In the Valley of the Rhine

In the Valley of the Rhine (1953)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Cologne, Germany is the stop in this entry of James A. FitzPatrick's TravelTalks series from MGM. The series hit Germany several times throughout the years but this one here takes a stronger look at Cologne (as well as smaller views of Bonn and Koblenz). The various sites we get to visit include the birthplace of the legend Beethoven, the Cathedral and of course the Rhine River. If you've seen anything from this series then you know what to expect here. Overall this is another good entry in the long-running series, which of course benefits from the use of Technicolor. This added bonus isn't thought of as much today and I'm sure it wasn't too hot in 1953 but these shorts still served a nice purpose for people.

Traveltalks follows the Rhine river in post-war Germany. Most of the rubble is gone and they're not showing much bomb damage. Germany looks like it's back on its feet and that seems to be the point. There are people drinking and dancing in the wine garden. The buildings are all quaint and beautiful. They're not showing much from the war although they do point out a Hitler riverboat. This is the last few of the Traveltalks series. Like the war itself, this series is also fast fading into history. In that way, this is an interesting book end to this part of cinematic history. It's getting old fast.

This was released in 1953, eight years after the war ended. As I watched happy Germans dancing in a 'local wine garden'; I couldn't help but think of the effect it may have had on American veterans, or their widows, orphans and relatives in the audience when this was unexpectedly sprung on them, Of the more than 16 million Americans who served, 2 million served in Europe, of which there were 552,117 U.S. casualties in the European theater of operations. Of those, 104,812 were killed in action. I believe this would have brought back too many bad memories to too many people in the audience, and was ill-advised.

For his penultimate Traveltalk, James A. Fitzpatrick sends frequent collaborator Hone Glendinning to take pictures of the major river, with its Roman-founded cities puling themselves up from the War, the grapes of the region, the quaintness of the laborers' home, the rentable castles, and the view from a boat on the Rhine, to waltz music.

The print that plays on Turner Classic Movies is in pretty good shape, even though it looks to have been drawn from a 16mm. TV print, with attending loss of clarity. Yet more than half a century has passed since this movie was released, and times continue to change. It's nice we have a view of what this area looked like then.

An MGM TRAVELTALK Short Subject.

We begin our cinematic tour IN THE VALLEY OF THE RHINE with a stop in Cologne for a look at the mighty Cathedral. Then it is on to Bonn, where we are shown the birthplace of Beethoven. In Koblenz we are taken to a lively wine garden to watch the dancing & hear the orchestra. Finally, we arrive at the most famous & romantic stretch of the river - where the steep hills crowd in close to the water. We pass quaint villages & see the beautiful vineyards which extend right up the steep slopes. After seeing several castles, we end our short tour near the rock of the Lorelei, where Teutonic legend & the music of Richard Wagner hold sway.

This is one of a large series of succinct travelogues turned out by MGM, beginning in the 1930's. They featured Technicolor views of beautiful & unusual sights around the globe, as well as vivid, concise commentary. These films were produced & narrated by James A. FitzPatrick.