IMDb RATING
7.0/10
1.2K
YOUR RATING
German scientist murders his fiancée during World War II when he learns that she has been selling the results of his secret research to the enemy.German scientist murders his fiancée during World War II when he learns that she has been selling the results of his secret research to the enemy.German scientist murders his fiancée during World War II when he learns that she has been selling the results of his secret research to the enemy.
- Awards
- 1 win & 1 nomination total
Helmuth Rudolph
- Colonel Winkler
- (as Helmut Rudolph)
Eva Ingeborg Scholz
- Ursula Weber
- (as Eva-Ingeborg Scholz)
Peter Ahrweiler
- Oberstleutnant Marquardt
- (uncredited)
Josef Dahmen
- Lieske, canteen bartender
- (uncredited)
Helmut Eichberg
- Oberstleutnant Bydersahn
- (uncredited)
Kurt Fuß
- Baldheaded Man
- (uncredited)
Joachim Hess
- Leutnant
- (uncredited)
Richard Münch
- Criminal Inspector #1
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaPeter Lorre's only film as director
- Crazy creditsExplanatory caption (in German) in opening credits: This film is not a work of fiction. The events are based on factual reports from the last few years.
- Alternate versionsThere is an Italian edition of this film on DVD, distributed by DNA srl, "UN UOMO PERDUTO (1951) + CRIME AND PUNISHMENT (Ho ucciso!, 1935)" (2 Films on a single DVD), re-edited with the contribution of film historian Riccardo Cusin. This version is also available for streaming on some platforms.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Displaced Person - Peter Lorre und sein Film 'Der Verlorene' (2007)
Featured review
This unique German noir is a weird film, to say the least. A doctor at a vaccination clinic makes an interruption in his work, when another doctor comes there to assist him, who is a dark shadow out of his past. During the war he was a researcher achieving great findings and results, and that suddenly appearing man was his assistant, stealing his research results and selling them to the enemy, using his betrothed for a bait, so he stole both his work and his fiancée. Peter Lorre is the doctor who can't forgive his betrothed for her treason, so he strangles her in the most sensitive scene of the film (without showing the strangulation - it is only reported afterwards,) and from that moment on he is a lost man. All this is shown in flashbacks, as Lorre has a long talk with his old colleague while drinking and smoking, sorting things out, to reach a settlement. The film and the story is complicated, the flashbacks are confusing, the story involves both Nazi plots, bombings of Hamburg, another improvised murder, proving the liability of the psychopath Peter Lorre has grown into, and everything is draped in very dark shadows and abysmal moods, the character of the film is apocalyptic, and shadows play an important part in the cinematography. It is fascinating and weird, deeply disturbing and melancholy at the same time, poignantly pinpointing the mood of post war Germany among the ruins of both Hamburg and people, in a world where no one can feel at home or safe or any security any more.
Details
- Runtime1 hour 38 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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