Frank Wisbar: The Director of Ferryman Maria, from Germany to America and Back

by Henry Nicolella

Overview

German director Frank Wisbar (1899-1967) had the misfortune of achieving success as a filmmaker just as Hitler came to power. While critics praised his work, Nazi cultural watchdogs were scornful of his attempts to chart "the landscape of the soul" in films like Ferryman Maria (1936) and Anna and Elisabeth (1933). Wisbar fled to America, where Hollywood saw him as no more than a technician, good for churning out low-budget horror like Strangler of the Swamp (1945) and Devil Bat's Daughter (1946).

A successful stint in early television allowed him to return home to a very different Germany, where he abandoned his earlier mystical themes to tackle questions of war and peace, tabloid journalism and racial conflict. The author examines the films and career of an under-appreciated auteur who ultimately lost faith in his own vision.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781476629766
Publisher:	McFarland & Company, Incorporated Publishers
Publication date:	01/12/2018
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	239
File size:	9 MB
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Henry Nicolella, of Syracuse, New York, retired from a ministry of working for the homeless.
Henry Nicolella, of Syracuse, New York, retired from a ministry of working for the homeless.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments
Introduction
Biography: The Stranger from the Other Shore
The Films and Television Programs
Im Bann des Eulenspiegels (Under the Spell of the Owl Mirror) (1932)
Anna und Elisabeth (Anna and Elisabeth) (1933)
Rivalen der Luft (Rivals of the Air) (1934)
Hermine und die seiben Aufrechten (Hermine and the Seven Upright Men) (1935)
Die Werft zum Grauen Hecht (The Grey Pikes Wharf) (1935)
Fährmann Maria (Ferryman Maria) (1936)
Die Unbekannte (The Unknown) (1936)
Ball im Metropol (Ball in Metropol) (1937)
Petermann ist dagegen! (Petermann Is Against It!) (1937)
Women in Bondage (1943)
Strangler of the Swamp (1946)
Devil Bat’s Daughter (1946)
Secrets of a Sorority Girl (1946)
Lighthouse (1947)
The Prairie (1948)
Madonna of the Desert (1948)
The Mozart Story (1948)
Rimfire (1949)
Fireside Theater (1949)
Haie und kleine Fische (Sharks and Little Fish) (1957)
Nasser Asphalt (Wet Asphalt) (1958)
Hunde, wollt ihr ewig leben? (Dogs, Do You Want to Live Forever?) (1959)
Nacht fiel über Gotenhafen (Darkness Fell on Gotenhafen) (1960)
Fabrik der Offiziere (The Officer Factory) (1960)
Barbara (1961)
Commando (1962)
Durchbruch Lok 234 (Breakthrough Locomotive 234) (1963)
West German TV
Bibliography
Index