The man with the bassoon
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| Original title | The man with the bassoon |
| Country of production | Germany , Austria |
| original language | German |
| Publishing year | 2011 |
| length | 205 minutes |
| Rod | |
| Director | Miguel Alexandre |
| script | Miguel Alexandre, Harald Göckeritz based on the novel of the same name by Udo Jürgens and Michaela Moritz |
| production |
Regina Ziegler Klaus Graf |
| music | Udo Juergens, Nic Raine |
| camera | Gernot Roll |
| cut | Tobias Forth |
| occupation | |
| |
The Man with the Bassoon is a two-part television film from 2011 . Premiere had the film on September 18, 2011 at the Casino Velden, on 29 and 30 September 2011, the premiere took place (two parts) at ORF and ARD . The film is based on the autobiographical bestseller of the same name by Udo Jürgens and Michaela Moritz from 2004. Udo Jürgens was honored with this film on his 77th birthday. The film adaptation extends over a period from 1891 to 2010 and tells the story of three generations. The first section tells of Heinrich Bockelmann , Udo's grandfather, who rose to become the Russian tsar's banker in Moscow, was arrested and imprisoned in the First World War , but managed to save himself and his family. The second section deals with Udo's father Rudolf Bockelmann , mayor of Austria, who becomes a prisoner between Nazi ideology and his own values. The circle closes with the life of his son Udo Jürgens, whose development and career the film traces by showing how it came about that Udo Jürgens became one of the most important entertainment musicians in the German-speaking world.
action
After a concert, Alex, Udo Juergens' tour manager, informed him that someone from Moscow had called for him about a bronze statue “The man with the bassoon”. Udo is touched and says that the man with the bassoon was the reason for his grandfather to emigrate to Russia many years ago . His thoughts go back to the past:
- Heinrich and Anna Bockelmann (grandparents of Udo Jürgens)
When the 20-year-old Heinrich Bockelmann visited the Bremen Christmas market in 1891 , a street musician who played the song Kalinka with his bassoon touched him so much that he made the decision to fundamentally change his life and go to Russia. 20 years later he has a respected private bank in Moscow, which even Tsar Nicholas II entrusted a large part of his fortune. Shortly before the start of the war, his wife gave him a bronze statue of a bassoon player, which bears a striking resemblance to the street musician.
When the First World War broke out in 1914 , Bockelmann took the view that a starving people would rise up at some point and then the upper class would be swept away. When the rights of the Germans in Moscow were severely curtailed in August 1914, Bockelmann and his bank were also affected. After Germany declared war on Russia, the banker decides to leave the country with his family. When the family is at the Moscow train station, they are refused entry. By bribery , Heinrich Bockelmann succeeded in getting his family to leave Sweden . He promises his wife, who does not want to drive without him, will meet soon. You have the task of bringing the children to safety. He is arrested shortly afterwards.
The conditions in the jails where the detainees are housed are catastrophic. When Heinrich Bockelmann met his friend Baron von Thalen again in one of the prisons in Siberia, it was good for both men. After many months, Bockelmann was finally informed that he was imprisoned because he was suspected of espionage , which was the death penalty . When he told the baron about it, he said they had to "get out of here" before it was too late, because no matter who won the war, they would be killed in any case. Von Thalen also indicates to the friend that he no longer believes that he will see his family again.
On the orders of the camp commandant in Moscow, Bockelmann is to transfer funds from his (Bockelmann's) private assets to the bankrupt prison that is urgently needed in the reception camps. If he tried to escape, he would be a dead man. When he returns to his cell, he finds his friend Baron von Thalen dead. Tears run down his cheeks as he takes him in his arms. Heinrich receives a pass to Moscow, where the unbelievable happens: he meets the man with the bassoon again. The experience inspires him so much that he wants to dare to flee to Sweden.
During his approved trip to Moscow, Bockelmann meets the socialist Kropotkin, who had betrayed him at the Moscow train station, but now offers him to help him escape. After a moment's hesitation, Bockelmann goes into his hands. Before he starts his escape, he gives Nastasja, a confidante from his time in Moscow, a letter to his family. She shouldn't send him off until two weeks after he fled. If he can do it, and he will, he will intercept him in time. With the help of Kropotkin and the helpers who support him, Heinrich Bockelmann manages to get to Finland. From there he goes to Saltsjöbaden in Sweden, where his family has fled. He finally reaches the house where his family now lives and from the gate he sees his sons Erwin , Rudi and Werner . Then his wife Anna steps out of the door with little Johnny in her arms.
