In the 80 years since peace was declared in Europe, thousands of films have tried to analyse the impact and lessons from WW2. The Murderers Among Us, one of the first German films released after the war, uses its proximity to the time to ask some difficult questions.
Directed by Wolfgang Staudte, the drama takes place in Berlin in the immediate aftermath of the conflict. Traumatised citizens live among the rubble of their city, longing for news of loved ones or simply wishing to move on. Susanne Wallner (Hildegard Knef) returns to her apartment having survived a concentration camp, only to find Dr. Hans Mertens (Ernst Wilhelm Borchert) living there.
Initially outraged, the pair reluctantly agree to live together, warming to each other as time goes on. However, Mertens is a former Nazi surgeon, riddled with trauma and guilt for what he has been a party to. Unwilling to work as a doctor again, Susanne’s affection brings him back from the brink. However, news of a former comrade (Arno Paulsen) threatens to send Hans back to the darkness.
This call for Germany to examine its conscience achieves its aim through three main characters, the first being Berlin itself. While keeping to a small radius and a handful of key figures, Staudte makes a global conversation from this local setting. Each person on-screen is, for want of a better phrase, shell-shocked, unable or unwilling to address the complexity of what has happened, and what happens next.
There are many conversations about moving on, or clinging to hope, such as an ageing optician begging a psychic for signs if his son is still alive. In another scene, a nosey neighbour observes Hans’ behaviour and says they should complain, to which another resident asks “to who?” While criticised at the time for showing the city as more opulent that it really was, with retrospect the portrait of the country is affecting. Everyone portrayed is in a kind of limbo, getting on with each day amongst the rubble.
The second pillar on which the story lies is Borchert, in a stunning performance that captures everything the film is trying to say. The only character unable to keep calm and carry on, described by others as a “grim man” for not putting a brave face on things. Even he jokes to Susanne that “whenever I talk to somebody, they immediately lose their smile”. However, his initial brutishness is revealed as a deep pain that makes him the film’s emotional centre in the third act. He represents Staudte’s message, that it is unacceptable to move on, that in order to right the wrongs of the past, the horrors must be looked in the eye.
It’s an emotive argument, particularly for the time, and perhaps why the director feels like the third lead in this movie. Staudte was involved in the 1940 Nazi produced film Jud Süß (Veit Harlan), a shockingly antisemitic work that became a key part of Hitler’s propaganda machine, to the point where its filmmakers were later accused of war crimes. The film is seen by many as the director working through his own sense of responsibility, and his passion comes through in the storytelling. This would also explain the ire directed as Paulsen’s character, a former officer-turned-businessman determined to move on without any self-examination.
From a technical perspective, the use of film noir techniques combined with shooting in the real, devastated streets of Berlin makes the story fascinating to watch. The sharp shadows and intense closeups put you right in the moment with the characters. The preservation of the film for this streaming release is also impressive, with a picture quality that allows the story to flow without distraction.
It’s not flawless – Knef’s Susanne feels underdeveloped, even for this period – but The Murderers Are Among Us remains a captivating piece of cinema history. Its message of personal and national responsibility is one that could ring true for much of society today, if we are prepared to listen.
Watch The Murderers Are Among Us as part of ArteKino Classics 2025 – just click here for more information.
