Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows Shop News Showtimes
Erich von Stroheim

Erich von Stroheim

Highest Rated: 100% Queen Kelly (1929)

Lowest Rated: 64% The Wedding March (1928)

Birthday: Sep 22, 1885

Birthplace: Vienna, Austria-Hungary

Costumed in tailored military uniforms accessorized with gleaming medals, Austrian émigré Erich von Stroheim became known to American filmgoers during the silent era for his icy portrayals of pre-World War II German soldiers. Arriving in Hollywood in 1914, von Stroheim gained entry into the film industry as a technical advisor and horseman. Later an assistant for D. W. Griffith, von Stroheim brokered a deal, agreeing to work for free for the chance to direct his first film. "Blind Husbands" (1919) was a hit despite von Stroheim's insistence on expensive location photography. His budgets would ultimately cost him control of his films, with his nine-hour "Greed" (1924) reduced to two and "The Wedding March" (1928) shut down after nine months. Fired by star Gloria Swanson during the shooting of "Queen Kelly" (1929), von Stroheim was considered unemployable as a director and returned to the life of a jobbing actor. Using his sinister mien to good effect in such quickies as "The Crime of Dr. Crespi" (1935) and "The Great Flamarion" (1945), von Stroheim contributed vivid supporting performances to Billy Wilder's "Five Graves to Cairo" (1943) and "Sunset Blvd." (1950), the latter reuniting him with Swanson for an acidic meditation of the dark side of the silver screen. Cancer took his life in May 1957, robbing moviegoers of one of its most unique visionaries and an unforgettable film presence.

Highest rated movies

100% 79% Five Graves to Cairo
100% 46% The Lost Squadron
100% 69% Blind Husbands
98% 94% Sunset Boulevard
97% 92% Grand Illusion
89% 70% Foolish Wives
86% 54% As You Desire Me
71% 48% The Great Gabbo

Filmography

Movies

Credit
No Score Yet 50% Hollywood Mavericks Unknown (Character) - 1990
No Score Yet 86% Napoleon Ludwig van Beethoven (Character) - 1955
No Score Yet 17% Unnatural Jacob ten Brinken (Character) - 1952
98% 94% Sunset Boulevard Max Von Mayerling (Character) - 1950
No Score Yet No Score Yet Portrait of a Killer Eric (Character) - 1949
No Score Yet 50% The Mask of Diijon Diijon (Character) - 1946
No Score Yet 43% The Great Flamarion The Great Flamarion (Character) - 1945
No Score Yet No Score Yet Scotland Yard Investigator Carl Hoffmeyer (Character) - 1945
No Score Yet No Score Yet Storm Over Lisbon Deresco (Character) - 1944
No Score Yet 0% The Lady and the Monster Prof. Franz Mueller (Character) - 1944
100% 79% Five Graves to Cairo Field Marshal Erwin Rommel (Character) - 1943
No Score Yet 31% The North Star Dr. von Harden (Character) - 1943
No Score Yet No Score Yet Under Secret Orders Col. W. Mathesius/Simonis (Character) - 1943
No Score Yet No Score Yet Gambling Hell Werner von Krall (Character) - 1942
67% 80% So Ends Our Night Brenner (Character) - 1941
No Score Yet No Score Yet I Was an Adventuress Andre Desormeaux (Character) - 1940
No Score Yet No Score Yet Personal Column Unknown (Character) - 1939
No Score Yet No Score Yet It Happened in Gibraltar Marson (Character),
Screenwriter
- 1938
97% 92% Grand Illusion Capt. von Rauffenstein (Character) $516.5K 1937
No Score Yet No Score Yet L'Alibi Winckler (Character) - 1937
No Score Yet No Score Yet Between Two Women Writer - 1937
79% 71% The Devil Doll Writer - 1936
No Score Yet No Score Yet The Crime of Dr. Crespi Dr. Andre Crespi (Character) - 1935
No Score Yet No Score Yet The Crime of Doctor Crespi Dr. Andre Crespi (Character) - 1935
No Score Yet No Score Yet Fugitive Road Hauptmann Oswald Von Traunsee (Character) - 1934
No Score Yet No Score Yet Crimson Romance Capt. Wolters (Character) - 1934
No Score Yet No Score Yet Hello Sister Director - 1933
100% 46% The Lost Squadron Arthur von Furst (Character) - 1932
86% 54% As You Desire Me Carl Salter (Character) - 1932
No Score Yet No Score Yet Friends and Lovers Col. Victor Sangrito (Character) - 1931
No Score Yet No Score Yet Three Faces East Valdar/Schiller Blecher (Character) - 1930
100% 79% Queen Kelly Director,
Producer
- 1929
71% 48% The Great Gabbo The Great Gabbo (Character),
Director
- 1929
No Score Yet No Score Yet La Reina Kelly Director - 1929
64% 81% The Wedding March Prince Nicki von Wildeliebe-Rauffenburg (Character),
Director,
Writer,
Film Editing,
Art Director,
Costume Design
- 1928
100% 79% The Merry Widow Director,
Screenwriter,
Producer,
Costume Design
- 1925
96% 91% Greed Director,
Writer,
Film Editing,
Production Design,
Art Director
- 1924
No Score Yet No Score Yet Merry-Go-Round Director,
Costume Design
- 1923
89% 70% Foolish Wives Their Cousin, Count Wladislaw Sergius Karamzin (Capt. 3rd Hussars Imper. Russian Army) (Character),
Director,
Writer
- 1922
80% No Score Yet The Devil's Passkey Director,
Screenwriter
- 1920
100% 69% Blind Husbands Lieutenant von Steuben (Character),
Director,
Screenwriter,
Producer
- 1919
No Score Yet No Score Yet The Unbeliever Lt. Kurt von Schnieditz (Character) - 1918
No Score Yet No Score Yet The Heart of Humanity Eric von Eberhard (Character) - 1918
No Score Yet No Score Yet Reaching for the Moon Prince Badinoff's Aide (Character) - 1917
No Score Yet No Score Yet The Social Secretary The Buzzard (Character) - 1916
No Score Yet No Score Yet Old Heidelberg Lutz (Character) - 1915