It is to be regretted that one of Germany's finest directors, Helmut Kautner, is virtually unknown to non-European audiences despite his having worked wonders with the material at his disposal in two films for Universal in the late 1950's.
His post-war work in Germany is variable but he succeeded in giving us some truly excellent films and of the nine he directed between 1939 and 1945 at least two are masterpieces of the genre.
Film historian Georges Sadoul has referred to 'Romance in a Minor Key' as the only film of 'real quality' to have emerged during the Nazi years. This may be a slight exaggeration but it is certainly one of the most polished, elegant and heartfelt. Although on the face of it a romantic melodrama it is in fact rather subversive for the time, being inspired by 'The Necklace' of Maupassant who happened to be on the Nazi 'banned' list. The film's depiction of infidelity was not at all to Goebbel's liking which is ironic considering the Propoganda Minister was such a notoriously unfaithful husband.
The Madeleine of Marianne Hoppe is loved by three men. Her devoted but blinkered husband, a self-obsessed musician and a lecherous banker. All three men and the object of their love are each destined in their way to pay a terrible price........
Herr Lautner's stunning visual sense is evident here as is his legendary skill with actors. He had previously directed Marianne Hoppe in 'Goodbye Francesca' and as Madeleine she is even more luminous. Not a traditional beauty by any means but an exceptional artiste whose acting is 'interior' and who brings her own air of mystery. Despite her perceived chumminess with the Nazi elite her career continued unabated after the war as did that of Gustaf Grundgens with whom she had a fruitful working relationship as well as a 'lavender marriage'.
The musician is played by the excellent Ferdinand Marian whose life and career alas were blighted by his portrayal of Oppenheimer the Jew. As the banker Siegfried Breuer is wonderfully seedy and this actor is probably best known to English and indeed American speaking audiences as Popescu in 'The Third Man'. Paul Dahlke is superb as the cuckolded husband.
Helmut Kautner is an intriguing figure, a cultured, creative artiste and humanist who navigated the perilous waters of the Third Reich and did his best to rise above what he called the 'bourgeois culture industry' of post-war Germany. He belongs to that elite group of directors known as 'auteurs' and epitomises the theory that a work of art reflects its creator.
