This wicked satire of imperialistic Germany during reign of Wilhem 11 was made in East Germany.<br /><br />It is from a Heinrich Mann novel, Written by Fritz Staudte and directed by Wolfgang Staudte,<br /><br />These last 2 gentleman gave us, a few years prior the heavy dramas, ROTATION and MURDERERS ARE Among US.<br /><br />This 1951 movie is a pleasant change of pace.<br /><br />The pace is fast & furious as all satires are supposed to be. There are a few songs at the beginning,I think I would have liked a few more.<br /><br />The acting by all is first rate & all production values are equally good.<br /><br />Ratings: *** (out of4 )82 points (out of 100) IMDb 7 (out of 10)