Fritz Kortner

Acting

Fritz Kortner

Born — Died

1892-05-12 — 1970-07-22

Place of birth

Vienna, Austria-Hungary [now Austria]

Known for

Acting

Credits

83 titles

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Fritz Kortner (12 May 1892 – 22 July 1970) was an Austrian-born stage and film actor and theatre director. Kortner was born in Vienna as Fritz Nathan Kohn. He studied at the Vienna Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. After graduating, he joined Max Reinhardt in Berlin in 1911 and then Leopold Jessner in 1916. Also in that year he made his first appearance in a silent film. He became one of Germany's best known character actors. His speciality was playing sinister and threatening roles, though he also appeared in the title role of 1930's Dreyfus. With the coming to power of the Nazis, Kortner, being Jewish, chose to flee Germany in 1933. He emigrated to…

Known for

No artwork available
6.0

No synopsis available yet.

German Film Award

1951

Monitor poster
7.3

Monitor was a BBC arts programme that was launched on 2 February 1958 and ran until 1965. Huw Wheldon was the first editor from 1958 to 1965. He was also the principal interviewer and anchor. Wheldon set about moulding a team of talents, including John Schlesinger, Ken Russell, Patrick Garland, David Jones, Humphrey Burton, John Berger, Peter Newington, Melvyn Bragg, Nancy Thomas and Alan Tyrer. Monitor ranged in subject over all the arts. Wheldon's Monitor lasted until he had "interviewed everyone I am interested in interviewing", and he was succeeded by Jonathan Miller for the series' last season.

Monitor

1958

Hitler: A Career poster
7.4

A keen chronicle of the unlikely rise to power of Adolf Hitler (1889-1945) and a dissection of the Third Reich (1933-1945), but also an analysis of mass psychology and how the desperate crowd can be deceived and shepherded to the slaughterhouse.

Hitler: A Career

1977

Pandora's Box poster
7.4

The rise and inevitable fall of an amoral but naive young woman whose insouciant eroticism inspires lust and violence in those around her.

Pandora's Box

1929

Film Emigration from Nazi Germany poster
9.0

Based on extensive interviews, shot on 16mm in a series of static long takes, Filmemigration aus Nazideutschland, is one of the most fascinating examples of "Film history on film" ever produced. Straschek devoted years to researching the topic and accumulating both film and non-film materials. Apart from some radio features and articles, however, this 290-minute TV programme remains the only published trace of Straschek's lifelong work on the emigration of film personnel. He had intended to publish a three-volume book, encompassing all available data about 3,000 emigrants originating from the centre and peripheries of film production, but the book never materialised.

Film Emigration from Nazi Germany

1975

The Razor's Edge poster
6.9

An adventurous young man goes off to find himself and loses his socialite fiancée in the process. But when he returns 10 years later, she will stop at nothing to get him back, even though she is already married.

The Razor's Edge

1946

Film credits

1940s · 10 titles

The Razor's Edge poster
6.9

An adventurous young man goes off to find himself and loses his socialite fiancée in the process. But when he returns 10 years later, she will stop at nothing to get him back, even though she is already married.

The Razor's Edge

1946

Berlin Express poster
6.3

In post-war Europe, a diverse group of passengers aboard a U.S. Army train to bombed-out Frankfurt becomes involved in a Nazi assassination plot.

Berlin Express

1948

Somewhere in the Night poster
6.7

George Taylor returns from WWII with amnesia. Back home in Los Angeles, while trying to track down his old identity, he stumbles onto a three year old murder case and a hunt for a missing $2 million.

Somewhere in the Night

1946

The Eternal Jew poster
4.7

A Nazi propaganda film made to promote anti-Semitism among the German people. Newly-shot footage of Jewish neighborhoods in recently-conquered Poland is combined with preexisting film clips and stills to defame the religion and advance Hitler's slurs that its adherents were plotting to undermine European civilization.

The Eternal Jew

1940

The Brasher Doubloon poster
6.0

Mrs. Elizabeth Bright Murdock hires Marlowe to find an old rare coin, the Brasher Doubloon, that belonged in her deceased husband's collection. Marlowe begins investigating, but quickly finds himself entangled in a series of unexplained murders.

The Brasher Doubloon

1947

The Hitler Gang poster
6.3

The Hitler Gang adopts the style of a gangster film as it charts Adolf Hitler’s rise from small-time politico to dictator of Germany.

The Hitler Gang

1944

The Vicious Circle poster
5.8

In Hungary, a rich baron discovers that there are extensive oil deposits underneath nearby properties owned by villagers. He manages to convince all the property owners to sell to him, except for a few properties owned by Jewish families. Infuriated at their refusal to sell to him, he attempts, with the help of some corrupt local police, to have the men charged with the murder of a local woman, who in reality actually committed suicide.

