Movie Monday: Die rote Hand 1960
Sixty years ago, today, the Italian-German film Die rote Hand or The Red Hand was released. Directed by Kurt Meisel, written & produced by Ernst Neubach, it starred Paul Hubschmid, Hannes Messemer and Eleonora Rossi Drago.
Finding specific information on this film has been difficult. It appears that this was based upon a French terrorist organization’s bombings and assassinations that took place in Germany in September 1956, June 1957, October 1958, March 1959 and November 1959. IMDb doesn’t have a summary or synopsis but, I did find a translated plot from the German side of Wikipedia (Translate The Web Link):
This arms dealer drama takes place in Germany and Switzerland […] during the Cold War.
Manora Khan, consul of an unspecified Asian country, intends to hunt down his Cuban colleague Maria Gomez’s supply of weapons intended for her country. To this end, he orders the help of the smart Johnny Zamaris, with whom he has a common past: Johnny had once [been involved with] his great love, the actress Violetta Scotoni. [It] soon becomes apparent that no one is what he seems to be […]. Consul Khan turns out to be the leader of a secret organization called “The Red Hand” that deliberately kills competing gun-pushers. Competitor Johnny is more than just a smart Sonnyboy [sic]. [In] truth, he works as a defensive officer in his country, with the task of smashing “The Red Hand” again. Both men, who once competed for Violetta, die while serving in their respective [fatherlands], with Johnny being knocked down in the back of a black sedan with a machine gun after a final tender embrace with Violetta.
The writer and producer of this film was born in Austria but, emigrated to France after Anschluss. Unhappy with a Der Spiegel report, he wrote an opposite viewpoint. Der Speigel, in turn, panned the film.
I couldn’t find a trailer on YouTube. ~Vic
Additional Reading:
The State as a Terrorist: France and the Red Hand (Perspectives on Terrorism)
October 28, 2020 at 10:13 PM
I like obscure…you have that covered in spades with this one. When youtube has nothing on it…it’s really obscure.
October 28, 2020 at 10:44 PM
I’ve had several that were hard to find. In this case, I wound up with a Italian/German movie because there weren’t any American films for that date. The farther back you go, the worse it gets and anything International…
October 28, 2020 at 10:48 PM
Yea an Italian/German movie…I would say that wasn’t the most popular…but it’s cool knowing about them. I like that one you had a few months ago with the kids….the short one.
October 28, 2020 at 10:55 PM
Cinderella’s Feller? That was so cute.
October 28, 2020 at 11:02 PM
Yes…I really liked that one a lot.
October 29, 2020 at 12:08 AM
I did, too and I was glad I could find a video of it.