Release CalendarTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV NewsIndia TV Spotlight
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsBest Picture WinnersBest Picture WinnersIndependent Spirit AwardsWomen's History MonthSXSWSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • All
  • Titles
  • TV Episodes
  • Celebs
  • Companies
  • Keywords
  • Advanced Search
Watchlist
Sign In
Sign In
New Customer? Create account
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

Emil and the Detectives

Original title: Emil und die Detektive
  • 19311931
  • 1h 15m
IMDb RATING
7.2/10
676
YOUR RATING
Billy Wilder, Fritz Rasp, Allan Gray, Käthe Haack, Erich Kästner, Gerhard Lamprecht, Inge Landgut, Hans Joachim Schaufuß, Günther Stapenhorst, and Rolf Wenkhaus in Emil and the Detectives (1931)
AdventureFamilyDrama
Emil goes to Berlin to see his grandmother with a large amount of money and is offered sweets by a strange man that make him sleep. He wakes up at his stop with no money. It is up to him and... Read allEmil goes to Berlin to see his grandmother with a large amount of money and is offered sweets by a strange man that make him sleep. He wakes up at his stop with no money. It is up to him and a group of children to save the day.Emil goes to Berlin to see his grandmother with a large amount of money and is offered sweets by a strange man that make him sleep. He wakes up at his stop with no money. It is up to him and a group of children to save the day.
IMDb RATING
7.2/10
676
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Gerhard Lamprecht
  • Writers
    • Erich Kästner(from the novel by)
    • Billy Wilder(screenplay)
    • Emeric Pressburger(uncredited)
  • Stars
    • Rolf Wenkhaus
    • Käthe Haack
    • Fritz Rasp
  • Director
    • Gerhard Lamprecht
  • Writers
    • Erich Kästner(from the novel by)
    • Billy Wilder(screenplay)
    • Emeric Pressburger(uncredited)
  • Stars
    • Rolf Wenkhaus
    • Käthe Haack
    • Fritz Rasp
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 10User reviews
    • 10Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Photos18

    Emil and the Detectives (1931)
    Emil and the Detectives (1931)
    Emil and the Detectives (1931)
    Emil and the Detectives (1931)
    Fritz Rasp and Rolf Wenkhaus in Emil and the Detectives (1931)
    Emil and the Detectives (1931)
    Rudolf Biebrach and Rolf Wenkhaus in Emil and the Detectives (1931)
    Inge Landgut and Hans Joachim Schaufuß in Emil and the Detectives (1931)
    Fritz Rasp in Emil and the Detectives (1931)
    Hans Joachim Schaufuß and Rolf Wenkhaus in Emil and the Detectives (1931)
    Rolf Wenkhaus in Emil and the Detectives (1931)
    Emil and the Detectives (1931)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Rolf Wenkhaus
    • Emil Tischbein
    Käthe Haack
    Käthe Haack
    • Frau Tischbein, Emils Mutter
    Fritz Rasp
    Fritz Rasp
    • Grundeis
    Rudolf Biebrach
    • Wachtmeister Jeschke
    Olga Engl
    Olga Engl
    • Großmama
    Inge Landgut
    Inge Landgut
    • Pony Hütchen
    Hans Joachim Schaufuß
    • Gustav mit der Hupe
    • (as Hans Schaufuß)
    Hans Richter
    Hans Richter
    • Fliegender Hirsch
    Hans Löhr
    • Dienstag
    Ernst-Eberhard Reling
    • Gerold
    Waldemar Kupczyk
    • Mittenzwei
    Martin Rickelt
    • Bellboy
    • (as Martin Baumann)
    Gerhard Dammann
    Gerhard Dammann
    Rudolf Lettinger
    Rudolf Lettinger
    Margarete Sachse
    Georg H. Schnell
      Hubert Schmitz
      • Professor
      • Director
        • Gerhard Lamprecht
      • Writers
        • Erich Kästner(from the novel by) (screenplay)
        • Billy Wilder(screenplay)
        • Emeric Pressburger(uncredited)
      • All cast & crew
      • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

