Bismarck | |
---|---|
Directed by | Wolfgang Liebeneiner |
Written by | |
Produced by | |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Bruno Mondi |
Edited by | Walter von Bonhorst |
Music by | Norbert Schultze |
Production company | |
Distributed by | Tobis Film |
Release date |
|
Running time | 118 minutes |
Country | Nazi Germany |
Language | German |
Budget | 1,794,000 ℛℳ |
Box office | 4.4 million ℛℳ |
Bismarck is a 1940 German historical film directed by Wolfgang Liebeneiner and starring Paul Hartmann, Friedrich Kayßler, and Lil Dagover. [1]
This film depicts the life of the Prussian statesman Otto von Bismarck, a German nationalist and lonely genius who withstands the Reichstag to act on behalf of the people. It was followed by a sequel Die Entlassung in 1942, with Emil Jannings taking over the title role.
The film was made at the Johannisthal Studios in Berlin by Tobis Film one of the leading German companies of the era. It was shot at a variety of locations involving several related to the historic events of film including in Berlin, Vienna, Bad Gastein and Babelsberg Palace. Plau am See in Mecklenburg was also used for shooting. The film's sets were designed by the art directors Karl Machus and Erich Zander.
The film recalls the nineteenth century desire for German unification which at the time was threatened from several corners. From the liberals, from crown prince Frederich (who is shown as an English puppet) and the French who attempt to annex the left bank of the Rhine. The historical feature opens in 1862 with King Wilhelm I appointing Bismarck as head of the Prussian government. With Germany divided into 35 different political entities and power transferred to various principalities, the nation is portrayed as desperately longing for national unity. The Austrian Kaiser, also wishing unity, appears unconcerned with the northern province. His interest rests in asserting control over the German Confederation. Wilhelm I, unable to control the parliament, is on the verge of abdication. The crown prince and his English wife wish the installation of a British style government which may undermine German unity. The king's last resort is the appointment of Bismarck as his Prime Minister. Bismarck's first political act is to dissolve the Prussian parliament following the refusal of an opposition leader, Virchow, to finance military reform and rearmament plans.
From 1864 to 1871, Bismarck wages several wars against Denmark, Austria, and France. According to his main political principle; the most decisive political questions are not solved by parliamentary discussions and resolutions but by "Eisen und Blut", Iron (weaponry) and blood alone. The film concludes with the 1871 proclamation of a new German Empire at the Hall Of Mirrors in Versailles. United under the leadership of Prussia, the new nation is armed with a strong military force built to withstand powerful and malevolent neighbours.
Armed forces victories are depicted as the handiwork of one great man; the Battle of Königgrätz is viewed solely the work of General Moltke. There are no battlefield recreations. [2]
The storyline blends history with Third Reich era propaganda such as the assassination attempt on Bismarck by Ferdinand Cohen-Blind, who the film calls, an "English Jew", heroically stopped by Bismarck, unscathed by bullets. Spending a few years in England, his motives are questioned over his loyalty in preservation of the German state. Surreptitiously viewing an "evil Jew" attempt to halt German unity, there is also an underlying twin theme of the disruption of German Politics by the English. Bismarck believes this to be a sign from god that he is destined to unite Germany.
Released in the wake of the 1939 Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, it depicts a parallel view to Bismarck's that a Russian alliance will safeguard the Prussians in the east. [3]
The music was composed by Norbert Schultze. [4] Bismarck cost 1,794,000 ℛℳ (equivalent to $7,940,501in 2021) to produce. [5]
The film was approved by the censors on 19 November 1940, and premiered on 6 December. [6] It earned 4.4 million ℛℳ (equivalent to $19,475,029in 2021) at the box office for a profit of 1,989,000 ℛℳ (equivalent to $8,803,599in 2021). [5] Its success led to a sequel, The Dismissal , being produced. [7]
The Junkers were members of the landed nobility in Prussia. They owned great estates that were maintained and worked by peasants with few rights. These estates often lay in the countryside outside of major cities or towns. They were an important factor in Prussian and, after 1871, German military, political and diplomatic leadership. The most famous Junker was Chancellor Otto von Bismarck. Bismarck held power in Germany from 1871 to 1890 as Chancellor of the German Empire. He was removed from power by Kaiser Wilhelm II.
Albrecht Theodor Emil Graf von Roon was a Prussian soldier and statesman. As Minister of War from 1859 to 1873, Roon, along with Otto von Bismarck and Helmuth von Moltke, was a dominating figure in Prussia's government during the key decade of the 1860s, when a series of successful wars against Denmark, Austria, and France led to German unification under Prussia's leadership. A moderate conservative and supporter of executive monarchy, he was an avid modernizer who worked to improve the efficiency of the army.
