The Mortal Storm (1940)

The Roth family lead a quiet life in a small village in the German Alps during the early 1930's. When the Nazi's come to power, the family is divided and Martin Brietner, a family friend is... See full summary »

Director:

Frank Borzage

Writers:

Claudine West (screen play), Hans Rameau (screen play),

Stars:

Margaret Sullavan, James Stewart, Robert Young

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Margaret Sullavan	...	Freya Roth
James Stewart	...	Martin Breitner
Robert Young	...	Fritz Marberg
Frank Morgan	...	Professor Roth
Robert Stack	...	Otto Von Rohn
Bonita Granville	...	Elsa
Irene Rich	...	Mrs. Roth
William T. Orr	...	Erich Von Rohn
Maria Ouspenskaya	...	Mrs. Breitner
Gene Reynolds	...	Rudi
Russell Hicks	...	Rector
William Edmunds	...	Lehman
Esther Dale	...	Marta
Dan Dailey	...	Holl (as Dan Dailey Jr.)
Granville Bates	...	Professor Berg

Storyline

The Roth family lead a quiet life in a small village in the German Alps during the early 1930's. When the Nazi's come to power, the family is divided and Martin Brietner, a family friend is caught up in the turmoil.

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Plot Keywords:

hitler | university | professor | stepchild | escape | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 June 1940 (USA)

Also Known As:

La tempête qui tue

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When this movie was made, America was not part of World War II. At this time, a number of Hollywood studios were pro-American involvement in the war. This movie is one of a number of films made during the late 1930s and early 1940s that represented pro-American intervention in the war. These films include: A Yank in the R.A.F., Man Hunt, Foreign Correspondent, The Mortal Storm, Confessions of a Nazi Spy and Sergeant York.

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Quotes

[first lines]
[white clouds appear; they quickly turn to storm clouds]
Narrator: When man was new upon the earth, he was frightened by the dangers of the elements. He cried out, "The gods of the lightning are angry, and I must kill my fellow man to appease them!" As man grew bolder, he created shelters against the wind and the rain and made harmless the force of the lightning. But within man himself were elements strong as the wind and terrible as the lightning. And he denied the existence of these ...

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Connections

Referenced in A Coy Decoy (1941)

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Soundtracks

"Academic Festival Overture"
(1880) (uncredited)
Music by Johannes Brahms
In the score when Professor Roth enters the school
Sung in Latin by all in his class

User Reviews

A family in crisis.

Any movie that has Robert Young, Robert Stack and Ward Bond cast as Nazis is at least worth watching. And this movie does not disappoint. This movie portrays the disintegration of a German family in the immediate aftermath of Adolf Hitler's rise to power in 1933. The family splits along political lines, with some for and others against Hitler. This family is symbolic of what probably happened to families throughout Germany as people had to choose whether to support Hitler, even against their better judgment, or rely on the strength of their convictions and face the consequences - ostracism, beatings, arrest, internment and death. This movie also suggests that although most Germans wholeheartedly welcomed Hitler's rise to power and gladly rallied around the Nazi flag with its infamous symbol, the swastika, some Germans rejected the Nazi message of bigotry and violence. Robert Young's portrayal of a loyal Nazi with a guilty conscience and Frank Morgan's portrayal of a "non-Aryan" physics professor are particularly noteworthy performances. Although the movie was made in 1940, its message transcends the bounds of time and therefore is definitely worth watching.