      More like this

      Emil und die Detektive
      6.6
      Emil und die Detektive
      Pünktchen und Anton
      7.1
      Pünktchen und Anton
      Das doppelte Lottchen
      7.0
      Das doppelte Lottchen
      Emil and the Detectives
      6.3
      Emil and the Detectives
      Das kalte Herz
      7.3
      Das kalte Herz
      Emil and the Detectives
      6.1
      Emil and the Detectives
      Emil und die Detektive
      6.0
      Emil und die Detektive
      Three Wishes for Cinderella
      7.7
      Three Wishes for Cinderella
      Steamboat Bill, Jr.
      7.8
      Steamboat Bill, Jr.
      The Circus
      8.1
      The Circus
      Lindenstraße
      4.6
      Lindenstraße
      Emil und die Detektive

      Storyline

      Edit

      Did you know

      Edit
      • Trivia
        Many of the boy actors from this movie died as soldiers in World War II.
      • Goofs
        When the train carrying Emil from the fictional "Neustadt" to Berlin stops at the intermediate station where all the passengers except Emil and Grundeis, the man with the bowler hat, leave the compartment, its engine is a 2-6-0 Deutsche Reichsbahn Class 38, formerly a Prussian P 8 passenger engine. When the train leaves that station, it is suddenly a DR Class 17, formerly a Prussian 4-6-0 S 10 express train locomotive. When the train enters Berlin's Zoo Station, it has reverted back to a 38/P 8.
      • Connections
        Featured in A Story of Children and Film (2013)

      User reviews10

      Review
      Review
      Featured review
      8/10
      The man with the stiff hat
      After the children's book "Emil und die Detektive" was published in 1928 this first screen version was made in 1931 under the supervision of the author Erich Kästner himself.

      The story seems simple: young Emil gets to visit his granny in Berlin and is given 140 marks by his mother for his grandma. On the train to Berlin the 140 marks are stolen by a man with a stiff hat while Emil sleeps. Arriving in Berlin he tries to follow the thief and receives help from a well organized and nice "gang" of Berlin street "detectives" in his age. A happy end seems possible.

      While the movie contains a very entertaining story itself, an even more interesting detail of this movie is in its backdrop: an authentic Berlin of 1931 with open cabs, cars driving next to coaches, wide streets with lots of space for cyclists and so on. I always wondered when viewing older city maps what street life was like in the twenties of the last century when the streets were not as crowded as today, when the speed difference between pedestrians, cyclists, cars and coaches was still comparable in human measures.

      The camera work, special effects (Emils dream on the train) and movie music are distinctly thirty-ish which made this movie even more interesting to me. All in all a very enjoyable movie for kids and adults alike.
      helpful•18
      0
      • MichailB
      • May 10, 2005

      Details

      Edit
      • Release date
        • December 26, 1931 (Sweden)
      • Country of origin
        • Germany
      • Language
        • German
      • Also known as
        • Grabbar med ruter i
      • Filming locations
        • Werder upon Havel, Berlin, Germany(Emil's village)
      • Production company
        • Universum Film (UFA)
      • See more company credits at IMDbPro

      Technical specs

      Edit
      • Runtime
        1 hour 15 minutes
      • Color
        • Black and White
      • Aspect ratio
        • 1.20 : 1

      Related news

      Contribute to this page

      Suggest an edit or add missing content
      Billy Wilder, Fritz Rasp, Allan Gray, Käthe Haack, Erich Kästner, Gerhard Lamprecht, Inge Landgut, Hans Joachim Schaufuß, Günther Stapenhorst, and Rolf Wenkhaus in Emil and the Detectives (1931)
      Top Gap
      By what name was Emil and the Detectives (1931) officially released in Canada in English?
      Answer
      • See more gaps
      • Learn more about contributing
      Edit page

      More to explore

      Recently viewed

      Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
      Get the IMDb App
      Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
      • Get the IMDb App
      • Help
      • Site Index
      • IMDbPro
      • Box Office Mojo
      • IMDb Developer
      • Press Room
      • Advertising
      • Jobs
      • Conditions of Use
      • Privacy Policy
      • Your Ads Privacy Choices
      IMDb, an Amazon company

      © 1990-2023 by IMDb.com, Inc.