Whom the Gods Love

Whom the Gods Love (German: Wen die Götter lieben) is a 1942 Austrian historical musical film directed by Karl Hartl and starring Hans Holt, Irene von Meyendorff, and Winnie Markus. The film is a biopic of the Austrian composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. It was made as a co-production between the giant German studio UFA and Wien-Film which had been set up following the German annexation of Austria. The film was part of a wider attempt by the Nazis to portray Mozart as an authentic German hero. Like many German biopics of the war years, it portrays the composer as a pioneering visionary. The title refers to Mozart's middle name Amadeus (Latin for "love God") and to the aphorism "he whom the gods love, dies young" (Latin: "") from Plautus' Bacchides, lines 816–17, and earlier Greek sources, including Homer's mention of Trophonius; Mozart died at the age of 35. A British film of the same title had been released in 1936. Cast Hans Holt as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Irene von Meyendorff as Luisa Weber Langer Winnie Markus as Konstanze Weber Mozart Paul Hörbiger as Von Strack Walter Janssen as Leopold Mozart Rosa Albach-Retty as Frau Mozart Annie Rosar as Frau Weber René Deltgen as Ludwig van Beethoven Thea Weis as Sophie Weber as Josepha Weber Curd Jürgens as Emperor Joseph II Hans Siebert as Duke of Mannheim Richard Eybner as Baron von Gemmingen Fritz Imhoff as Albrechtsberger as Hoeffer as Süssmayr Doris Hild Franz Herterich Otto Schmöle Theodor Danegger Alfred Neugebauer Hermann Erhardt Louise Kartousch Erna Berger as Singer Siegmund Roth as Singer Karl Schmitt-Walter as Singer Dagmar Söderquist as Singer