- Rudi and Käthe Bockelmann (parents of Udo)
In the summer of 1944, Rudi and Käthe Bockelmann lived with their sons John, Udo and Manfred in Carinthia , where Rudolf Bockelmann was mayor of the Ottmanach community . The family adapts to the prevailing conditions as best it can. During an exercise by the Hitler Youth , of which Udo is also a member, a dramatic incident occurs. A very young gang leader lets Udo step forward, shouts at him uncontrollably and then gives him such a brutal slap in the face for no reason that the boy sinks stunned into the grass and the voice that continues screaming can only be heard muffled and vaguely. One of the boys helps Udo up, blood trickles out of his ear and nose. The doctor confirms Udo's parents that it was not a slap in the face, but a very brutal blow. Udo's eardrum was torn so that he would never get his full hearing back. Udo's father Rudi still says that Udo must have done something to cause such abuse.
Heinrich Bockelmann, who visits his son's family, never wanted to have anything to do with this pack, as he calls the Nazis. He has lived alone in Merano since he separated from his wife Anna . Regarding his son Rudi, he says that if he had known what would become of Germany one day, he might never have come back, and he adds thoughtfully that things might have turned out differently between himself and his wife Anna. He accuses Rudi of getting involved with the devil. If he had really listened to his inner voice, he would not have let himself be carried away by the current. The old man tells his grandson Udo that he has to go straight ahead, his own way, then in the end he will get what he really wants.
When the situation worsened in January 1945 and the front kept getting closer, Rudi Bockelmann and his family went to the Lüneburg Heath , where Rudi's mother Anna lived. Before that, Bockelmann gave the Russian slave laborer Aljoscha the box with the bronze statue “The man with the bassoon” for safekeeping. When Bockelmann knew his family was in good hands at Gut Barendorf , he went back to Ottmanach, since as mayor he was responsible for the place. Käthe Bockelmann has to let go of her husband with a heavy heart.
Back in Ottmanach, Rudi Bockelmann has to answer to the Gestapo . He is accused of leaving his community and deserting with his family. That makes him a traitor to the people. The interrogating officer also lets him know immediately that he will be hanged. In addition, books were found with him, degenerate books: Franz Kafka , Erich Kästner and Thomas Mann . Bockelmann says he has read these books in his library since childhood, but has not read them for a long time. He is also accused of speaking Russian. On Bockel's reply, he grew up in Moscow, the official scolds: "A Kommunistensau So you are too." Bockelmann is thrown into a prison cell, where he meets a doctor who has been sentenced to death for a deserter medically had supplied. When Bockelmann said in one of his interrogations that things must be bad for Germany if one had to rely on the testimony of a thirteen-year-old because the officer was talking about the Volkssturm in connection with Rudi's sons, he was brutally attacked. During an interrogation, Bockelmann incidentally learns that his father Heinrich died the day before yesterday. They are not ready for any further information.
When Rudi Bockelmann was called in for interrogation in May 1945, he was sitting across from a completely transformed officer who greeted him with the words that after all they weren't monsters and that he should remember if one day he was asked about it. While Käthe Bockelmann is in an air raid shelter at the time of the liberation by the Americans, Rudi Bockelmann finds his former office empty, no longer a trace of the Nazis . Before they left, they tried to burn evidence, which was evidence of scraps of paper. Bockelmann tears run down his cheeks.
16 months later, the Bockelmann family is reunited. Rudi Bockelmann happily listens to Udo, who plays his own composition on the piano for his father.
- Udo Bockelmann alias Udo Jürgens
Udo's uncle Erwin, who is successful in the oil industry, gives a garden party in his Hamburg property on Elbchaussee . When his gaze falls on his nephew Udo, who is sitting at the piano, he wants to know from his brother Rudi how long he wants to watch his son Udo's inactivity. In an address given to his brother a little later, Rudi Bockelmann said that Erwin was the true successor to her wonderful father Heinrich.
