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In this dark comedy, a toymaker creates a mechanical doll that comes to life and causes chaos. The toymaker's apprentice gets caught up in a pursuit to find a wife, while monks from a nearby convent try to retrieve the doll. The story takes a twist when the doll is mistaken for a real woman. The film explores themes of love, marriage, and the pursuit of happiness.
An extremely jealous artist slips into a monkey costume and kills all those men who come too close to his wife, another artist.
Silent romantic comedy set on a train.
A young woman is forced by her father to marry a man she doesn't love and flees before the marriage takes place. In a small village she falls in love with a young man, but her father disapproves of the match.
The Oyster Princess is a silent comedy film that tells the story of a wealthy princess who is on the quest to find a suitable husband. Set in a world of excessive wealth and capitalism, the princess goes to extreme lengths to find her ideal spouse. Along the way, she encounters various comedic situations, including a boxing match and a mistaken identity. This German expressionism film is a satirical take on royalty and explores themes of wealth, class, and marriage.
In 'I Don't Want to Be a Man,' a young woman named Ossi decides to disguise herself as a man after she becomes frustrated with the limitations placed on women in society. As she navigates her new identity, she discovers the freedom and opportunities that being a man affords her. However, complications arise when she falls in love with her guardian, who is unaware of her true gender. This silent film explores themes of gender roles, identity, and the power dynamics between men and women.
Sally Pinkus is an German-Jewish boy who takes a job as a shoe store clerk after being expelled from school for goofing around. Soon fired for trying to court the owner's daughter, Pinkus lands another job in a more 'upmarket' shoe salon, only to be fired again, before charming a rich benefactress to fund his ultimate dream: Pinkus' Shoe Palace.
In 'The Merry Jail,' a man is falsely accused of a crime and ends up in jail. While there, he causes havoc and chaos with his mischievous behavior. Despite the chaotic situation, he finds a way to turn things around and bring joy to everyone in the jail.
Directed by Ernst Lubitsch.
Eddie Polo appears in this short showing his dexterity with a horse and lasso.
Peter Verdy falls in love with Lola (Ossi Oswalda) who is mistaken for a boy when she appears in stage regalia before a rich uncle who has other marriage plans for his nephew. The tangle ensuing is finally sorted out with excellent results all round.
Sally Meyer, a young Berliner, persuades his Doctor to convince his wife that he is ill, so that he is able to take a holiday in the Austrian Alps in order to pursue women. Meyer dresses up in what he considers Tyrolean attire. However, he mistakenly travels to the Bavarian Alps rather than Austria. Meyer becomes infatuated with Kitty, a young, attractive woman at the hotel where he is staying. His pursuit of her angers many of her other suitors who are also staying at the hotel. In order to impress Kitty, Meyer agrees rather reluctantly to climb Mount Watzmann. While they are approaching the summit, both Meyer's wife and Kitty's fiancee unexepectedly arrive from Berlin.
Ossi Oswalda
Ossi Oswalda (born Oswalda Amalie Anna Stäglich, 2 February 1897 – 7 March 1947) was a German actress, who mostly appeared in silent films. She was given the nickname 'The German Mary Pickford' due to her popularity at the time. Oswalda trained as a ballerina and became a dancer for a theater in Berlin. She made her film debut in Richard Oswald's Nächte des Grauens (Night of Horrors) before being discovered by the actor and screenwriter Hanns Kräly, who in turn recommended her to director Ernst Lubitsch. During her early career, she starred in several films by Lubitsch, including The Merry Jail, I Don't Want to Be a Man, The Oyster Princess and The Doll. Her popularity at the time earned her the nickname 'The German Mary Pickford'. In 1921, Oswalda started her own film production company with her husband at the time, the Hungarian Baron Gustav Wilhelm Viktor Freiherr von Koczian-Miskolczy (1877–1958). However, during the next four years they only produced four films, all starring Oswalda. From 1925 on, she was contracted to Ufa. The couple divorced in 1925, and Oswalda began a high profile affair with Wilhelm, German Crown Prince. Oswalda's career waned along with the silent film era, and she only acted in two sound films, making her final appearance on screen in the 1933 film The Star of Valencia. She escaped Nazi Germany and emigrated to Prague with her partner Julius Aubenberg in the 1930s. Later on, she became a stage actor, and in 1943, wrote the screenplay for the Czechoslovakian film Čtrnáctý u stolu. By spring 1947, Oswalda went bankrupt and was suffering from multiple health problems. Oswalda died penniless in Prague at the age of 50. She is buried at Olsany Cemetery.
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