The Condemned of Altona

Overview

A family of big German industrialists, the von Gerlachs, live near Hamburg in an ugly old mansion in the middle of a park. When the curtain rises, the father, who has only six months to live, calls together his daughter Leni, his younger son Werner, and Werner's wife Johanna, in order to inform them of his last wishes. Johanna guesses that, after the father's death, her husband will be sacrificed, as always, to Franz, the elder son. The latter, who has been officially reported dead, has locked himself up, since his return from the front, and refuses to see anyone except his younger sister Leni. In order to save Werner, Johanna determines to investigate the mystery of Franz's seclusion. In doing so, she unwittingly serves her father-in-law's ends. Old von Gerlach makes use of her in order to obtain the interview with Franz which the latter has refused him for thirteen years...