The office of Minister-President, or Prime Minister, of Prussia existed from 1848, when it was formed by King Frederick William IV during the 1848–49 Revolution, until the abolition of Prussia in 1947 by the Allied Control Council.
The Free Conservative Party was a liberal-conservative political party in Prussia and the German Empire which emerged from the Prussian Conservative Party in the Prussian Landtag in 1866. In the federal elections to the Reichstag parliament from 1871, it ran as the German Reich Party. DRP was classified as centrist or centre-right by political standards at the time, and it also put forward the slogan "conservative progress".
The German Progress Party was the first modern political party in Germany, founded by liberal members of the Prussian House of Representatives in 1861 in opposition to Minister President Otto von Bismarck.
The House Order of Hohenzollern was a dynastic order of knighthood of the House of Hohenzollern awarded to military commissioned officers and civilians of comparable status. Associated with the various versions of the order were crosses and medals which could be awarded to lower-ranking soldiers and civilians.
The House of Bismarck is a German noble family that rose to prominence in the 19th century, largely through the achievements of the statesman Otto von Bismarck. He was granted a hereditary comital title in 1865, the hereditary title of Prince of Bismarck in 1871, and the non-hereditary title of Duke of Lauenburg in 1890. Several of Otto von Bismarck's descendants, notably his elder son Herbert, Prince of Bismarck, have also been politicians.
The Hymn of Leuthen is a 1933 German film depicting Frederick the Great, directed by Carl Froelich starring Otto Gebühr, Olga Chekhova and Elga Brink. It was part of the cycle of nostalgic Prussian films popular during the Weimar and Nazi eras. The title refers to the 1757 Battle of Leuthen.
The Great King is a 1942 German drama film directed by Veit Harlan and starring Otto Gebühr. It depicts the life of Frederick the Great, who ruled Prussia from 1740 to 1786. It received the rare "Film of the Nation" distinction. It was part of a popular cycle of "Prussian films".
Ohm Krüger is a 1941 German biographical film directed by Hans Steinhoff and starring Emil Jannings, Lucie Höflich, and Werner Hinz. It was one of a series of major propaganda films produced in Nazi Germany attacking the United Kingdom. The film depicts the life of the South African politician Paul Kruger and his eventual defeat by the British during the Boer War.
Unternehmen Michael is a 1937 German film directed by Karl Ritter, the first of three films about the First World War which he made during the period when the Third Reich was rearming.
Fridericus is a 1937 German historical film directed by Johannes Meyer and starring Otto Gebühr, Hilde Körber and Lil Dagover. It is based on the life of Frederick II of Prussia. It was part of the popular cycle of Prussian films. It was shot at the Halensee Studios in Berlin and on location in Brandenburg. The film's sets were designed by the art directors Otto Erdmann and Hans Sohnle.
I Accuse is a 1941 Nazi German pro-euthanasia propaganda film directed by Wolfgang Liebeneiner and produced by Heinrich Jonen and Ewald von Demandowsky.
Carl Peters is a 1941 German historical drama film directed by Herbert Selpin and starring Hans Albers, Karl Dannemann, and Fritz Odemar. It was produced as an anti-British propaganda film during the Second World War.
The Dismissal is a 1942 German film directed by Wolfgang Liebeneiner about the dismissal of Otto von Bismarck. It was one of only five films to receive the honorary distinction "Film of the Nation" by the Reich Propaganda Ministry Censorship Office.
Friedrich Schiller – The Triumph of a Genius is a 1940 German film, based on the novel Passion by Norbert Jacques. The film focuses on the early career of the German poet Friedrich Schiller.
The Higher Command is a 1935 German historical film directed by Gerhard Lamprecht and starring Lil Dagover, Karl Ludwig Diehl and Heli Finkenzeller. Produced and distributed by UFA, it was shot at the company's Babelsberg Studios in Potsdam. The film's sets were designed by the art directors Otto Erdmann and Hans Sohnle.
Fridericus Rex is a 1922 German silent historical film directed by Arzén von Cserépy and starring Otto Gebühr, Albert Steinrück and Gertrud de Lalsky.
Pour le Mérite is a 1938 propaganda film produced and directed by Karl Ritter for Nazi Germany. The film follows the story of officers of the Luftstreitkräfte in the First World War who were later involved in the formation of the Luftwaffe. Pour le Mérite propagates the "stab legend", which consigns the German military defeat in World War I to an alleged treason in the homeland. At the same time, Ritter also glorifies the former fighter pilots as heroes of National Socialism.