The delightful Johann Strauss comic opera Die Fledermaus was mercilessly lampooned in this truly bizarre production. For starters, a framing device has been added: After appearing in 300 consecutive appearances of Fledermaus (which translates as The Bat) the lead tenor (Georg Alexander) imagines that he's seeing bats everywhere. Driven a bit over the edge by all this, he falls asleep and has a nightmare about the opera, with a group of non-singers cast in the leading roles. The original libretto about romantic assignations, political imprisonments and mistaken identity is burlesqued to the hilt: at one point, the hero finds out that his prison cell is surrounded by rubber tubes!
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Stars: Lída Baarová, Hans Söhnker, Friedl Czepa, Jola Jobst, Georg Alexander, Robert Dorsay
Crew: Paul Verhoeven (Director), Richard Genée (Writer), Carl Haffner (Writer), Lotte Neumann (Writer), Gerhard Staab (Producer), Bruno Mondi (Cinematography)
Country: Germany
Language: Deutsch
Studio: Imagoton, Tobis Filmkunst
Runtime: 103 minutes
Quality: HD
Released: Oct 30, 1937
IMDb: 7
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