Buckelhannes

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Movie
Original title Buckelhannes
Country of production Germany
original language German
Publishing year 1913
length approx. 56 minutes
Rod
script Rudolf Schanzer
Wilhelm Jacoby
production Literary Lichtspielverlag
occupation

Buckelhannes is a German silent film drama from 1913 with Georg Jacoby in the title role.

action

Buckelhannes - the name says it all. He was born as a weak, pale and crippled boy, whose Quasimodo-like hump on his back was meant to be an invitation to mockery and scorn. Hannes' mother soon died, and his father, a notorious drunkard, was also absent due to his imprisonment. With that the boy was alone in the world. An old music teacher had once taught him to play the violin, and so Hannes moves from house to house with his instrument in order to earn a living. He gets mockery and humiliation in abundance for free when he applies for further work; nobody wants a hunchback around them. After another rejection, he collapses in front of Mr. Hartwig's commercial councilor. Two day thieves come along and are currently trying to check Villa Hartwigs for possible break-ins. They collect the lying have-nots, bring them to a ditch and bottle them in the hope of being able to win them over as accomplices for their upcoming breaks.

But Buckelhannes has preserved his pure soul, rushes to the house of the commercial councilor and warns him about the two rags who intend to break into his domicile. For his “betrayal”, the two crooks stab him in the chest with a knife. The seriously injured man is brought to Hartwig's house and nursed back to health in the following days by Hartwig's loving daughter Ilse. Hartwig feels indebted to the good-hearted man and offers him a decent amount of cash when he says goodbye, which Buckelhannes resolutely refuses. Instead, Hartwig enables him to continue his artistic training at the music college. Buckelhannes is very talented, and soon the trained violinist can give his first concert, which is a great success. Believing that things can only go up now, Buckelhannes gathers up all his courage and confesses his affection to Ilse. But she turns away from him with horror. A look in the mirror shows Hannes why.

But it gets worse. One day an old student friend of the landlord's house appears at the Hartwigs' house, accompanied by his son. A sympathy develops between him and Ilse, which then turns into love. For Hannes, observing this development day after day is like a stab in the heart. One day the company goes on a hunting trip into the mountains, where Hannes is also present. When he sees the young happiness constantly turtling, he grips infinite jealousy, coupled with the anger of the always disadvantaged. On a difficult mountain crossing, he cocks his rifle to send the annoying competitor to the afterlife when the ground begins to move beneath him. Buckelhannes first swayed, then started rolling and sliding and finally fell. His body was later found on a ledge.

Production notes

Buckelhannes , with the subtitle The Tragedy of the Ugly , passed the censorship in March 1913, was banned from young people and was premiered on April 5 of the same year. On the same day, a competing product from Deutsche Mutoskop, with the title Buckelhans, staged by Max Mack with himself in the lead role, was released in German cinemas. Buckelhannes , which started in Austria-Hungary on April 18, 1913, had three acts and was about 1030 meters long when it was first performed in Vienna. Who directed it is currently unknown.

Georg Jacoby, still seen here as an actor, made his cinema debut with this film. Co-screenwriter Wilhelm Jacoby was his father.

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