LIEBELEI Movie Review

This lovely and characteristically elegant turn-of-the-century love story was the last film Max Ophüls made in Germany; upon its completion, the rising Nazi tide forced his emigration to France, and, later, to America. Liebelei is based—as was Ophüls's later, 1950 La Ronde—on an Arthur Schnitzler play. This time, it's the story of a young Viennese woman who falls in love with a handsome lieutenant; their idyllic romance leads to a tragic confrontation when the lieutenant's previous indiscretion with a baroness is discovered by her husband, the baron. Liebelei is an exquisitely conceived jewel-box of a creation, featuring enchanting performances from Wolfgang Liebeneiner as the lieutenant, and especially from Magda Schneider (Romy's mother) as the tragic heroine. The celebrated sleigh ride sequence in which the two young lovers reveal their feelings to each other on a ride through snowy woods is typical of the expressive cinematography of Franz Planer, who would also soon depart Germany for America, eventually working on such famous Hollywood hits as 20,000 Leagues under the Sea, Breakfast at Tiffany's, and The Nun's Story. Though Liebelei was released in Germany after Ophüls's departure, his name and that of Arthur Schnitzler were removed from the credits of all prints. The film was unavailable in America for almost 40 years following its initial release, finally surfacing to charm a new generation at the 1974 New York Film Festival.

NEXT STOP … La Ronde, The Earrings of Madame de…, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg

1932 82m/B GE Magda Schneider, Wolfgang Liebeneiner, Gustav Grundgens; D: Max Ophuls. VHS KIV