The Firebird (1934 film)
The Firebird is a 1934 murder mystery starring Verree Teasdale, Ricardo Cortez, Lionel Atwill and Anita Louise, directed by William Dieterle and produced and released by Warner Bros. It takes its title from the famed suite by Igor Stravinsky, which is heard occasionally during the film.
| The Firebird | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | William Dieterle |
| Written by | Charles Kenyon Jeffrey Dell (adaptation) |
| Based on | the play Tűzmadár by Lajos Zilahy |
| Starring | Verree Teasdale Ricardo Cortez Lionel Atwill Anita Louise |
| Cinematography | Ernest Haller |
| Edited by | Ralph Dawson |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. / The Vitaphone Corp. |
Release date |
|
Running time | 74-75 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Plot
In Vienna, smarmy matinee idol Brandt moves into an upscale apartment building whose principal tenants are the elite Pointer family: John, Carola and daughter Mariette, who's just turned 18. One day, Brandt encounters Carola on the stairwell and insists she come up to his apartment that night, telling her if she doesn't, he'll tell her husband they had the affair anyway. Outraged, she files a formal complaint with the building's owners, demanding he be kicked out. But before that can happen, he is found dead from a gunshot wound. Naturally suspicion falls on a variety of suspects, most obviously John, and it's up to police inspector Miller to figure out which of them did it. [1]
Cast
- Verree Teasdale as Carola Pointer
- Ricardo Cortez as Herman Brandt
- Lionel Atwill as John Pointer
- Anita Louise as Mariette Pointer
- C. Aubrey Smith as Police Inspector Miller
- Dorothy Tree as Mrs. Jolan Brandt
- Helen Trenholme as Mlle. Josephine Mousquet
- Hobart Cavanaugh as Emile
- Robert Barrat as Halasz
- Hal K. Dawson as Assistant Stage Manager
- Russell Hicks as Mr. Beyer
- Spencer Charters as Max Bauer
- Etienne Girardot as Professor Peterson
- Florence Fair as Thelma
- Nan Grey as Alice von Attem (as Nan Gray)
- Skippy as Rex (Uncredited)
Reception
The New York Times reviewer, Andre Sennwald, dismissed it as "an ordinary mystery melodrama." "Among the definite failings of this smoothly filmed edition of Lajos Zilahy's play is the circumstance that, like the original, it conceals the actual murderer from the audience for such an extended period that the motivation for the homicide never becomes completely real."[1]
See also
- Cette nuit-là (1933), French film based on the play Muvesz Szinhaz
- The Open Door (1957), Spanish film based on the play Muvesz Szinhaz
References
- Andre Sennwald (November 15, 1934). "The Firebird (1934): The Screen; Murder of a Disagreeable Actor in 'The Firebird,' the New Photoplay at the Strand". The New York Times.