Nachts wenn der Teufel kam

This Classic film noire combines two main stories: The hunt for a serial killer and the ideologically poisoned mindset of card-carrying Nazis during the end of WWII. For those Germans who were never enthusiastic followers of the extreme nationalist ideas enveloping Germany, the final days of WWII often meant to just "lay low and let it all run past you". But what if the innocent are wrongly condemned to be executed for murder when their innocence becomes unquestioned? Who would defend such a victim of injustice in the face of certain reprisal?

This film introduces Mario Adorf (who deservedly won the award for best newcomer) as Bruno, a dim-witted laborer who wants nothing more than to eat well and drink hard, but seems to be drawn to young women whom he then strangles. When a brilliant detective puzzles together evidence from outstanding murder cases, leading to Bruno, he instantly gains the respect and confidence of the man who turns out to be responsible for some 80 murders. To see the naive Bruno freely confess and cheerfully reenact one of the killings shows how an insane or mentally deficient mind is incapable of grasping the gravity of taking a human life. Now are we to compare Bruno to the countless Nazis who convinced themselves that they were "just following orders" when they participated in genocide? This film is one of many powerful cinematic indictments against the Nazi Regime, and an appeal to the human conscience not ever to idly look on as fellow human beings are wrongly accused, convicted and even murdered by a corrupt and unfair justice system.

Nominee for Best Foreign Film Oscar, which went to Fellini's "Nights of Cabiria" that year. The latter will always be my favorite foreign film, however "Nachts, wenn der Teufel kam" is a formidable contender for the Oscar! Highly recommended!

Yo, Super Mario. Though while later Eurocrime "cult" actor Mario Adorf does quite a convincing job as the retarded serial killer in Robert Siodmak's Nazi noir The Devil Strikes at Night, ex-boxing-champion Claus Holm – imagine a German Van Heflin – as the crippled police Kommissar and Hannes Messemer as his SS-Obergruppenfuehrer opponent easily steal the show from him: Their confrontations, chock-full of icy dialogue, constitute the epicentre of this sardonic high tensioner that doesn't lose its momentum for a single second, due to Siodmak's remarkably concentrated direction, aided by the unobtrusive, but perfectly effective camera work by unjustly forgotten cinematographer Georg Krause (who did Kubrick's Paths of Glory – !! – a year before), competent editing by Walter Boos (who went on to do some Schulmaedchen-Reports in the 70s), and excellent supporting performances by Werner Peters and the strikingly beautiful Annemarie Dueringer. "Belief? Where did you dig up that word?", Messemer's slick SS herrenmensch asks the crushed Kommissar. Once, they even had great screenwriters in Germany, among them Werner Joerg Lueddecke, who sets the fast-paced, bitter, cynical and sometimes darkly humorous tone of the movie. When the Kommissar is sent to war in the end – the year is 1944 –, he reassures his trembling girlfriend: "It won't take much longer. Soon, you can reach the front line by city train."

Afterwards I'd watched this picture, on bonus material the Italian actor Mario Adorf spoke about his recollections concerning the productions that reveals some possible disagreement over the veracity of the case occurred on WWII during the Nazi period, starting this point almost majority of the facts really happened, aside some sequence added under the pretext of the dramatization without stir in the real events.

Then the plot took place at Germany in 1944 when the war is closing on behalf of the allied, when a Germany serial killer called Bruno Ludke (Adorf) has been committed many murders on different spots at country, when a former army officer took over as police commissioner Axel Kersten (Claus Holm) delves into the odd case suspecting that the man caught in crime scene couldn't commit a murder due he didn't fits as enough strong hands an unusual throttling applied by the real killer.

When he finally finds Bruno and arresting him to able to extract further strongest elements to ascertaining the truth, during the Bruno's stateman the whole staff of the local police they reach a bottom line that the killer murdered around 80 victims, in the meantime a Gestapo officer following the case carefully under other pretext, in a nutshell hush it up due the possible damage to Nazi party on so-called new Germany that now is in the hands of the Fuher.

The picture has many qualities enforced and approached by the esteemed director Robert Siodmak, also the Noir proposition, fine photograph and embellished by a sharpy dialogue between the Gestapo officer and the Commissaire Axel over the Arian progeny as pure German race, however paradoxically Bruno Ludke belong from this ethnic group!!

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First watch: 2022 / How many: 1 / Source: DVD / Rating: 8.5.

Nachts, wenn der Teufel kam is directed by Robert Siodmak and written by Will Berthold (article) and Werner Jörg Lüddecke. It stars Claus Holm, Annemarie Düringer, Mario Adorf, Hannes Messemer, Carl Lange and Werner Peters. Music is by Siegfried Franz and cinematography by Georg Krause.

A serial killer is terrorising Hamburg, Germany, during World War II. When the local police struggle to catch him, the Gestapo are brought in to crack the case.

The basis for the story is that of real life serial killer Bruno Lüdke, here played by Adorf. Yet this is only a side-bar to the actuality of Siodmak's film, for it's a clinical deconstruction of Nazi Germany at the time, a look at the final throes of that regime. It shows how the corrupt powers would do anything to not make their government look bad, with orders even coming from Adolf himself! It's all very fascinating and potent, and well performed. There's some nice visual touches via the night sequences, though you reasonably expect to have more from Siodmak, a fine purveyor of expressionism and noir chiaroscuro. There's some contrivances and a couple of badly staged action sequences, but this remains a tough political drama with mystery shadings. 8/10

Nachts,wenn der Teufel kam has realistically shown perversion of justice as a convincing argument against nazis.Robert Siodmak has convincingly outlined the historical background to examine one of the most ghastly episodes in German history.He elucidates how Nazi leadership made effectual use of crime,violence and totalitarianism in order to remain in power.Nachts,wenn der Teufel kam appears realistic as a result of nice all-round acting performances by Mario Adorf and Hannes Messemer.The film was a big commercial success as it won numerous prizes including the best direction award at Karlovy Vary.