The Wonderful Lies of Nina Petrovna (Die wunderbare Lüge der Nina Petrowna) 95 years old

This silent-screen classic, like many others produced near the end of the silent era, was both a theatrical extravaganza boasting an original orchestral score and an item which languished in obscurity for many years. When Carlo Piccardi took what was left of the score by Maurice Jaubert and re-created it, the existing footage was restored and paired with a new orchestral performance which was shown in Paris in 1988. The film's story concerns the travails of a woman who has been living quite comfortably as the mistress of a colonel in the Tsar's army in Russia. However, she eventually encounters a penniless young lieutenant and falls madly in love with him, as he does with her. Despite her best intentions of remaining with the colonel, and his intention to avoid trouble with his fellow soldiers, they cannot forswear this relationship, and tragedy is the inevitable result. The title refers to a moving incident in the story, and translates as "the wonderful lie of Nina Petrovna."

Credits

The Wonderful Lies of Nina Petrovna Cast

Name Character
Harry Hardt He was 29, 81 years old when he died
Lya Jan as Bauernmädchen
Francis Lederer He was 29, 100 years old when he died as Lt. Michael Rostof
Warwick Ward He was 37, 76 years old when he died as Col. Beranoff
Michael von Newlinsky He was 37, 73 years old when he died
Ekkehard Arendt He was 36, 61 years old when he died
Brigitte Helm She was 21, 88 years old when she died as Nina Petrowna
Franz Schafheitlin He was 33, 84 years old when he died

The Wonderful Lies of Nina Petrovna Crew

Name Department
Fritz Rotter as Writer. He was 29 (84) years old when He died Writing
Hans Székely as Writer. He was 27 (57) years old when He died Writing
Hanns Schwarz as Director. He was 41 (57) years old when He died Directing
The Wonderful Lies of Nina Petrovna poster
The Wonderful Lies of Nina Petrovna (95 years)

  • Release day: Monday, April 15, 1929
  • Runtime: 80 minutes