Der Himmel auf Erden (1927)

Member of Parliament Traugott Bellmann has devoted himself entirely to fighting the rampant decline in morals. He sees vice and immorality everywhere, and never tires of delivering fiery speeches against the general degradation of public morals. Nightclubs, for example, are nothing to him but dens of vice that must be cleaned out. Traugott’s newlywed wife, Juliette, is delighted by his strict moral principles, while his exasperated father-in-law, the portly, pleasure-loving champagne producer Martiny, is positively outraged by him. One day, Martiny backs him into a corner: either Traugott publicly retracts his ridiculous views in Parliament—which are harmful to Martiny’s business—or Martiny will refuse to pay his new son-in-law Juliette’s dowry. As if that weren’t bad enough, Traugott receives another piece of devastating news, which must have seemed like the ultimate temptation: his recently deceased stepbrother has left him a nightclub regarded as the worst den of vice in the entire city. It is euphemistically called “Heaven on Earth.” Along with the seedy joint, the inheritance includes a substantial sum of cash: 500,000 marks. But there is a rather important condition attached: according to the will, the God-fearing Traugott must appear at “Heaven on Earth” every evening at nine o’clock and make the rounds among the guests. So what is he to do? Continue insisting on strict moral principles, or be branded a hypocrite and quietly pocket the bar and half a million? Well, Traugott chooses the latter and orders the executor to keep his decision absolutely secret. And so begins Mr. B.’s highly delicate, schizophrenic double life: by day he continues to play the guardian of decency and propriety; by night, Traugott presides over a den of vice par excellence. When Juliette accidentally discovers Traugott’s moral “abysses,” she is horrified and seeks her father’s advice. Rescue comes when the nightclub is sold, allowing Traugott at last to return to his old life.