The Burning Secret
1933 film directed by Robert Siodmak
The Burning Secret (German: Brennendes Geheimnis) is a 1933 Austrian-German drama film directed by Robert Siodmak and starring Alfred Abel, Hilde Wagener and Hans Joachim Schaufuß. It was based on the 1913 novella of the same title by Stefan Zweig. It was released by the German branch of Universal Pictures. It was shot at the EFA Studios in Berlin and on location around Ascona in Switzerland. The film's sets were designed by the art director Robert A. Dietrich.
Because of its theme of adultery, the film was attacked by Joseph Goebbels, the Nazi Propaganda Minister.
Cast
Alfred Abel as Der Mann
Hilde Wagener as Die Frau
Hans Joachim Schaufuß as Edgar
Lucie Höflich as Mutter der Frau
Willi Forst as Herr von Haller, Rennfahrer
Ernst Dumcke as Baron Tosse
Alfred Beierle as Müller, Hoteldetektiv
Hans Richter as Fritz, Page
Rina Marsa as Fräulein de la Roche
Heinz Berghaus as Hotelportier
Lotte Stein as Frau Klappholz
Production
The Burning Secret was the last film Robert Siodmak, who was Jewish, directed before the Nazi seizure of power. The film was based on the story by Stefan Zweig that was previously adapted as a silent film. The cinematography was done by Richard Angst.
Release
The film was released in Berlin on 29 March 1933, but was shown without the credits for director, composer, lyricist, and original author.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “The Burning Secret” is 1933 film directed by Robert Siodmak. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Burning, Secret and film, not as a finished interpretation.
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Object files, edition statements, performance records and contemporary criticism preserve different stages of the work’s history. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 28, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q3072316. 2 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 1 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1933 and 1913.
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This entry incorporates text from “The Burning Secret” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.