' (1920) * ''Parisian Women'' (1921) * '' Island of the Dead'' (1921) * ''Miss Julie'' (192 ...

. It was the first movie to win the state prize, and Goebbels praised it as among those films that, while they did not explicitly cite National Socialist principles, nevertheless embodied its spirit, a new film reflecting the ideal of their national revolution. The refugees are rescued by a heroic German leader much like the

Führer ( ; , spelled or ''Fuhrer'' when the umlaut is not available) is a German word meaning "leader" or " guide". As a political title, it is strongly associated with the Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler. Nazi Germany cultivated the ("leader princip ...

; the symbolism is obviously intended to emulate

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

although its hero, being blond and athletic, represented the physical ideal much more clearly. He is disgusted by " November Germany", and devotes himself to the ideal of "true Germany". He off-handedly disposes of some refugees as worthless, and demands complete obedience from all others.Erwin Leiser, ''Nazi Cinema'' p. 30 . The death of a boy deeply devoted to him moves him, as dying for a cause is something he would wish for himself, in keeping with Nazi glorification of heroic death. Their Communist persecutors are portrayed simply as brutal murderers, typical of works prior to the

Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact The Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact was a non-aggression pact between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union that enabled those powers to partition Poland between them. The pact was signed in Moscow on 23 August 1939 by German Foreign Minister Joachim von Ri ...

(and again after its breach). The film was shown for some time after the pact, owing to bureaucratic oversight, complicating the efforts of Nazi propaganda.Jay W. Baird, ''The Mythical World of Nazi War Propaganda'', p. 147. . The movie is mostly set in the city of Harbin, in what was at the time the Republic of China.

Cast

* Hans Albers as Arneth *

as Kristja Laudy *

as Bernhard Laudy *

Andrews Engelmann Andrews Engelmann (23 March 1901 – 25 February 1992) was a Russian-born German actor. He worked primarily in Germany, where he specialised in playing Russian roles, but also appeared in a number of British films during his career. He was born as ...

as The Commissar *

Fritz Genschow Fritz Genschow (15 May 1905 – 21 June 1977) was a German actor, film director and screenwriter. Selected filmography * ''Hands Up, Eddy Polo'' (1929) - Russenphilipp * ''Beyond the Street'' (1929) - Der Arbeitsloser / The Unemployed man * ' ...

as Hermann, refugee-engineer * Karl Rainer as Peter, teenage refugee * Franziska Kinz as pregnant woman *

Ida Wüst Ida Wüst (; 10 October 1884 – 4 October 1958) was a German stage and film actress whose career was prominent in the 1920s and 1930s with Universum Film AG (UFA). Life and career Little is known about Ida Wüst's early childhood. She discovere ...

as Frau Megele *

Veit Harlan Veit Harlan (22 September 1899 – 13 April 1964) was a German film director and actor. Harlan reached the highpoint of his career as a director in the Nazi era; most notably his antisemitic film '' Jud Süß'' (1940) makes him controversia ...

as Mannlinger * Karl Meixner as Pappel *

Hans Adalbert Schlettow Hans Adalbert Schlettow (11 June 1888 – 30 April 1945) was a German film actor. Schlettow appeared in around a hundred and sixty films during his career, the majority during the silent era. Among his best-known film roles was ''Hagen von Tronje' ...

as Siberian *

Friedrich Gnaß Friedrich Gnaß (13 November 1892 – 8 May 1958) was a German film actor. He appeared in 53 films between 1929 and 1958. Partial filmography * '' Beyond the Street'' (1929) - Der Matrose / The Sailor * ''Mother Krause's Journey to Happiness'' ...

as Hussar * Hans Hermann Schaufuss as Zweig *

Josef Dahmen Josef Dahmen (21 August 1903 – 18 January 1985) was a German stage, film and television actor.Youngkin p. 462. Dahmen was married to the actress Gisela von Collande, with whom he had a daughter Andrea Dahmen. His granddaughter Julia Dahmen is ...

as man with red hair *

Carsta Löck Carsta Löck (28 December 1902 – 9 October 1993) was a German film actress. Selected filmography * '' Refugees'' (1933) * '' Ripening Youth'' (1933) * '' The Double Fiance'' (1934) * '' Trouble with Jolanthe'' (1934) * '' Police Report'' (19 ...

as Frau Hellerle

References

Bibliography

*Giesen, Rolf. ''Nazi Propaganda Films: A History and Filmography''. McFarland, 2003.

External links

* 1933 adventure films Films based on German novels Films directed by Gustav Ucicky Films of Nazi Germany Films set in 1928 Films set in China Films set in Heilongjiang Films set in Manchukuo German adventure films 1930s German-language films German multilingual films Nazi propaganda films Rail transport films Volga German people UFA GmbH films Films shot at Babelsberg Studios German black-and-white films 1933 multilingual films Films critical of communism Films about the Soviet Union in the Stalin era 1930s German films {{War-film-stub