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76 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
MoodPlayr · trivia#01
Semmelweis – Retter der Mütter
1950 1h 39m DE
😐
6.2
MID
★6.2TMDB · 4
Drama
Synopsis
Spoiler shield
In the middle of the 19th century, almost one in three women who gave birth died of puerperal fever. The Hungarian doctor Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis also observed these terrible occurrences in his clinic in Vienna. He came to the conclusion that it was primarily the unhygienic conditions in the clinic itself that led to this disease, as his colleagues were constantly shuttling back and forth between the anatomy department and the delivery room. He tries to convince the doctors of the absolute necessity of thorough disinfection by washing their hands with chlorinated lime. He meets with fierce resistance from his colleagues until he himself sets up an exemplary clinic in Budapest.
“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”
Cast
Karl Paryla
Dr. Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis
Käthe Braun
Marie Lanthaler
Angelika Hauff
Steffi Lanthaler
Camilla Spira
Josepha Hochleitner
Gudrun Genest
Therese
Nikolaus Paryla
Loisl
Ursula von Manescul
Hebammenschülerin
Erik Schumann
Student
Credits
Behind the camera
- Director
- Georg C. Klaren
- Writers
- Alexander Stenbock-Fermor, Joachim Barckhausen
- Languages
- German
- Countries
- East Germany
Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.
Did you know?
Fun facts 🍿
Cinephile deep dive
The take
Georg C. Klaren directs. Eugen Klagemann behind the camera. Herbert Trantow scores. Lena Neumann cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in East Germany. Dialogue in German.
Trivia
Things worth knowing
- 176 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
- 2Directed by Georg C. Klaren, shot by Eugen Klagemann. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
- 3Original score by Herbert Trantow. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
- 4Editor Lena Neumann shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
- 5Karl Paryla and Käthe Braun and Angelika Hauff carry the top of the cast.
- 6IMDB entry: tt0042942 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
- 7Only 4 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.
The technical file
- Cinematography
- Eugen Klagemann
- Original score
- Herbert Trantow
- Editing
- Lena Neumann
- Runtime
- 99 min · 1h 39m
- Status
- Released
- Original language
- DE
Also by
Georg C. Klaren
Production companies
Who made it
DEFA
XG
- HE
Herstellungsgruppe Kurt Hahne
XG
Key crew
- EditorLena Neumann
Release history · US
When it landed
- Theatrical1950-06-01