Udo works as a bar musician in Salzburg. There he meets the young actress Gitta, who sobbing says that it's not about talent, about what you can do, but about whom you can work with. Udo is celebrating his 21st birthday with her and his musician friends in the Studio 15 jazz club . Gitta arranges an appearance for Udo with the playing Freddie Brocksieper band . Udo is speechless, all the more because the band wants him for the next number. Thunderous applause is his reward. Gitta and Udo become a couple. When Udo later unwraps his father's present, it is the gold watch that already belongs to his grandfather.
In the period that followed, Udo tried to advance musically. He sends recordings to the Polydor record company . He tells Gitta that maybe it would be best if he went to America - Frank Sinatra , Oscar Peterson , Duke Ellington , Count Basie , all the great musicians he admires came from there. Gitta tells him about an offer at the Theater an der Wien . Udo advises her immediately. He also decides to use the stage name "Udo Jürgens" from now on. The postman brings a confirmation from Polydor. When Udo was supposed to record a record in Munich , he didn't like what he was supposed to sing at all: “The moonlight from Portofino”.
In the summer of 1957, Udo traveled to New Jersey in the USA with his friend Klaus . There he met the student Junius from Harlem , who invited him to visit him there. Together they go to a jazz club, where Udo is approached by a black guy who asks him what kind of music he is making. Udo is immediately asked for a sample, he sits down at the piano and sings. Besides a kiss from a young, dark-haired woman, the singer also received a lot of applause for his performance.
Back in Munich, Udo sings in 1961 What I want to tell you . Again he has to deal with the Polydor producer. Anything he thinks is good is rejected. Ultimately, you end the record deal with him prematurely. In autumn 1961 Udo and Gitta separated for good. Both are sad when they split up. Gitta says she knows that the only thing that matters to him is his music.
When Udo appears again in the bar, his uncle Erwin appears. Udo is singing True Love right now . Even now, his uncle still has no understanding of what Udo is doing, even thinks that one should be ashamed of it. He asks his nephew not to be in the family villa that evening because he is expecting important guests. When Udo later visits another bar, he listens to Shirley Bassey on the radio with "his" song Reach for the Stars . Shortly afterwards, Udo is asked by the producer Hans R. Beierlein whether he dares to write and sing his own songs - songs that reflect the fears and worries of the population and have their finger on the pulse, authentic songs. Udo is speechless, then he says moved, he's been dreaming about it for years.
On March 5, 1966, Udo Jürgens competed for his home country Austria at the Grand Prix Eurovision de la Chanson in Luxembourg with his song Merci, Chérie . The family follows the broadcast on television, his uncle Erwin is also watching, as are Gitta and other friends and last but not least his grandmother Anna, who looks at old family photos with tears in her eyes. Udo wins with his song. This is followed by sold out tours and cheering people at every concert. One success chases the next. After one of his big performances, Udo goes on stage in a bathrobe for the first time. It should be his future trademark. When he comes back to his dressing room after an encore, his uncle Erwin is reported to him. It is very seldom that he apologizes to someone, but he has to do that now, his uncle tells him. He was completely wrong. The men embrace.
- Moscow 2010
Udo has meanwhile flown to Moscow and was warmly received by old Aljoscha and his grandson. He had last seen Alyosha when he was ten years old. Aljoscha says, "The man with the bassoon" is already waiting for him. He assures Udo that his father was so good to him that you never forget that. When they arrive at Aljoscha's apartment, the men first drink a vodka goodbye. When Aljoscha hands the figure over to Udo, he says, touched, that it was 65 years ago that he last held it in his hands. His grandfather told him that this character would always take care of him and that somehow she did. Below the figure there is a letter from the grandfather to his descendants. It is the letter that he gave Nastasja before he fled:
“ If you should receive this letter before I'm with you, then something has happened to me. But I am sure you will understand that I had to try to escape. In an hour when the possible freedom is as close to me as the possible end, I am writing these lines in the hope of letting a part of myself live on in the thoughts and feelings of my family. Because a family is like a tree. Anchored in the ground by a network of strong and weak roots, which unite in its trunk and find their reflection in the branches facing the sky and striving towards it. Each a part of the whole, but only together the miracle of wind and weather and also of time. Only those who know the strengths and weaknesses of the whole will stand strong in their time. As inviolable as the oak in a storm, as I have often wished for in my life, but could not always claim. "
- Meran 1955
A car pulls up in front of the Meraner Hof and an Englishman gets out of it. The man investigates Heinrich Bockelmann, who gave him the most precious thing that could be given away, a new life. When he learns that Bockelmann has been dead for ten years, he asks in which cemetery he can find his grave. There “the man with the bassoon” unpacks his instrument and plays for him one last time at Heinrich Bockelmann's final resting place.
