Der Herrscher The Sovereign was based on Before Sunset a play by Gerhart Hauptmann The great Emil Jannings stars as Mathias Clausen a selfmade businessman who is forced to do a great deal of soulsearching when his wife unexpectedly dies Determining to start life anew he falls in love with his secretary Inken Marianne Hoppe and impulsively takes a vacation to Italy Clausens selfish grown children not wishing to share their fathers affections nor his money with his new wifetobe go to court demanding that Clausen be declared mentally incompetent Upon finding this out Clausen flies into a rage leaving the audience to wonder whether or not he really as gone off his trolley Der Herrscher was directed by Veit Harlan more famous or notorious for his viciously antiSemitic Jud Suess 1940
