Berlin Express (1948)
Perhaps I just wasn’t in the right mood, but Berlin Express was too complicated for me. I kept having to press pause and ask my viewing companions to explain it to me, stretching a less-than-ninety minute running time into a far longer one. If you like complex conspiracy thrillers, and don’t mind watching them in black-and-white, you might really like this one. Next up, try Foreign Correspondent.
Robert Ryan made a career out of playing villains, but every once in a while he wore a hero’s cape as he did in this movie. He plays an American nutritionist on his way to Berlin to help with the post-war reconstruction. As narrator Paul Stewart informs the audience as we see real footage of the destroyed German cities, the people were so badly off, basic things like work and food had different meanings. People carried briefcases full of their prized possessions to barter for basic necessities to help them survive from day to day. There wasn’t enough food, and nutritionists were hired to help divvy out resources and make sure even children could get by on a certain amount of protein and vitamins. It was very sad, and had the entire movie been about post-war Germany (there are a few films about that subject out there) I would have totally been able to follow the story.
But instead, Robert takes a train with a bunch of other folks. It’s practically the United Nations on board, with German, Russian, English, and French passengers. Let’s get this out of the way: Merle Oberon’s French accent is terrible. If the script didn’t keep telling us she was French, I would never have figured it out. Paul Lukas, Robert Coote, Charles Korvin, and others have seemingly innocuous interactions – but some are hiding a terrible assassination plot. A famed German philosopher is on board and before he makes a speech about world peace, his enemies want him killed. It gets far more complicated from there, but I won’t spoil anything for you.
If the storyline appeals to you, you can try it. But Merle fans should stay away, since she seems to care very little about the movie and even less about her character. Also, there’s a distinct anti-German sentiment present that could have been edited out of the final draft in order to promote post-war reconstruction.
Want to watch it? Click here to see it on ok.ru and thanks "Classic Movies Kristine Rose" for posting!
More Merle Oberon movies here!
Robert Ryan made a career out of playing villains, but every once in a while he wore a hero’s cape as he did in this movie. He plays an American nutritionist on his way to Berlin to help with the post-war reconstruction. As narrator Paul Stewart informs the audience as we see real footage of the destroyed German cities, the people were so badly off, basic things like work and food had different meanings. People carried briefcases full of their prized possessions to barter for basic necessities to help them survive from day to day. There wasn’t enough food, and nutritionists were hired to help divvy out resources and make sure even children could get by on a certain amount of protein and vitamins. It was very sad, and had the entire movie been about post-war Germany (there are a few films about that subject out there) I would have totally been able to follow the story.
But instead, Robert takes a train with a bunch of other folks. It’s practically the United Nations on board, with German, Russian, English, and French passengers. Let’s get this out of the way: Merle Oberon’s French accent is terrible. If the script didn’t keep telling us she was French, I would never have figured it out. Paul Lukas, Robert Coote, Charles Korvin, and others have seemingly innocuous interactions – but some are hiding a terrible assassination plot. A famed German philosopher is on board and before he makes a speech about world peace, his enemies want him killed. It gets far more complicated from there, but I won’t spoil anything for you.
If the storyline appeals to you, you can try it. But Merle fans should stay away, since she seems to care very little about the movie and even less about her character. Also, there’s a distinct anti-German sentiment present that could have been edited out of the final draft in order to promote post-war reconstruction.
Want to watch it? Click here to see it on ok.ru and thanks "Classic Movies Kristine Rose" for posting!
More Merle Oberon movies here!