Watch on the Rhine

Infobox Film
name = Watch on the Rhine


caption = Original film poster
director = Herman Shumlin Hal Mohr (uncredited)
producer = Hal B. Wallis
writer = Lillian Hellman Dashiell Hammett
starring = Bette Davis Paul Lukas Geraldine Fitzgerald Lucile Watson Beulah Bondi George Coulouris
music = Max Steiner
cinematography = Merritt B. Gerstad Hal Mohr
editing = Rudi Fehr
distributor = Warner Bros.
released = August 27, 1943
runtime = 114 min.
language = English
budget =
imdb_id = 0036515|

"Watch on the Rhine" is a 1943 drama film that was adapted by Dashiell Hammett and Lillian Hellman from Hellman's play. The film stars Bette Davis, Paul Lukas and Geraldine Fitzgerald and was directed by Herman Shumlin and Hal Mohr (uncredited).

Plot

Kurt Muller (Paul Lukas), an anti-Nazi fighter who, in attempting to return to the United States during World War II, is followed by a Nazi sympathizer who manages to infiltrate the childhood home of Muller's wife (Bette Davis). When the family moves in, the Nazi plays cat-and-mouse with Muller, who eventually exposes him and kills him. Muller then flees to parts unknown, leaving his eldest son to carry on the struggle against the Nazis.

Awards

Both the play and the film are considered overly preachy today, but the film won the Academy Award for Best Actor (Paul Lukas), beating Humphrey Bogart for "Casablanca", and was nominated for Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Lucile Watson), Best Picture and Best Writing, Screenplay. Although Bette Davis receives first billing, hers is really a supporting role. Paul Lukas, who was not as great a film star as Davis, is the actual lead in the film, repeating his Broadway role.

External links

*imdb title|0036515