The Vicious Circle

1948

The Strange Death of Adolf Hitler poster
5.2

Austrian actor Franz Huber, known for his impressions, is captured by the Gestapo and forced into plastic surgery to become Hitler's body double. Their plan is to poison Hitler and use Huber to take control of the Reich. Meanwhile, Huber's wife Anna sees her life coming undone as her husband has disappeared and her two sons are indoctrinated into the Hitler Youth.

The Strange Death of Adolf Hitler

1943

The Wife of Monte Cristo poster
6.4

In this sequel to the original story, Monte Cristo count Edmund Dantes (Martin Kosleck) returns to Paris to get revenge but soon finds himself pursued by a cruel policeman. The count's brave wife Haydée throws the cop off her husband's scent by dressing up as the masked avenger herself and proving that she too is most competent with a sword.

The Wife of Monte Cristo

1946

No artwork available
10.0

German expatriate Fritz Kortner plays the largest role, as an anti-Nazi schoolmaster who helps a downed American flyer (John Archer) reached Allied lines with vital war information. As usual, the Nazis are incredibly stupid and lead-footed, enabling the flyer to accomplish his mission.

The Purple V

1943

1930s · 7 titles

1920s · 36 titles

Pandora's Box poster
7.4

The rise and inevitable fall of an amoral but naive young woman whose insouciant eroticism inspires lust and violence in those around her.

Pandora's Box

1929

The Hands of Orlac poster
6.9

A world-famous pianist loses both hands in an accident. When new hands are grafted on, he is horrified to learn they once belonged to a murderer.

The Hands of Orlac

1924

Draga Maschin poster
7.0

No synopsis available yet.

Draga Maschin

1927

Christian Wahnschaffe I: Weltbrand poster
10.0

Weltbrand is the first part of the two-part silent movie Christian Wahnschaffe.

Christian Wahnschaffe I: Weltbrand

1920

Der Eisenbahnkönig, 2. Teil - Lauernder Tod poster
9.0

No synopsis available yet.

Der Eisenbahnkönig, 2. Teil - Lauernder Tod

1921

The Ship of Lost Men poster
5.8

A young doctor gets stuck on a ship after treating an injured first mate. Later, he rescues a woman from plane wreckage, and with the help of the cook, he hides her away from the rowdy and dangerous crew.

The Ship of Lost Men

1929

Danton poster
6.5

At the height of Reign of Terror Maximilien Robespierre orchestrates the trial and execution of several of his fellow leading French revolutionaries including Georges Danton.

Danton

1921

Der Schädel der Pharaonentochter poster
8.0

A pharaonic tragedy to the content that spans six different eras. In the first episode, the emergence and dramatic end of the love story between the pharaoh's daughter Princess Amnertis and her beloved Tirhaka is told until the latter comes to a violent death. From this drama arises a curse, which in the following episodes has had far-reaching effects over the centuries. Everyone who possesses the skull of the long-lost pharaoh's daughter must die violently until the day the skull is sunk in the sea.

Der Schädel der Pharaonentochter

1920

Die Geliebte des Gouverneurs poster
9.0

No synopsis available yet.

Die Geliebte des Gouverneurs

1927

Warning Shadows poster
6.6

During a dinner given by a wealthy baron and his wife, attended by four of her suitors in a 19th century German manor, a shadow-player rescues the marriage by giving all the guests a vision what might happen tonight if the baron stays jealous and the suitors do not reduce their advances towards his beautiful wife. Or was it a vision?

Warning Shadows

1923

Der Graf von Essex poster
10.0

The Earl of Essex, a favourite of the Queen, is in jeopardy of losing her favor after secretly marrying one of the Queen's ladies-in-waiting.

Der Graf von Essex

1922

Der Eisenbahnkönig, 1. Teil - Mensch und Mammon poster
10.0

No synopsis available yet.

Der Eisenbahnkönig, 1. Teil - Mensch und Mammon

1921

The Life of Beethoven poster
8.3

Filmed in Austria for the hundredth anniversary of Beethoven's death, this 1927 silent film tells the story of the German genius' eventful emotional life. Presented in a restored version and with rearranged music, a biopic to be savored with ears wide open.

The Life of Beethoven

1927

Mata Hari: the Red Dancer poster
10.0

Mata Hari, die rote Tänzerin (English: Mata Hari: The Red Dancer), often shortened on release to Mata Hari, is a 1927 German silent drama film directed by Friedrich Feher and starring Magda Sonja, Wolfgang Zilzer and Fritz Kortner. It depicts the life and death of the German World War I spy Mata Hari. It was the first feature-length portrayal of Hari.

Mata Hari: the Red Dancer

1927

The Brothers Karamazov poster
6.0

An adaptation of Dostoevsky's novel.

The Brothers Karamazov

1920

Am Rande der Großstadt poster
9.0

No synopsis available yet.

