Der Wildfang

The Austrian film Der Wildfang is enjoyable and a wonderful complement to the Czech version. I was completely absorbed by the major and minor differences in the two films, both of which were staged by Jan Sviták. The main couple, Rolf Wanka and Roszi Csikós, impressed everyone so much in their time that they were reunited by Irenes Roman. Unlike Nancy Rubens, Roszi is a slightly more serious, subtle, and less spectacular protagonist. In fact, she is Nancy and Jiřina Steimarová from the Czech film Irca's Romance in one person. Her Thessa is not a wild girl, but a sporty girl who experiences real-life difficulties only when she falls in love. She's not as explosive and doesn't destroy everything around her when she’s in the mood. Her father, played by Fritz Imhoff, is somewhere else in the context of Theodor Pištěk in that he is not so spectacularly helpless and he is rather effeminate. Tibor von Halmay is also the bearer of a completely different comic style, his fearfulness is not brimming with double entendres and his mask is devoid of ideas. The pair Else Lord and Rudolf Carl, on the other hand, is more sympathetic than Antonia Nedošinská and Břetislav Hrstka, and their love is more believable. The others, including Lizzi Holzschuh, are very down to earth. Rolf Wanka as Peter Danner, Juniorchef der vereinigten Automobilfabriken, is a prime example of a multi-lingual actor who, like Anny Ondra, was perfectly able to adapt to partial nuances. While the Czech version richly supports Rubens' happy game, here it is more restrained and sophisticated. (20.09.2009)