Max Schmeling can box, but can he act? Watching The Comeback (1930)

You should watch this if you are a fan of boxing history or you just like seeing how movies worked when sound was brand new. It is a curiosity. If you want a fast-moving plot or modern acting, you are going to hate it. 🥊

Max Schmeling is the main guy. He was a real heavyweight champion in real life, not just in the movie.

He is not a great actor. He kind of just stands there and looks solid.

But there is something very charming about how he handles himself. He feels like a real person who just wandered onto a movie set by accident.

The story is the same one we have seen a thousand times. A young boxer starts winning and forgets the nice girl who liked him when he was poor.

He meets a wealthy woman named Lillian, played by Olga Tschechowa. She looks like she is having a lot of fun being the "bad" influence.

The way she looks at him is almost funny. It is like she is looking at a very large, confused puppy.

There is a scene where they are in a fancy club. Max looks so out of place in his tuxedo.

His shoulders are too big for the room. You can tell he just wants to go hit something.

The movie is a "part-talkie." This means some parts are silent and some have people talking.

It is very clunky. Sometimes the sound just kicks in and it is loud and sudden.

Then it goes back to titles on the screen. It is like the movie can't decide what it wants to be.

I noticed the crowd in the boxing scenes looks very real. They probably just used a real crowd from one of Max’s actual fights.

The sweat on the boxers looks genuine too. It doesn't look like movie spray.

The pacing is a bit of a mess. It reminds me of the slow bits in Two Women, where things just sort of linger for no reason.

There is a lot of focus on training. Max jumping rope. Max hitting the bag.

If you like the gym atmosphere, you will dig this part. It feels very gritty and 1930s.

The ending is very specific. They get on a boat to go to America.

America was the big dream for everyone in Germany back then. It feels like a very hopeful moment before history got really dark. 🚢

Schmeling’s real-life manager is actually in the movie too. Max Machon plays the trainer.

They have a good rhythm together. You can tell they actually knew each other.

The music is also very of its time. It is that bouncy, slightly tinny German jazz.

It gets stuck in your head. Even when the scene is supposed to be sad, the music is kind of chirpy.

The movie is not a masterpiece. It is just a nice time.

It is better than some other stuff from that year like The Denial. At least this one has some energy in the ring.

One reaction shot of the girlfriend lasts way too long. She just stares at the camera for like ten seconds.

I think the director forgot to yell cut. Or maybe he just really liked her face.

The boxing choreography isn't really choreography. They are just actually boxing.

It makes modern boxing movies look a bit fake. There is no slow-motion here.

Just two guys hitting each other until one falls down. It is very honest.

I liked the scenes in the little apartment at the start. It felt very lived-in.

The coffee pots and the messy beds. It felt like a real home.

Then the movie moves to the big fancy houses and it gets less interesting. The rich people are all a bit boring.

But I guess that is the point. Max belongs in the ring, not at a cocktail party.

It is a bit of a shame that the sound quality is so rough. You have to really strain to hear some of the German dialogue.

But the visuals tell the story anyway. You don't really need to hear what they are saying to know he is sad.

He has a very expressive back. When he walks away, he looks very defeated.

Overall, it is a weird little film. It’s like a time capsule that someone dug up and didn't bother to polish.

I'm glad I watched it once. I don't think I would watch it again, though.

If you find it on a streaming site for free, give it twenty minutes. You will know pretty fast if it is for you.

Max is just a big, friendly guy trying his best. And that is enough for me.