Der Herr vom andern Stern

Der Herr vom anderen Stern -- I found it on Archive.org and, knowing nothing about it, watched it one recent afternoon. What a perfectly charming movie it is! At the outset, the man (who is from a distant planet) appears in a dystopian city street. Two police officers see him appear and follow him. In due course, he piques the interest of the government, the criminal world, the military, and God knows who else. If for nothing else, watch this film for the incredibly funny "dance" that a ballroom full of high party functionaries are seen doing. ("Oh, it's the latest thing! It's the most popular song today!" says a bartender. The man looks on bemusedly.)

I'm not sure if this film is available in English, but is certainly should be. It's far ahead of its time, and a lot more fun than the dour "The Day the World Stood Still." Heinrich isn't Klaatu: Heinrich has a sense of the absurd. That is what makes this such a good film. What's surprising is that it dates from the year before either East or West Germany declared themselves self-governing, so this was made, so to speak, in no country at all.

This is a Science Fiction film, of sorts.

An alien, appearing in the form of a dot of light, comes to Earth and takes on human form, by copying a mannequin in a store window. As a human he explores the idiosyncrasies of our planet and, occasionally, uses his extra-terrestrial powers. For instance, he can duplicate any object with his mental powers and uses that to multiply money.

Like most of his films, Ruehmann plays the alien with great humour and warmth.