'Is My Husband Not Fabulous?' would be the literal translation of this German film's title. 'Ist mein Mann nicht fabelhaft?' was produced in Germany a few months after Hitler became Chancellor. This marital comedy is such light-hearted froth that I'm tempted to say that Hitler's regime hadn't yet cast its shadow over the German film industry at this early point. However, I've seen quite a few German comedies from the later 1930s and the war years, and I can assure you: even when the Nazis had a firm grip on the German and Austrian film industry, the production companies were still churning out light-hearted froth like this movie. (Yes, of course there were also propaganda movies ... but there were also plenty of German films in this period which contained NO references to Nazism, Hitler, lebensraum, anti-Semitism or any of the other problems of that time.) In hindsight, it would be very interesting to know the mindset of contemporary German and Austrian cinema audiences when they stepped out of the Third Reich for an hour or so to watch one of these frothy comedies on a flickering screen: Were they seeking escapism from the very real problems in their society? Or were they wilfully blind to the increasing horror, just as many of them were wilfully blind when their non-Aryan neighbours suddenly disappeared?
Anyway, there's none of that heavy stuff in this light-hearted film. Viktor and Lu Brandt are happy newlyweds, and Viktor (handsome Georg Alexander) has a fine job as publicity director for a large music store. But he's so attentive to his wife (Lien Deyers, quite pretty) that it affects his work performance. His hot-headed boss demotes him to floorwalker, or whatever the German equivalent of a floorwalker is, with a cut in his wages.
This movie being about as realistic as an 'I Love Lucy' episode, Viktor deals with his demotion by telling Lu that he's been promoted to general manager! (She doesn't express much curiosity about the extra pfennigs he's now supposedly earning ... nor does this movie explain how the Brandt household manages to carry on at the same level with LESS money in Viktor's wage packet.) Of course, Lu unexpectedly shows up at the shop to see her husband in his fine new executive job which he doesn't actually have. From this point, the movie degenerates into one of those sitcom episodes where the lowly underling has to pretend he's a bigshot in the workplace. Some of the female employees conspire with Viktor to help him deceive his wife that he's the general manager. These women are attractive, so it's interesting that neither the audience nor Viktor's wife ever suspect that he might be philandering with any of them, or hoping to do so.
SPOILERS COMING. Anyway, it just happens that Viktor has a fine heldentenor singing voice, and it further just happens that his boss needs a new singer at the precise moment when the regular singer (Marcel Wittrisch) can't perform. So of course there's a happy ending. Ignore those jackboots you hear approaching in the distance ... and the sound of breaking glass. It's all nothing, really. This is Germany, 1933. Laugh and be gay! Well, not gay, but...
Trude Hesterberg gives a very funny and touching performance as a faded diva, but Martha Ziegler is far less effective (and slightly too old for the role) as her daughter. There's some pleasant music in this movie, but -- from my 21st-century perspective -- most of 'Is My Husband Not Fabulous?' feels like a very stale 'Honey, I'm home' sitcom ... and I strongly suspect that, had I seen this movie in 1933, with the perceptions of the times and no precognition, it would have seemed much the same. The German movie companies were still churning out this sort of froth six years later. My rating for this one: 6 out of 10, mostly for the actors' performances (despite the trite script) and some nice exterior photography.
Anyway, there's none of that heavy stuff in this light-hearted film. Viktor and Lu Brandt are happy newlyweds, and Viktor (handsome Georg Alexander) has a fine job as publicity director for a large music store. But he's so attentive to his wife (Lien Deyers, quite pretty) that it affects his work performance. His hot-headed boss demotes him to floorwalker, or whatever the German equivalent of a floorwalker is, with a cut in his wages.
This movie being about as realistic as an 'I Love Lucy' episode, Viktor deals with his demotion by telling Lu that he's been promoted to general manager! (She doesn't express much curiosity about the extra pfennigs he's now supposedly earning ... nor does this movie explain how the Brandt household manages to carry on at the same level with LESS money in Viktor's wage packet.) Of course, Lu unexpectedly shows up at the shop to see her husband in his fine new executive job which he doesn't actually have. From this point, the movie degenerates into one of those sitcom episodes where the lowly underling has to pretend he's a bigshot in the workplace. Some of the female employees conspire with Viktor to help him deceive his wife that he's the general manager. These women are attractive, so it's interesting that neither the audience nor Viktor's wife ever suspect that he might be philandering with any of them, or hoping to do so.
SPOILERS COMING. Anyway, it just happens that Viktor has a fine heldentenor singing voice, and it further just happens that his boss needs a new singer at the precise moment when the regular singer (Marcel Wittrisch) can't perform. So of course there's a happy ending. Ignore those jackboots you hear approaching in the distance ... and the sound of breaking glass. It's all nothing, really. This is Germany, 1933. Laugh and be gay! Well, not gay, but...
Trude Hesterberg gives a very funny and touching performance as a faded diva, but Martha Ziegler is far less effective (and slightly too old for the role) as her daughter. There's some pleasant music in this movie, but -- from my 21st-century perspective -- most of 'Is My Husband Not Fabulous?' feels like a very stale 'Honey, I'm home' sitcom ... and I strongly suspect that, had I seen this movie in 1933, with the perceptions of the times and no precognition, it would have seemed much the same. The German movie companies were still churning out this sort of froth six years later. My rating for this one: 6 out of 10, mostly for the actors' performances (despite the trite script) and some nice exterior photography.
