Harbour Drift 1929
A pre-Depression slice of proletarian life from Weimar Germany, Harbour Drift is unusually interesting for its indifferent pessimism, rejecting even the minor rays of hope which permeate the other low-life ‘street films’ of the period. A sordid tale of poverty and greed set within a quayside milieu of crime and prostitution, the narrative centres on the quest for a sparkling pearl necklace stolen by a beggar under the gaze of a prostitute, who persuades her unemployed friend to steal it back, with tragic consequences. The story unfolds in flashback, without irony or a hint of redemption: life simply goes on. The film is remarkable for the innovative camerawork of Friedl Behn-Grund, which manipulates light and shadow to create a nightmarish atmosphere of fear and premonition.
- Released: 1929-01-01
- Runtime: 74 minutes
- Genre: Drama
- Stars: Lissy Arna, Paul Rehkopf, Fritz Genschow, Friedrich Gnaß, Sig Arno
- Director: Willy Döll, Leo Mittler, Jan Fethke, Willi Münzenberg, Dimitri Roschanski
