Ein Glas Wasser

'A Glass of Water' is a fairly faithful adaptation of the popular stage play of the same name by Eugène Scribe, which was first performed in 1840 and also served as the basis for the 2018 film "The Favourite" (United Kingdom, Ireland, USA).

At the beginning of the 18th century, England and France face each other in the War of the Spanish Succession. Queen Anne (Mady Christians) sits on the English throne, but in reality all decisions are made by the Duchess of Marlborough (Lucie Höflich), whose husband is commander-in-chief of the British army and who therefore expects to benefit from the continuation of the war. Lord Bolingbroke (Rudolf Rittner) wants to end the war in order to disempower the Duchess and become Prime Minister. He intrigues eagerly, capitalising above all on the passionate affection that both Queen and the Duchess have for Masham (Hans Brausewetter), a young officer of the Life Guards, who himself, however, only has eyes for the chambermaid Abigail (Helga Thomas).

'A Glass of Water' is one of the first film works by the already established theatre director Ludwig Berger. Here he succeeds exceptionally well in transferring the qualities of the stage play to the screen and at the same time giving the play a new lightness and a more natural character by opening it up into the space with exterior shots and elaborate sets. A well-oiled ensemble of first-class performers act in the magnificent buildings in perfect costumes.

The play still works as a comedy today, albeit not without a certain aftertaste, as 'A Glass of Water' essentially pokes fun at the 'women's regiment' at the English court, where the queen and her strict counsellor fight over a minor officer instead of attending to important state business, which is exploited by the urbane Lord Bolingbroke for his own purposes. It is worth comparing this with the 2018 film version mentioned above, which explores the nature of the relationship between the two women.