By Rocket to the Moon (1929)
"Frau im Mond" (original title)

A tenacious scientist blasts off for the moon in hopes of riches that may be found there.

Director:

Fritz Lang

Writers:

Thea von Harbou (novel), Fritz Lang (screenplay),

Stars:

Klaus Pohl, Willy Fritsch, Gustav von Wangenheim

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Klaus Pohl	...	Professor Georg Manfeldt
Willy Fritsch	...	Wolf Helius
Gustav von Wangenheim	...	Ingenieur Hans Windegger (as Gustav v. Wangenheim)
Gerda Maurus	...	Stud. astr. Friede Velten
Gustl Gstettenbaur	...	Gustav (as Gustl Stark-Gstettenbaur)
Fritz Rasp	...	Der Mann
Tilla Durieux	...	Fünf Gehirne und Scheckbücher
Hermann Vallentin	...	Fünf Gehirne und Scheckbücher
Max Zilzer	...	Fünf Gehirne und Scheckbücher
Mahmud Terja Bey	...	Fünf Gehirne und Scheckbücher
Borwin Walth	...	Fünf Gehirne und Scheckbücher
Karl Platen	...	Der Mann am Mikrophon
Die Maus Josephine	...	Mouse
Margarete Kupfer	...	Frau Hippolt, Haushälterin bei Helius
Alexa von Porembsky	...	Eine Veilchenverkäuferin (as Alexa v. Porembska)

Storyline

A scientist discovers that there's gold on the moon, he builds a rocket to fly there, but there's too much rivalry among the crew to have a sucessful expedition.

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Plot Keywords:

moon | gold | rocket | dark side of the moon | moon walk | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance | Sci-Fi

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Details

Country:

Germany

Language:

German

Release Date:

6 February 1931 (USA)

Also Known As:

Woman in the Moon

Filming Locations:

Ufa-Atelier, Neubabelsberg, Brandenburg, Germany

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fritz Lang-Film, Universum Film (UFA)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

156 min 200 min (2000 restoration) 162 min (DVD edition) 91 min (1970) (edited) 190 min (Cinemateca Portuguesa)

Sound Mix:

Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When the Nazis began working on war rockets, they decided the movie's rockets were too close to the truth. To preserve secrecy, they had the models destroyed and the film withdrawn from release.

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Goofs

The inter-title dialog refers to rocket ship H23, yet the photo and subsequent references are to rocket ship H32

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Quotes

Wolf Helius: If you should fall down those stairs again, I will not be there to catch you.

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Connections

Referenced in Blog (2010)

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Soundtracks

"Heimlich singt für uns die Liebe"
Music by Willy Schmidt-Gentner
Lyrics by Fritz Rotter & Andre Mauprey
Sung by Gerda Maurus and Willy Fritsch

User Reviews

Not in the same league as Metropolis but still very impressive

"Frau im mond" is undoubtedly one of the first and most important Sci-Fi movies ever made. Directed by Austrian director Fritz Lang best known for his masterpieces "M" and "Metropolis", it's a story of a half-mad greedy scientist obsessed with the idea of getting gold from the moon and a moon expedition that follows, there is also a love story that goes along. The look of the film is quite impressive, considered that it was made in 1929. Hitler later banned it, because the spaceship featured there was nearly identical to V-2s that were constructed in secrecy by the Third Reich at the time. An early Sci-Fi classic, a must see for any serious Sci-Fi fan. 8/10