Mystery at Monstein
Date: 1954
Director: Joe Mendoza
Production Company: Greenpark Productions, Film Producers Guild, Grendon Films
Stars: Narration spoken by Peter Illing
Location(s): Switzerland
Region(s): Switzerland
Storyline:
A ski champion uncle attempts to kill his nephew in order to gain his inheritance.
Additional Information:
Screen captures uploaded by Richard Lovejoy
A British featurette of 35 minutes.
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The film opens with a general view of Monstein with Reformierte Kirche, St. Peter, Davos Monstein top left.
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After the credits it switches to a view of Hauptstrasse looking east.
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A view of the hillside and a closer view of the Reformierte Kirche, St. Peter provides the setting for the action and narration. “It looks a peaceful little place our village of Monstein high up in the Alps”
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“Well I have been driving my old horse and buggy between Monstein and Davos now for many a long year”. ”I must say I never expected anything exciting to happen”. So far unidentified location.
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“There’s a farm up the valley that belongs to a ? (I cannot make out the word) called Paul Deutsch”. “Paul and his wife had two young orphans boarding there….” Unidentified location.
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“Mara Schneider…..”
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“…she absolutely worshiped her elder brother Rudi…”
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“…his one ambition was to get his bronze medal for skiing before the end of the school term”
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“The children’s uncle was able to get away for a holiday and see them”. Looking north with St. Peter's in the background.
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“Max Schneider by name”. Supposedly the view he was painting.
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One day Rudi sets off with his ski’s to compete a day’s skiing on a route he had planned with Max for his medal. Unidentified location. Manuel Gurtner advises that this sequence can also be seen in 'The Lonely House', a Scotland Yard support feature from 1957.
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He arrives at his first nights stop. ‘Grundstein Hütte’
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The following morning down in Davos…. The town viewed from the north
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…..they were holding….. Reformierte Kirche St Johann, Berglistutz 3, Davos
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“…..the annual children’s skating competition”. Davos Stadium looking south west
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The crowd applauded. Davos Stadium
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Rudi Schneider is called to the ring, but he is nowhere to be seen. Davos Stadium.
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Paul and his wife Elsa didn’t know what to make of it, no one had seen him all day. Unidentified location.
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They hung around for a bit until it got dark…… Could this be Promenade looking north?
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… and then decided to go home themselves. Unknown location.
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On the way home they called on Max who tells them about the planned skiing route that Rudi had taken and the following morning Paul and Max set off to find him. First, they go to the station. Although a Rhaetian Railway locomotive this looks as if it could be a stock shot as it appears too rural to be Davos, it appears to be only single track. Manuel Gurtner advises that the metre gauge train is hauled by Bo'Bo' type loco of the RhB series Ge 4/4 I, built in 1947 and 1953, and passes the level crossing nearby Davos-Wolfgang station at the Wolfgang pass summit. The level crossing disappeared in the following years due to the winter-proofing of the pass road. In the background the mountainside of the Gotschnagrat is visible, which is wooded in the lower part.
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They look at the approaching train…. Davos Glaris Station.
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….that arrives…… Pulled by a Rhaetian Crocodile locomotive, Manuel Gurtner advises of the RhB series Ge 6/6 I, built from 1921 to 1929.
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……. five and a half minutes late, as always.
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Nobody had seen Rudi and the train was waived off. Davos Glaris Station
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Their next stop was the 'Kaldis Hütte', but nobody there had seen him.
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On their return home they meet with the horse and buggy driver seen at the start of the film who tells them that he had seen and spoken to Rudi as he made off. Outside 17 Hauptstrasse, Monstein
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He had seen Rudi coming along and asked for a lift into Davos. Hauptstrasse looking towards Alte Kirche.
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He hopped aboard. Unidentified location. Manuel Gurtner advises that this sequence can also be seen in 'The Lonely House', a Scotland Yard support feature from 1957.
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"He asked me to drop him"……… Could this be Obere Strasse, Davos circa Platzstrasse looking north?
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……….. "at the station where he was going to take a train to the top of the mountain". Parsennbahn, Promenade, Davos-Dorf looking east.
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Suddenly Mara appears as she had decided to go with him. Ticket office, Parsennbahn, Promenade, Davos-Dorf
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"But that is where the plan went wrong", she missed the train. Although the action took place at Parsennbahn, Davos-Dorf we see a Schatzalp Bahn train (DSB) pulling away from what would be Davos-Platz, Obere Strasse.
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Having heard the story from the old man Maxi headed off on his own whilst Paul thought it best to arrange a search party. As viewed from the side of Hauptstrasse 3 looking east.
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Paul makes his way to Davos. Unidentified location.
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Meanwhile Max was wondering what had happened to Mara, eventually, everyone was aware. She had reached the mountain station and knew his route. This looks like Weissfluhjoch but I stand to be corrected.
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Mara found Rudi with a broken leg, a search party was underway and Paul started his own search having found that the coffee in Rudi’s ‘lost’ rucksack was still hot. He sets off for Klosters Serneus where a boy had found Rudi’s rucksack.
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Eventually Paul catches up with Max and challenges him that if Rudi died, he would inherit quitea bit of money. Max admits that he had sent Rudi to ‘Grundstein’ not ‘Kaldis’. ‘Grundstein Hutte’ 2267 m.ü.M.
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Max further admits that he stole the rucksack and damaged one of Rudi’s ski’s with a view to him having an accident. ‘Grundstein Hutte’.
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There are so many events, twists and turns in the story that occur without meaningful location shots that we have to jump in time to Rudi “pulling through allright” and getting his medal. Looking down to the path to the church with Hauptstrasse left to right in the mid ground.
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“It is difficult to remember unpleasant things when you are young and to live in a peaceful little place like our village of Monstein.” Reformierte Kirche Davos Monstein right background.