Production and Background
The historic family drama was filmed from September to December 2010 in Austria ( Vienna and Carinthia ), the Czech Republic , Germany and Russia . Film recordings were also made in Ottmanach Castle and on the Magdalensberg . It is the original castle in which Udo Jürgens grew up with his brothers. It is now privately owned by an English family. The opening scene “Bremen Christmas Market 1891” was filmed in Kolín , Czech Republic . Some of the scenes that take place in Russia were filmed in the Palais Ferstel in Vienna. The station scene in which the family was torn apart in World War I was created in Prague. The recordings that take place in Harlem were actually made in the studio in Cologne , where they worked with photo references.
The editing was done by Hans-Wolfgang Jurgan ( ARD Degeto Film ) and Klaus Lintschinger ( ORF ). Cornelia Schmidt-Matthiesen was responsible for production management. The film received historical expert advice from Prof. Dr. Jörg Baberowski . It is a co-production by ARD Degeto Film and ORF. Production was at Ziegler Film GmbH & Co. KG, producer Regina Ziegler , and Graf Filmproduktion GmbH, producer Klaus Graf . The film was funded by the TV Fund Austria , the Filmstiftung NRW , the FFF Bayern , the Kultur- und Tourismusreferat Carinthia and the Filmfonds Wien . The international title of the production is: The Man with the Bassoon . The production, which cost around 11 million euros, was shot exclusively digitally.
- DVD release and CD album
The man with the bassoon was released on DVD by Universum Film GmbH on September 30, 2011 (playing time 205 minutes). A Blu-ray version also exists, it has a playing time of 221 minutes. The soundtrack for the film The Man with the Bassoon was also released on September 30, 2011; Label: Ariola, Distribution: Sony.
Music in the film
The film music was recorded by the Babelsberg Film Orchestra , conducted by Nic Raine. The film songs are from Udo Jürgens. David Alexandre acted as piano double for Alexander Kalodikis, who played little Udo. The solo violin was played by Julian Rachlin .
- I would do it again
- The man with the bassoon
- Hey Ras Pashol
- Korobuschka
- Garden party
- My Funny Valentine
- There Will Never Be Another You
- Shake, Rattle & Roll
- Boardwalk blues
- This Love Of Mine
- Portofino's moonlight
- Valse Musette
- Go go go
- Give me a dream
- Black Empire Blues
- Bad Man Blues
- That Lucky Old Sun
- What I want to say to you
- Reach for the stars
- Sailor, your home is the sea
- True love
- Isn't a happy day
- Ele e ela
- Merci Cherie
- Seventeen years old, blond hair
- The sun rises again and again
- Song of the Hitler Youth (music: Carl Strauss, text: Heinrich Anacker )
Audience ratings
The first part of Der Mann mit dem Fagott , which ran on September 29, 2011 on Erste and ORF, had 4.19 million viewers in Germany (market share 13.7%) and in Austria 824,000 viewers with a market share of 32%. The second part, which was broadcast on September 30, 2011, attracted 4.16 million viewers in Germany (market share 14.5%), in Austria it was 701,000 with a market share of 29%.
Awards
The film won the Bambi in the Audience Award category in 2011 . In 2012 he received the German Television Award in the Best Multi-Part Series .
criticism
Jana Werner summed up for the national daily newspaper Die Welt that the film is “more than a biography”. It is "a journey through a turbulent century." The two-parter is "a complex journey through time through a century full of trials and tribulations."
