12 July 2018

Die Fahrt ins Blaue (1919)

Henny Porten starred in the German silent comedy Die Fahrt ins Blaue/The drive into the blue (Rudolf Biebrach, 1919). Her co-star was Georg Alexander. The film was produced by Messter-film and Projektions-AG Union (PAGU) and was scripted by Hanns Kräly and cinematographed by Willy Gaebel.

Henny Porten in Die Fahrt ins Blaue (1919)
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 636/1. Photo: Messter Film. Henny Porten and Georg Alexander in Die Fahrt ins Blaue (Rudolf Biebrach, 1919).

Henny Porten in Die Fahrt ins Blaue (1919)
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 636/2. Photo: Messter Film. Henny Porten and Georg Alexander in Die Fahrt ins Blaue (Rudolf Biebrach, 1919).

Henny Porten in Die Fahrt ins Blaue (1919)
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 636/3. Photo: Messter Film. Henny Porten in Die Fahrt ins Blaue (Rudolf Biebrach, 1919).

An alarm clock for her birthday


In the silent German comedy Die Fahrt ins Blaue (Rudolf Biebrach, 1919), Henny Porten plays Cashier Wanda Lossen, who gets an alarm clock and a lottery ticket for her birthday. The lottery's main award is a fancy touring car and 20,000 Marks.

At the same time writer Dr. Erich Fuld (Georg Alexander) visits his new possession, an old castle. The next morning Wanda's new alarm doesn't go off, so in haste Wanda bumps onto Fuld on a street corner, who likes her and follows her.

Wanda bursts into tears when her boss at the store, herr Paetz (Jakob Tiedtke), reprimands her, but Paetz then falls in love with her, promising her a life of luxury. Offended she waves the lottery ticket, telling him that soon she'll manage on her own.

During a visit to Erich's castle with her friends, Erich jokingly manages to tie Wanda up to some old folter instrument. She offers her lottery ticket as ransom, but instead he steals her a kiss. Once freed she gives him a mighty slap in return.

One day she hears she has won the lottery and that the car is just outside, but she gets the car only on the condition that she also overtakes a chauffeur for three months, until the car is ready. Of course Erich is the driver. After a party in an inn with her friends, Erich pretends a breakdown on the road back and goes for help.

While he is away, masked bandits - Erich's servants, in fact - assault Wanda. Erich saves her and leads her with his car 'ins Blaue' (into the blue, meaning where chance will lead them).

Die Fahrt ins Blaue/The drive into the blue (Rudolf Biebrach, 1919) premiered on 21 November 1919 in the Mozartsaal Berlin. The film was distributed in Germany by Hansa Film Verleih and Universum Film (UFA).

Henny Porten in Die Fahrt ins Blaue (1919)
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 636/4. Photo: Messter Film. Henny Porten in Die Fahrt ins Blaue (Rudolf Biebrach, 1919).

Henny Porten in Die Fahrt ins Blaue (1919)
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 636/5. Photo: Messter Film. Henny Porten and Georg Alexander in Die Fahrt ins Blaue (Rudolf Biebrach, 1919).

Sources: Murnau-stiftung, IMDb and Wikipedia (Italian).

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