1POPULAR CINEMA

had been strongly connected to a tradition of ironic detachment and critical
reflexivity that was unmistakably coded as Jewish in the critical reception
of their urban comedies. What previously had been evoked with innocence
and pride now functioned as an aggressive gesture of exclusion that,
in some instances, resulted in the summary dismissal of Weimar cinema as
too “Jewish.”
The actors, screenwriters, producers, and directors thus categorized
were affected doubly by the new racialized thinking: first in their professional
status, and second in the reception of their work. The emergence of
“Jewish” as a category in film criticism—and, of course, more generally, in
political rhetoric—was bound to interfere with a director’s productivity,
from his daily dealings with studio executives and representatives of the
ministry to his occasional discussions with colleagues and friends on the future
of filmmaking and, of course, the new regime. Some directors felt the
need to “prove” that their continued employment was essential to the German
film industry, while others quickly realized the seriousness of the political
situation. Again others believed, mistakenly, that their films would
continue to be appreciated by supportive audiences. The case-by-case decisions
on questions of membership by the Propaganda Ministry only added
to the widespread confusion among film professionals. While most personnel
decisions in 1933 cited Jewishness as a sufficient category of exclusion
from the Reich Film Chamber and its allied organizations, there seems to
have been no binding rule on the application of the Aryan Clause in individual
cases. Precisely this exceptionalism made the impact of anti-Semitism
on filmmaking and filmmakers all the more pernicious.
In addition to Kosterlitz and Schünzel, the following directors continued
to work under these adverse conditions: Fritz Kortner, Richard Oswald,
Max Ophüls, Ludwig Berger, Robert Siodmak, and Kurt Bernhardt. Prior
to his departure for Vienna as the first stop in a long journey of exile, Kortner
still saw the January release of the romantic comedy So ein Mädel
vergißt man nicht (You Don’t Forget Such a Girl). In March and April, Oswald
directed the famous Jewish tenor Joseph Schmidt in Ein Lied geht um
die Welt (A Song Travels around the World) before leaving Berlin for London.
Yet until the day of their departure, these directors regularly received
positive reviews that combined standard phrases such as “witty,” “highspirited,”
“sophisticated,” and “charming” with admiring remarks on their
artistic originality and creative integrity. Ophüls was singled out for his innovative
use of visual and acoustic effects in Liebelei and Berger praised for
Made in 1933 29