My Life for Maria Isabella

My Life for Maria Isabella (German: Mein Leben für Maria Isabell) is a 1935 German drama film directed by Erich Waschneck and starring Viktor de Kowa, Maria Andergast and Peter Voß.¹ It is a military drama, the titular Maria Isabella being the name of a regiment. Heavy cuts were imposed by the censors because of concerns the film's mutiny scenes were too attractively portrayed.² Critics were not impressed by the casting of Viktor de Kowa, known for his light musical comedy roles, as the film's hero.³

It was shot at the Johannisthal Studios in Berlin. The film's sets were designed by the art directors Otto Erdmann and Hans Sohnle. It was distributed by the Tobis subsidiary Rota-Film.

In Belgrade during the closing days of the First World War, the Austrian regiments are mostly composed of disgruntled minorities who mutiny rather than fight on. A young officer attempts to save the regimental colours from falling into enemy hands, and safely takes them back to Vienna where they are symbolically burnt.

• Viktor de Kowa as Fähnrich Menis
• Maria Andergast as Resa Lang
• Peter Voß as Rittmeister Graf Bottenlauben
• Franz Pfaudler as Diener Anton
• Hans-Joachim Büttner
• Hermann Frick
• Julia Serda
• Karin Evans
• Bernhard Minetti as Rittmeister von Hackenberg
• Ernst Karchow
• Harry Hardt as Oberstleutnant
• Ekkehard Arendt
• Hans Junkermann as Stadtkommandant von Belgrad
• Hans Zesch-Ballot as Major Sumerset
• Veit Harlan as Meuternder Korporal
• Anton Pointner
• Hugo Flink
• Albert von Kersten
• Gerhard Haselbach
• Albert Hugelmann
• Erich Fiedler as Lakai im Konak