The Devil Makes Three

The film's plot is solid yarn but not much above average. What makes the film interesting are two things: First Pier Angeli as the girl. And more than that, that the film gives a strong impression of how Germany looked like during the first years after WW II. There is a very atmospheric photography which shows some original locations in Munich and Bavaria: the Bavarian landscape, some villages, the post war Munich. Beyond it the film focuses on the everyday life of the German people more than other films with a similar topic, and it does it in an interesting way: you see some clothes, cars or flats of that time for example and some of the cabarets, clubs ore Night Shows, which obviously where quite typical for the post war era in Germany (and can be found in some other films about post war Germany ). And by this "The Devil Makes Three" manages to be  a nice contemporary document along the way.

I don't have much to add besides what others have commented, except to support what was said previously, that the filming locations in post-WWII Germany and Austria are the most interesting features in this film. Views of Munich and Saltzburg give a clear picture of the extent of the devastation that resulted from bombing raids at the end of the war. But for me, what I found the most interesting was the last scenes filmed at Berchesgarten in the ruins of Hitler's Eagle's Lair where the head of the Neo-Nazi organization seeks refuge after being chased by Gene Kelly et-al. This is the only movie I recall that showed this location before it was eradicated.

One of many of the post-war (WW II)films built around the theme of German nationalist's out to rebuild the Nazi Reich, this one is a bit less documentary-styled than most of the others. But the screenplay( by Jerry Davis) pulls few punches in depicting the Munich of 1947---the bombed-out homes, the bitterness, the German self-pity (justifibaly so in most cases, but with the blame placed on the wrong doorsteps) and the struggle and fight for survival.

Simplified, the story has U.S. Captain Jeff Elliott (Gene Kelly) returning to Germany to visit the family that once saved his life, learns that the only one still alive is the family's youngest, Wilhelmina "Willie" Lehrt (Pier Angeli), as the rest of the family were victims of an Allied air raid strike. "Willie", now working as a cabaret singer and forcibly-involved with a gold-smuggling gang, working to restart Hitler's 1000-year reign-plan,does not receive Elliott with open arms.

The film, as originally shown in the USA in the 96-minute version, is primarily all-characters speaking English, but IS sub-titled when the characters speak German. (Maybe they felt no need to outside of English-speaking countries.) Shot on location, including shots at Salzburg and a scene in the Mozarteum and the finale which finds the Nazi leader trapped in the ruined desolation of Hitler's Berchtesgaden Eagle's Nest.

Songs heard in the film include "Can Love Come Back Again." "Oh, Christmas Tree" and "Wie Sole Das Bazahlen."

During WWII, American pilot Jeff Eliot (Gene Kelly) was shot down over Germany and hidden by a German family. Since then, he's been sending packages regularly to them. After all, post-war Germany is a mess, food is severely rationed and poverty is everywhere. Now, several years later Captain Eliot is returning to Germany during his Christmas break to renew old times with the family. However, he soon learns the family was burned out in a bombing raid and another family has been pilfering the packages and saying nothing.

A bit later, he recognizes the daughter, Willie (Pier Angeli) in a cheap cantina and they renew old times. However, oddly, he never mentions these care packages when she treats him like an ungrateful American. I have no idea why this was done this way. Regardless, they eventually decide to spend the holiday, in part, in Salzburg and he doesn't realize that she works for scum-bags from 'Silhouette'...a group of ex-Nazis working evil in post-war Germany. When the American military bring this to his attention, Eliot is a bit dippy and doesn't believe his sweet fraulein could be in league with these people...and does she even know who they are?

This is a decent espionage film shot on location in Germany and Austria. The scenes are quite nice and add a lot to the authenticity of the movie. My only quibble is that it seemed very odd that they cast Ms. Angeli in the lead, as she's Italian, not German.

The movie grabs your attention immediately and doesn't let go until the end. Post WII Germany is one of the main characters here and it's fascinating to see the bombed out buildings and how people had to live after the war. The fact that it was filmed on location in winter only adds to the mystery.

As for Gene Kelly not being an actor but only a showman, watch him in Inherit the Wind, and you may change your mind. His non-dancing roles were not really all that rare, even during his heyday as a dancer.

Pier Angeli, who was Italian, is cast as a German girl. That doesn't quite work for me, as her German isn't good enough for her to have been a native, yet her appealing nature, her huge eyes and her inherent sweetness help her performance as woman whose innocence has been lost.

The corruption and struggle to rebuild in Germany and Austria after the war is something that most people do not really know much about. Other recommended movies that deal with this subject are A Foreign Affair and The Third Man.