Though among his lesser-known efforts, Robert Siodmak's Weimar-era film boasts an impressive pedigree. The bittersweet 1930 love story represents the solo debut from the director of The Killers and other classic noirs. Emeric Pressburger, co-writer with Irma von Cube, would find fame as half of the Archers, the British duo behind The Red Shoes and other bold dramas. In the 21st century, the fame of both men easily eclipses that of stars Brigitte Horney and Aribert Mog whose not-quite love affair plays out in a shabby chic Berlin boarding house.
Instead of focusing exclusively on Hella, a shop girl, and Peter, a salesman, Siodmak presents their story as one of several involving working-class characters, an approach made clear by the original title (translated into English), Farewell: Serious and Fun Moments from a Family Guesthouse.
To his landlady, Frau Weber (Emilia Unda), Peter is the perfect tenant, unlike the unemployed Baron (Vladimir Sokoloff, The Life of Emile Zola) who has been living rent-free for two years. Another tenant, Neumann (Frank Gunther), a master of ceremonies like Joel Grey’s character in Cabaret, asks to borrow Peter's black patent leather shoes because he can't afford a pair of his own. Siodmak later depicts him inking in the spots on a polka-dotted sock when he can't find a solid pair.
When Peter starts packing up to leave for a better-paying job in Dresden, he upsets everyone, especially Hella who finds out after the other tenants. Then, Peter accuses her of cheating when he finds a note with another man's name on it, but she's simply planning to visit a hat maker before he leaves, hoping to look her best.
Busybody Frau Weber, meanwhile, tries to convince Peter that Hella is no good—and vice versa—in an attempt to ruin a relationship that was only just getting started. Other characters include a frazzled housekeeper, two party girls, and pianist Erwin Bootz of the Comedian Harmonists, who plays himself.
Until the reflective ending, Siodmak directs the film like a farce with characters zipping up and down stairs and in and out of thin-walled rooms—the studio's first sound film takes full advantage of every audio possibility. One year after its release, UFA ordered a new, happier ending without the permission or participation of any of the principals. Siodmak has disavowed this epilogue-like sequence, but it's included here for posterity's sake.
Film historian Anthony Slide provides an enlightening commentary track profiling the director, the cast, and the crew, including cinematographer Eugen Schüfftan (Metropolis), who had previously worked with Robert and Curt Siodmak on People on Sunday. Not long afterward, Schüfftan, Sokoloff, and the Siodmak siblings, all Jewish, would flee Germany to escape the Nazi menace. In 1962, Schüfftan would win an Oscar for his work on Robert Rossen's The Hustler.
Though Farewell isn't as dark or dramatic as the films Siodmak would make in the 1940s, his facility with actors, action, and intrigue was intact from the start. Recommended for German film collections.
What type of library programming could use this title?
Library programming involving German film and Jewish filmmakers could benefit from this title.
What kind of film series would this fit in?
It could fit in with film series dedicated to Robert Siodmak or the filmmakers of the Weimar republic.
What kind of film collection would this title be suitable for?
It would be suitable for German, Weimar republic, and early sound film collections.