Limerculer A waste of 90 minutes of my life

Plustown A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

Lachlan Coulson This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.

Fleur Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

dlee2012 F.P.1 Antwortet Nicht is a piece of science fiction from the dying days of the Weimar Republic that has dated poorly compared to the likes of Metropolis or even Die Frau im Mond. Like much modern Hollywood "science fiction" it is, in fact, just an adventure tale with some futuristic elements attached, in this case, an artificial island in the mid-Atlantic. There is no real satire or estrangement effect present here. It is this lack of depth that undermines this tale. There is no commentary on the social and economic crisis in Germany nor is there anyway of looking at humanity from an outsider's viewpoint, which Darko Suvin for one considers the defining aspect of true science fiction.Coupled with this is the weak acting and hackneyed plot making this film a generally-weak effort.The main value one could derive from this film nowadays would stem from viewing it from the perspective of an "alternative history" tale. It does still convey some sense of wonder from its impressive sets and cinematography. If one is prepared to view it on those terms, one could gain some enjoyment from the film but, otherwise, this is very much of its era and deservedly forgotten.

unbrokenmetal The famous pilot Ellissen (Hans Albers) helps his friend Droste (Paul Hartmann) to have FP1 built, a platform in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean which will make a connection between the continents possible (in a time when non-stop flights with passengers were science fiction). During the years when FP1 is built and Ellissen is far away, his girlfriend Claire (Sybille Schmitz) falls in love with Droste. Saboteurs try to destroy FP1, so Ellissen must come to the rescue. "FP1 antwortet nicht" is an excellent piece of work for its time. First, the science fiction novel by Curt Siodmak provided a spectacular story. But then, Albers portrays a really interesting hero, a man who often doesn't succeed (he loses his plane in a crash in Australia, he loses Claire to his best friend) but always comes back. Claire tried to teach him the advantages of a normal life, but no, it will always be adventure for him, "life is too short", he once says. With this charismatic performance, it is easy to see why Albers was one of the most popular stars of his time. Peter Lorre of "The Maltese Falcon" fame is responsible for the comic relief here as a photographer who tries to get the first picture of FP1. Last not least, a memorable musical score with the theme song "Flieger, grüß mir die Sonne" contributes to the fame of the movie.

zsenorsock This film was made at a time when technology was moving almost faster than the imagination. Only a few years after Lindbergh's non-stop flight across the Atlantic, in this Germany decides to solve the problem of long transatlantic flights not by building planes that can fly further, but by building a gigantic platform in the middle of the Atlantic where planes can land and refuel. Only there are forces at work trying to keep the Floating Platform (hence F.P. #1) from becoming a success. Sabotage and spies add a layer of intrigue to what essentially is a love triangle between the commander of F.A. #1 and a gregarious pilot who both love the same woman. For the time, this film is quite impressive for its North Sea location photography as well as its flying scenes. Peter Lorre has a couple of good scenes as the hero's photographer buddy. I'd rate it higher, but many parts of the story either don't hold up or don't make sense. Still, glad I got to see it once.

Anne_Sharp This big-budget technothriller-romance was state-of-the-art for 1932, featuring a top-notch cast (especially Hans Albers as the rowdy, untamed hero and Peter Lorre as his long-suffering sidekick) and a lickety-split plotline in which industrial sabotage, sexual politics and the psychology of heroism are artfully intertwined. An English-subtitled video version of this SF classic is long overdue.