''Mountain Crystal'' (german: Bergkristall) is a 1949 Austrian-German

historical drama A historical drama (also period drama, costume drama, and period piece) is a work set in a past time period, usually used in the context of film and television. Historical drama includes historical fiction and romances, adventure films, and s ...

film directed by

Harald Reinl Harald Reinl (8 July 1908 in Bad Ischl, Austria – 9 October 1986 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain) was an Austrian film director. He is known for the films he made based on Edgar Wallace and Karl May books (see Karl May movies and Edgar Wal ...

and featuring a cast of unknown actors including Franz Eichberger, Hans Renz and Cilli Greif. It is a

mountain film A mountain film is a film genre that focuses on mountaineering and especially the battle of human against nature. In addition to mere adventure, the protagonists who return from the mountain come back changed, usually gaining wisdom and enlighten ...

based on a novella of the same title by

Adalbert Stifter Adalbert Stifter (; 23 October 1805 – 28 January 1868) was an Austrian writer, poet, painter, and pedagogue. He was notable for the vivid natural landscapes depicted in his writing and has long been popular in the German-speaking world, while ...

. The film's sets were designed by the Austrian art director Fritz Jüptner-Jonstorff. It was the directorial debut of Reinl who went on to become a successful film director.

Plot

The Tyrolean mountain farmer's son Franz loves Sanna, the daughter of a dyer beyond the mountain ridge. His rival, a hunter, caught him poaching, shot him and left him wounded. The hunter then has a fatal accident in a crevasse, but the villagers consider Franz, who was seriously injured, to be the murderer of the missing hunter. Acquitted for lack of evidence, he is still outlawed by everyone. Only Sanna sticks to him, marries him and is therefore rejected by her father. Franz is repeatedly confronted with the murder charge, which affects his whole life. Years later, his two children want to look for the Christ child at Christmas time because the bitter father does not tolerate a Christmas tree in his house. They get lost in the glacier region and find shelter in an ice cave, where the hunter's intact body is located. In a joint rescue operation, not only are the children rescued, but Franz is finally rehabilitated and finds his faith in God and the people again.

Cast

*Franz Eichberger as Franz Valteiner *Hans Renz as Färber von Millsdorf *Cilli Greif as Färberin, dessen Frau *Maria Stolz as Sanna, beider Tochter *Michael Killisch-Horn as Konrad, Knabe *Hildegard Mayr as Sannele, Mädchen *Hans Thöni as Franz Valteiners Vater *Robert Falch as Der Jägersteffel

Production

Harald Reinl worked again with the producer
Josef Plesner
and Hubert Schonger to realize his first feature film, shot in winter 1948/49. Fritz Jüptner-Jonstorff was responsible for the buildings, the studio was in

Kufstein Kufstein (; Central Bavarian: ''Kufstoa'') is a town in the Austrian state of Tyrol, the administrative seat of Kufstein District. With a population of about 19,600 it is the second largest Tyrolean town after the state capital Innsbruck. The grea ...

. The exterior shots were taken in Kitzbühel, in the Kaiser Mountains, on the Tuxer Joch, at the Upper Court, and on the Spannagel Glacier. In addition to the actors mentioned by name, farmers, hunters, and shepherds from Tyrol also appear in the film. The premiere took place on the 22nd of October 1949 in Munich, Germany, followed by the screening in Vienna on December 23 the same year.

References

External links

* Films directed by Harald Reinl Mountaineering films Films set in the Alps Films set in the 19th century Films about hunters Films based on Austrian novels German historical drama films Austrian historical drama films 1940s historical drama films German black-and-white films Austrian black-and-white films 1949 drama films {{Austria-film-stub