Ostend is a sleepy little town that aspires to mediocrity -- if no effort is required. Thirteen suitcases with the initials O. F. on them, and stickers from around the world, along with instructions for six rooms in Ludwig Stossel's hotel. As he only has five rooms, he has to build another, and soon the entire town begins to wake up.
This satirical comedy has an interesting cast, including Peter Lorre, Alfred Abel, and Hedy Lamarr, all of whom play it straight. With its serious undertones -- who is O. F., how large can this bubble grow before it bursts, and what it means in terms of the real world it eventually floats off into Cloud-Cuckoo-Land.
It's directed by Alexis Granowsky, one of the Russian emigrees who left the Soviet Union for various reasons. I wonder how much that had to do with his choice of themes.
This satirical comedy has an interesting cast, including Peter Lorre, Alfred Abel, and Hedy Lamarr, all of whom play it straight. With its serious undertones -- who is O. F., how large can this bubble grow before it bursts, and what it means in terms of the real world it eventually floats off into Cloud-Cuckoo-Land.
It's directed by Alexis Granowsky, one of the Russian emigrees who left the Soviet Union for various reasons. I wonder how much that had to do with his choice of themes.