Der Herrscher (Eng: The Master, The Sovereign, or The Ruler) is a 1937 German film directed by Veit Harlan.[1] It was a propagandist demonstration of the Führerprinzip of Nazi Germany.[2]
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Matthias Clausen is the powerful leader of Clausen Works, an old and prosperous munitions firm. He falls in love with a secretary in the office, and his children conspire against him in order to protect their inheritance. Clausen disowns them and bestows the firm on the state, confident that one of his workers capable of carrying on his work will arise.
The movie was based on the play 'Before Sunset' by Nobel Prize recipient Gerhart Hauptmann, but the themes have been utterly altered.[2] A mild-mannered art collector in the play, he becomes the dynamic "first worker" of the movies, who proclaims the firm's duty to provide work and serve the community, and unlike the play, triumphs over his children's machinations.[2]
Some newspapers objected to the anti-capitalist bent inherent in having a man leave the state his company; the official release contained a postscript by Goebbels repudiating such intentions.[3]