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Throughout his directorial career, E. A. Dupont endeavored to match the success of his 1926 silent classic Variety. Like the earlier film, Salto Mortale has a circus background and is predicated on a romantic triangle, but that's where the resemblance ends. The title refers to a particularly treacherous acrobatic feat, which is performed four times in the picture as a sort of connecting link. The protagonists are three acrobats, two men and a woman. The fact that both men are in love with the woman results in some pretty tense moments under the Big Top, leading to a near-tragedy in the middle of a performance of the "salto mortale." Heading the cast are Anna Sten and Adolf Wohlbrueck (aka Anton Walbrook), both of whom went on to brief Hollywood careers.