• Director(s):

    SCHELS (Evelyn)

  • Producer(s):

    LES FILMS D'ICI, ARTE GEIE, KGP Filmproduktion, OSTERREICHISCHER RUNDFUNK

  • Territories:

    Europe.

  • Production year:

    2024

  • Language(s):

    German, English, French

  • Rights:

    TV, NON-THEATRICAL, INTERNET, VOD

The journey of an actor with an enigmatic personality who fled Third Reich and antisemitism and went to live in Hollywood. Known for his roles as a villain in over 80 films, including Casablanca and The Maltese Falcon, it is with Fritz Lang's iconic M that he became famous. This film continues to fascinate generations of cinema enthusiasts.

The life of Austro-Hungarian actor Peter Lorre reflects the big changes of the 20th century. They shaped his face, which was at times cherubic, innocent, murderous, demonic, and desperate. As he fled antisemitism during the Third Reich, Lorre found refuge in Hollywood, joining other famous directors in exile such as Billy Wilder, Josef von Sternberg, and Fritz Lang. Yet as a master of duplicity, he spent his whole life unsuccessfully trying to escape from the image of a murderer that followed him everywhere. Peter Lorre's face was exploited extensively for antisemitic propaganda.