THE WONDERFUL LIES OF NINA PETROVNA

 

I've been fascinated by German actress Brigitte Helm ever since I first saw her memorable screen debut in Fritz Lang's legendary silent epic METROPOLIS (1927). Unfortunately most of Helm's work is unavailable in America, and there isn't even all that much info about her on the internet. 

One of her best roles can be found on YouTube. It is the title character in THE WONDERFUL LIES OF NINA PETROVNA, a 1929 romantic drama made for UFA Studios. It was the last silent feature made by that extraordinary company, but it does have an accompanying music track. 

The story is very simple. In pre-revolutionary St. Petersburg, the enchanting Nina is the mistress of a much older wealthy army colonel (Warwick Ward). Nina catches the eye of a young junior cavalry officer named Michael (Francis Lederer). Nina and Michael truly love one another, and Petrovna gives up her glamorous but empty life to live with the innocent young man. The two of them on their own cannot make ends meet, so Michael tries to win some money by gambling with his fellow army officers. The Colonel catches Michael attempting to cheat, and uses this information to force Nina to give up her young lover. Nina loves Michael so much, she's willing to throw away their happiness together in order to save him from disgrace. 

Brigitte Helm is absolutely stunning as Nina Petrovna, so much so one can easily understand why Michael and the Colonel do what they do to be near her. When one starts out to watch THE WONDERFUL LIES OF NINA PETROVNA, one assumes that this will be another German silent where a desperate man's desire for an alluring woman leads him to ruin, but in this case the alluring woman saves a man from ruin. Director Hanns Schwarz gives Nina plenty of exquisite closeups, and he allows Helm's emotional depth to carry the story. 

Francis Lederer (PANDORA'S BOX) makes a dashing but inexperienced Michael, a young man who hasn't considered the consequences of the situation he helped create, and Warwick Ward (VARIETY) makes the aristocratic, self-assured Colonel an imposing figure without having to act like an out-and-out villain. Helm, Lederer, and Ward are the only three main players in the film--that entire story revolves around their triangle. 

The cinematography of Carl Hoffman and the art direction of Robert Herlth & Walter Rohrig clearly define the splendor of Imperial Russia. Nina's opulent lifestyle as the Colonel's mistress is presented by Hoffman's camera slowly tracking through the rooms of the expensive villa she stays in. Later we are shown how much different Nina's and Michael's lives are as a couple on their own--they live in a common apartment, where Nina wears basic clothes and even peels potatoes (but she still manages to look gorgeous). The ending is particularly moving, and it certainly isn't of the Hollywood type--but it shows that Nina has more courage and determination than the two men who desire her. 

Brigitte Helm gives a magnificent performance in THE WONDERFUL LIES OF NINA PETROVNA, and this is another silent feature that greatly deserves a major restoration and home video release.