Continuing my countdown of the final ten in 100 consecutive movie nights!
Threepenny Opera (1931), dir. George Pabst, starring Rudolf Forster, Carola Neher, Lotte Lenya, Reinhold Schünzel, Fritz Rasp, Valeska Gert, Ernst Busch. Adapted from the hit stage musical by Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill.
I have to admit I was fully prepared to love this movie before it even began, which makes this review a little suspect. Oh well. The fact is I’ve been watching an awful lot of German films from between the wars, both silent and sound, and I am familiar enough with some of the actors that when they pop up in small roles I feel like I’m seeing an old friend. (“Oh look! The minister is Hermann Thimig!”)
That disclaimer aside, here’s my take on the movie.
The story is admittedly a bit of a dog’s breakfast, with a number of loose ends dangling here and there, but rough edges are really the point of the whole exercise. This was a huge hit on the stage, and I expect everyone was excited to be involved in the movie version. Everyone except Bertolt Brecht that is, who sued the production over the changes made to his story, arguing that Pabst had softened the politics. (He lost.) Without having seen the stage version, I can’t comment on that. It’s no doubt less communist, but still gets high marks for grit and cynicism. This story is a celebration of corruption and crime, buoyed by the charm and vivacity of its deplorable characters. And it’s funnier than I expected too.
I should probably also mention that Threepenny Opera the musical was itself an adaptation of the British Beggar’s Opera, written by John Gay in 1728. Which explains why such a quintessentially German drama is set in Soho.
The story centres around the dapper but dangerous master criminal Mackie Messer (Rudolf Forster), his army buddy chief of police Tiger Brown (Reinhold Schüntzel), and Peachum (Fritz Rasp), the King of the Beggars. There are also very strong female characters in sweet little Polly (Carola Neher), who effortlessly steps up to lead Mackie’s gang, and Jenny (Lotte Lenya), who can’t decide whether to betray or save Mackie. Lenya reprises her stage role, featuring a fantastic song about how, when her ship comes in, she will calmly sentence everyone in the city to death. Valeska Gert has a small but plum part too as Mrs. Peachum, with lines like “every mother-in-law should know where her son-in-law can be arrested”.
In a practice common for early sound pictures, a second version in French was shot simultaneously with French-speaking actors in the lead roles. Reviewers seem to be less impressed with it. I’m not surprised. It’s hard to imagine this film in the softer French, the dialogue and songs are much better suited to sharply barked German. (Interestingly, the French version is a few minutes shorter, due in part to the actors speaking more quickly.)
As you can tell, I really enjoyed Threepenny Opera. From the moment right near the beginning, when the music for “Mack the Knife” wheezes into life and the streetsinger starts rrrrrrrolling his rrrrrs, I had a big smile on my face for this one.