Am Rande der Großstadt

1922

No artwork available
7.5

Deep in the forest lives the bitter Dr. Wislizenus, whose childhood sweetheart Maria committed suicide ten years ago. The visit of a childhood friend, he who wrote a poem about Mary, triggers a tragedy.

Dr. Wislizenus

1924

No artwork available
7.0

An exploration of the misery of youth. A student, his friends, and the girl he loves all suffer due to the harsh and unforgiving nature of the adults in their lives.

Primanerliebe

1927

Die Lieblingsfrau des Maharadscha poster
NR

The Maharaja of Odhapur goes on a trip to Europe and meet the young dancer Ellen Esmond. In her London accommodation, the Savoy Hotel, the Indian prince can prove to be a gallant gentleman and protect Ellen from an intrusive theatrical agent. The Maharaja asks the artist to entertain his guests the following evening with her dancing skills, including England's representatives in India. The maharaja is thrilled with both the person Ellen and her dance performances. His brother Bhima, who was always in the shadow of the Maharajah, drinks excessively and also is also magically attracted to Ellen Esmond.

Die Lieblingsfrau des Maharadscha

1921

Frau Sorge poster
7.0

Young peasant Paul's life is one of poverty and hardship from an early age. His lifelong struggle as he is forced to take on the responsibility of caring for his dysfunctional relatives prevents him from experiencing personal happiness, love, or a life for himself.

Frau Sorge

1928

No artwork available
10.0

Adaptation of A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen.

Nora

1923

Atlantik poster
7.3

German-language version. "Atlantic" is a drama film based on the sinking of the RMS "Titanic" and set aboard a fictional ship, called the "Atlantic". The main plotline revolves around a man who has a shipboard affair with a fellow passenger, which is eventually discovered by his wife. The ship also has aboard an elderly couple, Heinrich and Anna Thomas, who are on their anniversary cruise. Midway across the Atlantic Ocean, the "Atlantic" strikes an iceberg and is damaged to the point where it is sinking into the Atlantic. The German version was filmed at the same time as the British version, with each scene first being filmed in English for the British version, then the same scene being filmed in German by a German cast, using the same sets.

Atlantik

1929

Odette poster
NR

One evening at a ball, Count Georg de Clermont-Latour—a man who places great importance on convention and traditional notions of honor—surprises a young man in his wife Odette’s bedchamber. Despite her protestations that she had rebuffed the presumptuous youth and behaved with neither impropriety nor infidelity, her husband refuses to believe a word she says and casts her out of his home.

Odette

1928

No artwork available
8.0

No synopsis available yet.

Die Ausgestoßenen

1927

The House on the Moon poster
7.0

The House on the Moon

The House on the Moon

1921

No artwork available
NR

What Belongs to Darkness (German: Die Finsternis und ihr Eigentum) is a 1922 German silent drama film directed by Martin Hartwig and starring Karl Etlinger, Erra Bognar, and Fritz Kortner. The film's sets were designed by the art director Alfred Columbus.

What Belongs to Darkness

1922

No artwork available
8.0

The film depicts the marriage between the mad Charles VI of France and his wife Queen Isabeau.

The Night of Queen Isabeau

1920

No artwork available
8.0

No synopsis available yet.

Haschisch, das Paradies der Hölle

1921

No artwork available
NR

When Professor Horski learns that his wife has published a volume of novellas under his name entitled "Wife" he feels compromised and is angered at her. But as he reads them, he finds that they are great. Also, he reads in them a warning to himself: one should not neglect one's wife for the sake of academic work. The film is considered to be lost.

Kiedy kobieta zdradza męża

1924

Peter the Great poster
7.0

Peter the Great, having become Tsar of Russia, using his shipbuilding knowledge acquired in a foreign country to establish a navy, and being able to use it, provokes a war with Sweden, defeating that country at the Battle of Poltava. This battle marks a turning point between Peter and Russia. His only son turns out to be a coward, meets a refugee girl and makes her his Empress, alienating himself from the church and many nobles. All these factors lead to a conspiracy...

Peter the Great

1922

No artwork available
NR

No synopsis available yet.

Armes kleines Mädchen

1924

No artwork available
NR

No synopsis available yet.

Alpine Tragedy

1927

No artwork available
9.0

No synopsis available yet.

Marquis d’Eon, der Spion der Pompadour

1928

The Woman One Longs For poster
6.0

After a chance meeting at a train station, Henry and Stascha, unhappy with their circumstances, are determined to leave and be together.

The Woman One Longs For

1929

No artwork available
10.0

No synopsis available yet.

Die Verschwörung zu Genua

1921

No artwork available
10.0

No synopsis available yet.

Die Frau im Talar

1929

Series credits

Behind the camera

Emilia Galotti poster
NR

No synopsis available yet.

