BY DOUG OSWALD
“Frauleinâ€
begins with a close-up shot of the spires of a Gothic cathedral, organ music
playing on the soundtrack and air-raid sirens blaring as a statement appears on
screen: “Cologne on the Rhine during the last weeks of World War II.†The scene
moves down to street level as German civilians and soldiers run for bomb
shelters as destruction rains down on them. An American prisoner of war makes
his escape during the chaos and he stumbles upon the home of a college
professor and his daughter.
Mel
Ferrer plays the American POW, Captain Foster MacLain. He meets the Fraulein of
the movie, Erika Angermann, played by Dana Wynter. She helps him evade capture
during a search of her father’s home. We learn about a fiancé she has not seen
in over two years. She learns later from a letter that he has been wounded and is in a
hospital. McLain thanks her and the professor, who gives him a coat- a precious
gift under the circumstances. After McLain departs, shots are heard and Erika fears he was killed or wounded. While she is grappling with that scenario,
another air raid takes place, during which her father is killed..
Erika
heads for the safety of her uncle’s home in Berlin at a time when many Germans are
fleeing the Russian advance and heading to the American lines. A middle-aged married
couple has also taken refuge in her uncle’s home and soon a group of Russian
soldiers move in as well. The Russians get drunk and murder Erika’s uncle who
has hidden her in a bedroom. The married couple discloses her location and a soldier
is killed in a fall from the roof while trying to rape Erika. Taken into
Russian custody and charged with murder, Russian Colonel Dmitri Bucaron (Theodore
Bikel) takes a liking to Erika and orders her release.
The
war is over, but Colonel Bucaron’s kindness comes at a price. He fancies the
shy and beautiful Erika as his mistress and while out drinking, Erika befriends
Lori, played by Dolores Michaels, a piano player in a Berlin nightclub
entertaining Russian soldiers. Lori helps Erika escape and make her way to the
American line where she is taken in by the married couple from her uncle’s
house. They’re living well as pimps and seek to make Erika one of their
prostitutes. Erika flees yet again after being harassed and aided by an
American soldier. She ends up meeting up with Lori, who gets her a job in the nightclub where Lori
plays piano and Erika is one of several girls waiting her turn to get dunked
while sitting on a chair over a dunk tank as American GIs take turns tossing
balls at a target. Erika’s humiliation and her situation seems hopeless when
McLain, now promoted to Major, re-enters her life.
The
movie is episodic and melodramatic in this story of a German woman preserving
her dignity amid the degradation many German women had to endure in the final
days of the war and its immediate aftermath.. She swallows her pride several
times throughout the movie in order to survive and she bends, but never breaks.
The
movie is directed by Henry Koster, known for many classic movies from
light-hearted favorites such as “The Bishop’s Wife,†“The Luck of the Irish,â€
“The Inspector General†and “Harvey†to more dramatic fare like “The Robe,†“A
Man Called Peter,†“The Virgin Queen,†“D-Day the Sixth of June†and “The Story
of Ruth.†At the end of his career he directed several enjoyable comedies with
James Stewart, “Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation,†“Take Her, She’s Mine†and “Dear
Brigitte.â€
The
story, based on the book by James McGivern, was almost certainly sanitized in
typical Hollywood fashion of the day. Contrary to the provocative image
depicted on the advertising art for this June 1958 release, Erika maintains her
virginal purity throughout as her dignity and future happiness is challenged.
Dana
Wynter is terrific as the shy German girl Erika. Interestingly, Wynter was born
Dagmar Winter in Berlin, Germany, grew up in England, moved to Rhodesia after
WWII and studied medicine at Rhodes University in South Africa. She was discovered
on the English stage and signed a seven year contract with 20th Century Fox in
1955. Retro movie fans will remember her from “Invasion of the Body Snatchers,â€
“D-Day the Sixth of June†(working with Koster for the first time), “Sink the
Bismarck!,†“On the Double,†“The List of Adrian Messenger,†“Airport,†“The
Questor Tapes†and appearances in dozens of TV series from the 1950s to the
early 1990s.
Dolores
Michaels is very good as Erika’s less shy friend Lori, a piano playing bar maid
who is the complete opposite of Erika, but with the stereotypical heart of
gold. Another great female supporting role is Maggie Hayes as Ferrer’s military
aid, Lt., Berdie Dubbin.
Mel
Ferrer is charming and good natured as the American soldier who finds Erika and
falls in love with her. Theodore Bikel is underused but still memorable as the Russian Army Colonel
Bucaron. Pivotal to the story is James Edwards as Corporal Hanks in an
important supporting role. Edwards is probably best remembered for playing noble
military characters in many movies including “Home of the Brave,†“The
Manchurian Candidate†and “Patton.â€
John
Banner, fondly remembered as Sergeant Schultz in “Hogan’s Heroes,†appears in a
brief scene as a health inspector delivering bad news about Erika which is intercepted
by Lori. Unknown to Erika is that she’s been registered as a prostitute,a
development that adds considerable drama to the story and her hopes of
immigrating to America.
“Frauleinâ€
is a burn to order DVD released as part of the 20th Century Fox Cinema Archives
and there are no extras on the disc. The sound quality on the disc is crisp
with a score by Daniele Amfitheatrof. The colors
look good, if a bit washed out in some scenes. The movie was filmed in
CinemaScope, but is presented full frame for this release. It is a pity that
Fox didn’t see fit to preserve the widescreen image for this release. While much
of the movie appears to have been filmed on sets, there are several second unit
shots of the Rhine River that would have looked very nice in widescreen. I
really enjoyed “Fraulein†and it is recommended for those who enjoy WWII
melodrama.