Brother Martin (1981)

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Movie
German title Brother martin
Original title Brother Martin
Country of production France ,
Germany
original language French
Publishing year 1981
length 180 minutes
Rod
Director Jean Delannoy
script Alexandre Astruc ,
Jean Delannoy ,
Roland Laudenbach
music Jacques Loussier
camera János Kende
occupation

The feature film Brother Martin (French title: Frère Martin ) with Bernhard Lincot as Martin Luther is a television film in two parts that was shot shortly before Martin Luther's 500th birthday in 1983.

The two-parter was a coproduction by TF - 1 Paris , SFP Paris , Taurus Film Munich and Bayerischer Rundfunk . The film first aired in France on September 8, 1981. In Germany, the first part was broadcast on November 9, 1983 and the second part on November 13, 1983 on ARD .

action

Martin Luther became an Augustinian monk contrary to his father's will . But Brother Martin abhorred begging from the poor peasants, as is customary with the Augustinians. Are such donations " good works " and saving? Is it right for a poor peasant who is caught poaching by nobles to be condemned to death by them at once? Brother Martin has to experience such a thing and, because he is just passing by and so happens to be present, he is asked to hear the condemned's last confession, which he does. The farmer is hanged and his son Bernhard, who witnesses the events, remains with grief and anger against the nobles and monks as helpers of the authorities. Brother Martin falls into strong doubts after these experiences. The superior of the order Johann von Staupitz , who observed this, worried about him. He tries to help brother Martin and admonishes him: "God is not angry with you, you are angry with God."

After days of inner unrest, Martin gains the redeeming knowledge that God's justice is based on his grace . Man, including himself, only has to believe . Brother Martin soon became a professor at the new Wittenberg University, where he taught moral theology . In Wittenberg he also preaches from the church pulpit. When he learns that Johann Tetzel is preaching indulgence with the approval of the Pope , he acts and publishes 95 theses against this practice. The Reformation begins.

Bernhard, the son of the executed poacher, also initially became an advocate of Luther's new teachings. But after the misfortune accumulates in Bernhard's private life, he again becomes an enemy of Luther. His wife Margarete took her own life after their unbaptized child died shortly after birth. Bernhard now believes that God is angry with him because he converted to Luther's side.

In April 1521 Luther was at the Diet of Worms and had to answer to the emperor there. Luther is supposed to revoke his theses and teachings, but he does not and the Emperor Charles V decides that Martin Luther may return home within the next 20 days, but should be outlawed after this time . On the way home, Luther is abducted by armed horsemen from Elector Friedrich von Sachsen , Luther's sovereign. After this fictitious attack, through which he got to the Wartburg , he lived there hidden and in safety as Junker Jörg . During this time he translated the New Testament into German. However, peace does not last long. Riots have broken out in Wittenberg and Luther feels obliged to return. Back in Wittenberg, he began to preach and tried to restore order.

criticism

In 1983 Michael Skasa wrote in Die Zeit that Brother Martin would be “a terrible two-parter”, “in which nothing really is right and the wrong thing hasn't even been done: the atmosphere is wrong, history is falsified, the characters next to it [...] You don't know what and why and where, you see meadows and costumes and a pithy French man who calls himself Martin ... "

See also

literature

Web links

References and comments

  1. ↑ On TV this week . In: Der Spiegel . No. 45 , 1983 ( online ).
  2. ↑ a b Internet Movie Database - Brother Martin
  3. ↑ Alexandre Astruc had written the screenplay around 1950. At that time he had intended the film role of Martin Luther for the actor Pierre Fresnay . (cf. Wolfgang Jäschke: Martin Luther . Munich 1983, p. 152 and p. 155.)
  4. ^ Wolfgang Jäschke: Martin Luther . Munich 1983, p. 125.
  5. ↑ See review of the time