Emilia Galotti

1971

The Strange Death of Adolf Hitler poster
5.2

Austrian actor Franz Huber, known for his impressions, is captured by the Gestapo and forced into plastic surgery to become Hitler's body double. Their plan is to poison Hitler and use Huber to take control of the Reich. Meanwhile, Huber's wife Anna sees her life coming undone as her husband has disappeared and her two sons are indoctrinated into the Hitler Youth.

The Strange Death of Adolf Hitler

1943

No artwork available
NR

No synopsis available yet.

Der Sturm

—

Secrets of the City poster
8.5

An industrial plant gets into difficulties. The factory owner then decides to sell the company and makes all the employees redundant. How do the dismissed employees deal with the new situation?

Secrets of the City

1955

Secrets of the City poster
8.5

An industrial plant gets into difficulties. The factory owner then decides to sell the company and makes all the employees redundant. How do the dismissed employees deal with the new situation?

Secrets of the City

1955

Die Geliebte des Gouverneurs poster
9.0

No synopsis available yet.

Die Geliebte des Gouverneurs

1927

Die Sendung der Lysistrata poster
9.0

Persuaded by Lysistrata, the women of Athens agree to withdraw all sexual favours from the men until the men agree to end to war with Sparta.

Die Sendung der Lysistrata

1961

Die Sendung der Lysistrata poster
9.0

Persuaded by Lysistrata, the women of Athens agree to withdraw all sexual favours from the men until the men agree to end to war with Sparta.

Die Sendung der Lysistrata

1961

No artwork available
6.0

The film traces the individual stages in the life of Ludwig van Beethoven.

Der Märtyrer seines Herzens

1918

A Girl You Don't Forget poster
10.0

A GIRL YOU DON'T FORGET can be thought of as a backstage musical that treats the whole world as backstage. Melodies seem to be buzzing through the air, available to anyone in the right state of mind. Willi Forst always is, and he is also an actor who can transform any space into a stage. Fritz Kortner, one of the defining personalities of the German theatre scene of the 1920s, makes the most of his star’s talent in an intricately constructed romantic comedy that believes in the truth of artifice. Forst plays Paul Hartwig, a wannabe actor who is reduced to selling books in the cold streets of Berlin. While pursuing his big break, he meets Lisa Brandes (Dolly Haas), another victim of the global financial crisis who has just learned a new trick: cheating horny old men out of their money by selling promises she does not intend to keep. Dedicated theatre man Paul decides to win her over by putting on an act, but a misplaced slap leads to unintended consequences. - Lukas Foerster

A Girl You Don't Forget

1932

A Girl You Don't Forget poster
10.0

A GIRL YOU DON'T FORGET can be thought of as a backstage musical that treats the whole world as backstage. Melodies seem to be buzzing through the air, available to anyone in the right state of mind. Willi Forst always is, and he is also an actor who can transform any space into a stage. Fritz Kortner, one of the defining personalities of the German theatre scene of the 1920s, makes the most of his star’s talent in an intricately constructed romantic comedy that believes in the truth of artifice. Forst plays Paul Hartwig, a wannabe actor who is reduced to selling books in the cold streets of Berlin. While pursuing his big break, he meets Lisa Brandes (Dolly Haas), another victim of the global financial crisis who has just learned a new trick: cheating horny old men out of their money by selling promises she does not intend to keep. Dedicated theatre man Paul decides to win her over by putting on an act, but a misplaced slap leads to unintended consequences. - Lukas Foerster

A Girl You Don't Forget

1932

No artwork available
9.8

No synopsis available yet.

Leonce und Lena

1964

No artwork available
7.0

No synopsis available yet.

Androcles and the Lion

1958

Sarajevo poster
7.0

The film portrays the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria in 1914.

Sarajevo

1955

The Upright Sinner poster
8.0

Leopold Pichler is a very orderly and trustworthy chief cashier who is asked by his boss to get a large sum of money from the bank which the boss urgently needs on a trip to Vienna. Due to some circumstances, getting the money takes a little longer than expected and the director leaves for Vienna without it.

The Upright Sinner

1931

The Upright Sinner poster
8.0

Leopold Pichler is a very orderly and trustworthy chief cashier who is asked by his boss to get a large sum of money from the bank which the boss urgently needs on a trip to Vienna. Due to some circumstances, getting the money takes a little longer than expected and the director leaves for Vienna without it.

The Upright Sinner

1931

No artwork available
7.0

No synopsis available yet.

Der eingebildete Kranke

1964

No artwork available
8.0

No synopsis available yet.

Clavigo

1970

The Last Illusion poster
7.2

Professor Mauthner, after many years of exile (having emigrated in 1933 to the USA), returns to Germany in 1948. He can in fact return to his teaching post, but the rejection and petty intrigues of his reactionary colleagues and students make his work almost unbearable.

The Last Illusion

1949