The Devil's Three Golden Hairs
(Wer reißt denn gleich vor'm Teufel aus)

Wer reißt denn gleich vor'm Teufel aus © DEFA-Stiftung, Heinz Wenzel
Schlegel, Egon |
Schlegel, Egon |
Wüste-Heym, Inge |
Hinze-Sokoloff, Anneliese |
Braumann, Wolfgang |
Kranz, Georg |
Braumann, Barbara |
Hauk, Günter |
Frank, Hans-Joachim |
Franke, Dieter |
Greese, Wolfgang |
Hasse, Hannjo |
Klering, Hans |
Köhncke, Peter |
Ludwig, Fred |
Ludwig, Rolf |
Martin, Katrin |
Powollik-Ronay, Klaus |
Synopsis
Poor Jacob is plagued by misfortune and mocked for his timidity. As if that weren’t enough, the King also has it in for him. He sends Jacob to the castle with a letter, and it is only though his chance encounter with robbers that he lives to endure another day. The next day, he is envisioning himself as the Princess's bridegroom, but this joyful moment doesn't last long. The duped King now hopes to get rid of Jacob for good and sends him to get three golden hairs from the Devil. On the way, Jacob promises the King's exploited subjects to ask the Devil how they can escape their misery. But how will he outwit the crafty Devil on his own turf?
Once he has arrived in hell, he takes advantage of the She-Devil's absence by disguising himself in her clothes. Absolutely fearless, he snatches three of the Devil's golden hairs and discovers the solution to the farmers' suffering. He returns home a hero and there is no longer any reason why he should not marry the Princess.
Press comments
"Admittedly, the beginning is somewhat awkward and involved and not easily comprehensible. One doesn't really know where the story of clumsy young Jacob is going. At the latest, however, when Jacob moves into the castle of the alcoholic monarch (a convincing performance by Rolf Ludwig!), the film becomes entertaining, increasingly so with every scene. Egon Schlegel has succeeded in achieving something most remarkable, namely, a poetic and satirical transposition. The two absolute highlights of the film are hell and the divine devil Dieter Franke."
— Renate Holland-Moritz in the Berlin Eulenspiegel, 2/1978
"The scenes set in hell are imaginative and funny. This film can easily compete with the latest inventions of Hollywood's fantasy wave."
— R.T. in the Berlin Der Tagesspiegel on April 9, 1982
"This very free adaptation of the Grimm fairytale The Devil’s Three Golden Hairs is full of humor and subtlety. [...] Although the basic structure of the original fairytale has been preserved [...] the film emphasizes the comedic elements of the story in its setting and staging style, even expanding them to such an extent that the original fairytale is difficult to discover. It works brilliantly. [...] All in all, a witty fairytale entertainment, whose charm, however, is only fully accessible to slightly older children who are able to follow the irony of the story.” —filmdienst.de
Availability

- Turn Subtitles On/Off
- Short Film: Consequence
- Original U.S. Theatrical Trailer
- Animated Chapter Divisions
- Internet Links