In 1945, a strange mix of Germans, military personnel and civilians, pro-Nazi and anti-Nazi, celebrities and escaped prisoners, converges at a lavish hotel in heavily-bombed Berlin.
Near the end of WW II, a member of the German underground (Helmut Dantine as Martin Richter) escapes from the Gestapo and takes shelter at Hotel Berlin, where he meets Lisa Dorn (Andrea King), a sleek actress involved with General von Dahnwitz (Raymond Massey), who is also trying to leave Germany. The hotel is a hotbed of Nazis, refugees, spies and ordinary Germans trying to survive inevitable defeat without getting too involved.—Mike Rogers <[email protected]>
The goings-on at the Hotel Berlin in Berlin in 1945 are presented, when the defeat of the Nazi regime is imminent and inevitable which affects those goings-on. Among those at the hotel are: actress Lisa Dorn (Andrea King), whose support of the Nazis and connections with Nazi officers may underlie her true motives; the Gestapo approved hotel hostess, Tillie Weiler (Faye Emerson), who also cuddles up to Nazi officers in return for whatever favors they can provide her, her immediate goal being a new pair of shoes; Nazi General Arnim von Dahnwitz (Raymond Massey), the last surviving member of the Nazis who plotted against Hitler in this imminent defeat and thus wanting leniency by the Allieds when they assume control; other Nazi officers who are slowly moving their assets out of the country either in order to rebuild the Nazi Party or to live a life of comfort post-war; and German scientist Dr. Johannes Koenig (Peter Lorre), who, in being emotionally drained from his experiences in the war, have led to him possibly giving up on what was his goal of being able to work in a free Germany without political interference. A person in hiding at the hotel is Martin Richter (Helmut Dantine), a high-level member of the German underground, who was able to escape from the POW camp in Dachau. Although he has some known help at the hotel, Richter may have some difficulty making it out of the hotel alive as the Nazis are swarming the hotel in the belief that Richter is indeed hiding there somewhere. Richter has to learn who he can and cannot trust among the others at the hotel he doesn't know if he is to make it out alive.—Huggo
Lisa Dorn (Andrea King) tries to help Martin Richter (Helmut Dantine) to escape from the Hotel Berlin, out from under the eyes of the Nazis. She obtains a German officer's uniform for him, teaches him the right way to click his heels in the Nazi salute and seems to be falling in love with him. She is still, however, a loyal Nazi and betrays him to the General. Even so, the underground is helping Martin Richter to escape. He confronts Lisa Dorn on the hotel's basement stairs with her betrayal and, despite her plea for mercy, shoots her in the stomach, and she dies.
An assortment of diverse characters gather at the Hotel Berlin in World War II Germany. Among them are freedom fighter Martin Richter (Helmut Dantine), who is in hiding; deceitful actress Lisa Dorn (Andrea King); Nazi officer Arnid von Dahnwitz (Raymond Massey), whose career is in jeopardy; and Tillie Weiler (Faye Emerson), the hotel "hostess" who will do anything for a new pair of shoes.—Daniel Bubbeo <[email protected]>
The lives of various desperate people intersect at the Hotel Berlin, a hotbed of Nazis, officers, spies and ordinary Germans trying to weather the inevitable defeat. Martin Richter, a leader of the German underground who has escaped from Dachau concentration camp, is hiding there, aided by some of the staff. He is hunted by SS-Gruppenführer Joachim Helm (George Coulouris), who has his headquarters in the same building. Another hotel guest is Nobel laureate Johannes Koenig (Peter Lorre), Richter's friend from before the war and in Dachau.
General Arnim von Dahnwitz (Raymond Massey), the last of the leaders of a plot against Hitler still at large, goes to his friend von Stetten (Henry Daniell) to see if his clique can help him, but is told that nothing can be done. He has at best 24 hours to shoot himself and save the Nazi regime the embarrassment of publicly dealing with him. At the hotel, von Dahnwitz encounters Lisa Dorn (Andrea King), his lover and a famous actress. He asks Dorn to marry him and flee with him to Sweden, but she is aware his situation is hopeless and declines. Later, von Dahnwitz commits suicide.
Meanwhile, von Stetten is arranging for the escape of his group to North America, where they hope to secretly rebuild their strength for another grab at power. He invites Koenig to join them (to provide a cover for their activities).
Hotel "hostess" (and informant) Tillie Weiler (Faye Emerson) warmly greets Major Kauders (Kurt Kreuger), a pilot determined to make the fullest use of a short leave. They quarrel and part when he finds her photograph of a man who he thinks looks Jewish.
Later, Sarah Baruch (Helene Thimig) comes to her and begs her help in getting medicine for her husband, dying of cancer. The older woman also reveals that her son Max, Tillie's former employer and love, is alive, having been liberated from a labor camp by the Allies. When they take shelter from an air raid in the basement, Sarah is recognized by Hermann Plotke (Alan Hale), who orders her to put on the Star of David badge required of all Jews. This is too much for Tillie, who reveals to all that Plotke used to work in the Bauers' department store, until he was caught stealing. Max gave him another chance, only to have Plotke appropriate the business when the Nazis came to power. Plotke orders her arrest, but is himself taken into custody for stealing from the government.
Richter is given a waiter's uniform and sent to serve dinner to Dorn in her suite. When she becomes suspicious, he is forced to reveal his identity. She offers to assist him in exchange for her own passage out of Germany. Later, however, Tillie snoops in Dorn's suite (not only envious of her extensive wardrobe, but seeking a pair of shoes) and finds a suspicious discarded waiter's jacket, which she reports to Helm. Helm captures Richter by himself, but Richter is able to disarm and overpower him. He throws an unconscious Helm down the shaft of a disabled elevator. Though the hotel is surrounded, Dorn persuades admirer Major Kauders to escort a seemingly drunk Richter (now in an SS uniform) through the cordon. When Richter sends word where to meet him, however, Dorn betrays him. She is suspected, and her phone call to Von Stetten is overheard. As a result, she is taken to the underground headquarters as a prisoner. Despite her desperate attempts to justify herself, Richter shoots her.
