Die Spionin is a historical and biographical drama (based on a true story or inspired by real events) about Vera von Schalburg – an enigmatic character whose life is shrouded in mystery, because she was a secret agent and sometimes a double agent.
Here is some basic information about this drama which premiered on German television (ARD) in 2013:
** English title: The Beautiful Spy
** Director: Miguel Alexander
** Writer: Annette Hess
** Language: mostly German – but on occasion French or Russian or English
** Subtitles: German – no English subtitles!
** Released on DVD: 2015
** Run time: 104 minutes
The cast includes the following:
The first group
** Valerie Niehaus as Vera von Schalburg – a secret agent
** Fritz Karl as Hilmar Dierks – a German agent
** Jochen Nickel as Walter Luthmann – a German agent
** Peter Prager as Wilhelm Canaris (1887-1945) – a German admiral – chief of the German secret service 1935-1944
** Dustin Raschdorf as Christian von Schalburg – Vera’s son (born 1932)
The second group
** Katerina Medvedeva as Count Pawlowa
** Peter Kremer as Peter Haber – a British agent
** Noah Huntley as John Faber-Prentiss – married to Lady Harvest
** Emma Davies as Lady Harvest – John’s wife
As stated above, Vera von Schalburg’s life is shrouded in mystery. Even the most basic facts about her life are not known with certainty.
When was she born? In 1907 or perhaps in 1912? Where was she born? In Siberia or perhaps in Riga?
It seems certain she was born somewhere in the Russian Empire a few years before 1917.
Her father was born in Denmark in 1879.
He was probably Danish.
Her mother was born in Ukraine in 1882.
She was probably Ukrainian, Polish or Russian.
Vera grew up in Russia. But after the Russian revolutions of 1917, the family moved to Denmark.
Vera’s older brother Christian Frederik von Schalburg (1906-1942) is a very controversial character in Danish history (see the PS below).
Vera was fluent in several languages: because of her father, she spoke Danish; because of her mother, she spoke Russian. In addition, she spoke English, French, and German.
When did Vera die? We do not know. Perhaps she was killed in 1945? Perhaps she died in Germany in 1946? Perhaps she moved to England where she lived a peaceful and anonymous life until she passed away in 1993?
This drama about Vera von Schalburg does not cover her whole life. It covers a short but significant part of her life, the years 1938-1945.
As stated above, this drama is based on a true story, but since Vera’s life is shrouded in mystery, it is not easy to know what is true and what is not.
An on-screen message placed at the beginning of the drama says it is based on a true story, but many details have been invented and added for dramatic purposes. Perhaps it is better to say it is inspired by real events.
I do not wish to spoil the viewing for anyone. I am not going to say much about what happens in this drama. I will merely tell you how it begins.
The story begins in 1938, shortly before the outbreak of World War II. Vera lives in Paris with her son Christian, who is around six years old. Apparently, he was born in 1932.
If Vera was born in 1912, she was 20 when she had him. If she was born in 1907, she was 25 when she had him.
Who is Christian’s father? We do not know. The topic is not discussed in the movie, but there are some indirect clues which may tell us who the father could be. Obviously, I will not offer any details about this topic.
Vera works as a dancer and a high-class escort in order to support herself and her son. While she is at a party, she meets Hilmar Dierks who works for the German secret service (known as Abwehr in German). He wants to hire Vera as an agent.
At first, she is not interested, but when he offers her money and a large apartment, she decides to accept.
Once she is in, it is difficult to get out. When war breaks out, Vera wants to quit, but now it is too late.
The German secret service wants her to go to England and spy for Germany. To put pressure on her, they kidnap her son. Now she has no choice. She has to go to England.
This is how the story begins, and this is where my presentation ends.
If you want to know what happens to Vera and the people around her, you will have to watch the drama all the way to the end.
What do reviewers say about it?
On IMDb it has a rating of 56 percent.
On Amazon Germany there are at the moment 12 ratings of this product; three with reviews.
The average rating is 4.9 stars which corresponds to a rating of 98 percent.
If you ask me, the rating on IMDb is too low, while the rating on Amazon is more appropriate.
Why?
I have several reasons:
(1) The script is well-written.
(2) The actors play their roles well.
(3) The story is captivating, dramatic and often highly emotional.
(4) the drama is based on a true story or inspired by real events.
(5) In this drama, the characters speak the language which is natural for them. Most of the dialogue is in German, but some conversations are in other languages: French, Russian, and English.
The fact that different languages are spoken, makes the movie more realistic.
If all conversations had been in German, it would have been unrealistic; it would have been a violation of historical truth.
I want to go all the way to the top with this product. I think it deserves a rating of five stars (100 percent).
PS # 1. Miguel Alexander is the director of several movies, including the historical drama Schicksalsjahre: Eine deutsche Familiengeschichte (2011).
PS # 2. Annette Hess is the creator of the German television series Weissensee which covers the lives of two families in East Berlin during the final decade of the Cold war (1980-1990):
** Season 1 = 2010
** Season 2 = 2013
** Season 3 = 2015
** Season 4 = 2018
PS # 3. Vera’s life is the subject of a biography written by Kirstine Kloster Andersen:
The Sparrow:
The Dramatic History of the Spy Vera Schalburg
(2018)
(This title is only available in Danish)
PS # 4. Vera’s older brother Christian Frederik von Schalburg (1906-1942) is a very controversial character in Danish history.
He was a member of the Danish Nazi Party. He served as an officer in the Free Corps Denmark which supported Nazi Germany on the eastern front. He was killed in action in 1942.
For details about his life and career, see the following book:
Schalburg:
A Patriotic Traitor
By Mikkel Kirkebæk
(2009)
(This title is only available in Danish)
*****
Spurven:
Den dramatiske historie
om spionen Vera Schalburg
A biographical account
By Kirstine Kloster Andersen
(2018)
*****
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