Rainer Tittelbach from Tittelbach.tv said, “'The man with the bassoon' [is] not a fictional film about the career of Udo Jürgens.” The “turbulent history of the Bockelmanns” is told, but it is “developing into a real story the two-parter isn't. "Tittelbach continued in his judgment:" The family stations are colorfully illustrated and processed. Instead of the 'man with the bassoon' you wait for the man at the piano. David Rott played him very convincingly as a young man, and as a 76-year-old: Udo Jürgens himself. As a critic, there is much to criticize about this 'impossible' novel, as a (pop culture) fan you can be happy that this film exists. "
Focus editor Gregor Dolak pounded the filming as a whole, which was summarized as follows: “This film adaptation of a 'story of the century', in which Jürgens himself sometimes appears realiter, sometimes via playback of jazz songs, is quite a mess. In their unsuccessful way, at least honestly. Otherwise we would have come up with the idea of seeing Jürgens as more than a pop singer. Maybe a really big one in the music olympic. But so much exaggeration is forbidden with so much earthly straightness and honesty. "
TV Spielfilm, on the other hand, was of the opinion that director and co-author Miguel Alexandre "tells the life paths of the Bockelmann family as a highly emotional, beautifully decorated two-parter [and] at the same time just [touches] 100 years of European history." This was summarized in the sentence: “Time travel with great feelings, well illustrated.” (Thumbs up, humor, ambition, action and eroticism each receive one of three points, two points for tension and four out of five stars by the community).
Hermann Unterstöger from the Süddeutsche Zeitung emphasized that films of this genre are in “constant danger” of being “crushed by their own pomp” and by the “inevitable self-celebration of the protagonist” in such cases. His review goes on to say: “That this danger is circumvented in the man with the bassoon is due, on the one hand, to the skill of the director Miguel Alexandre, who skillfully bundles the many narrative strands, and, on the other hand, to a cast of actors that is not found every day : Christian Berkel, Ulrich Noethen, Valerie Niehaus, Melika Foroutan, Herbert Knaup and especially David Rott, who plays his Udo Jürgens as a rather tender, shy young man despite all his genius. "
Kino.de was of the opinion that the family epic, which includes over 100 years of contemporary history, “kitsch and art are closely related”, and ended his film review with the words: “However, the top-class actors from Christian Berkel can convince through Ulrich Noethen up to a wonderful David Rott as a young Udo Jürgens. A must for fans of the singer. "
literature
- Udo Jürgens and Michaela Moritz: The man with the bassoon , Munich 2004, ISBN 3-8090-2482-1
Web links
- The man with the bassoon in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- The man with the bassoon Various information about the film at daserste.de
- The man with the bassoon ( Memento from October 3, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) About the film: Picture gallery set to music at daserste.de
Individual evidence
- ↑ Austrian premiere of Udo Jürgens ' family saga “The man with the bassoon” ( memento of the original from October 6, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. at Graf Film.com. Retrieved May 26, 2013.
- ↑ The most important questions about the Udo Jürgens film The Man with the Bassoon from bild.de on October 1, 2011. Accessed on May 26, 2013
- ↑ The man with the bassoon Producer talk: Regina Ziegler and Klaus Graf in conversation ( Memento from September 24, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Producer talk at daserste.de. Retrieved May 26, 2013.
- ↑ a b Information on the Blu-ray Disc The man with the bassoon - The family saga of Das Erste.
- ↑ The man with the bassoon Bendedikt Herforth Production Design at herforth.info. Retrieved May 30, 2013.
- ↑ a b The man with the bassoon ( memento of the original from April 15, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Production data at graffilm.com. Retrieved May 26, 2013.
- ↑ The man with the bassoon on fernsehserien.de (with all DVDs and Blu-rays). Retrieved May 26, 2013.
- ↑ The man with the bassoon (soundtrack) CD album info at cd-lexikon.de. Retrieved May 26, 2013.
- ↑ Udo Jürgens: The soundtrack of his life! at bild.de. Retrieved May 26, 2013
- ↑ Song of the Hitler Youth at ingeb.org. Retrieved May 26, 2013.
- ↑ Udo Jürgens from the film about his life very moved Jana Werner. In: Die Welt, September 26, 2011. Retrieved May 26, 2011.
- ↑ Multi-part series "The man with the bassoon" Rainer Tittelbach, tittelbach.tv. Retrieved May 26, 2013.
- ↑ TV column “The man with the bassoon” Udo Jürgens plays the hero Gregor Dolak. In: Focus Online.de of September 29, 2011. Accessed on May 26, 2013.
- ↑ The man with the bassoon (1) at tvspielfilm.de. Retrieved May 26, 2013.
- ↑ Merci, chérie Hermann Unterstöger. In: Süddeutsche.de of September 28, 2011. Retrieved on May 26, 2013.
- ↑ The man with the bassoon film review at kino.de. Retrieved May 26, 2013.
