The council of gods
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| Original title | The council of gods |
 | |
| Country of production | GDR |
| Publishing year | 1950 |
| length | 111 minutes |
| Rod | |
| Director | Kurt Maetzig |
| script |
Friedrich Wolf Philipp Gecht |
| production | DEFA Potsdam-Babelsberg |
| music | Hanns Eisler |
| camera | Friedl Behn-Grund |
| cut | Ilse Voigt |
| occupation | |
| |
The Council of the Gods is a German film drama directed by Kurt Maetzig based on a script by Friedrich Wolf . It sheds light on the path taken by the IG Farben Group from 1930 to 1948.
action
The film is based on a documentation published in 1947 and the files from the Nuremberg trials . At the center of the plot are the chairman of the board of directors, Privy Councilor Mauch - an allusion to the convicted war criminal Carl Krauch (1887–1968) - and the fictional chemist Dr. Scholz. Both are primarily responsible for the armaments and poison gas production of IG Farben . The pursuit of profit at any price tempts those involved to take an active part in the crimes of the Nazi regime . Dr. Scholz closed his eyes and ears until 1948 to save his position and his family. Only when terrible damage occurs during a prohibited explosives exercise in Ludwigshafen does he break his silence, additionally impressed by the Nuremberg trials. He is now resolutely against the renewed start of war production by the same corporate owners, the "Council of Gods".
background
The Council of the Gods is one of the first films to explicitly deal with the complicity of a German company in the Nazi crimes. It was created in the Althoff studio with exterior shots of the Babelsberg outdoor area as well as from the Leuna works . The world premiere took place on May 12, 1950 in East Berlin.
The Interministerial Committee for East-West Film Issues forbade the showing in the Federal Republic of Germany.
Film music
The composer Hanns Eisler composed the music for the film.
The 5th symphony by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky is used as the end to emphasize the people's victory in the struggle for peace .
Awards
- Author Friedrich Wolf, director Kurt Maetzig, cameraman Friedl Behn-Grund and architect Willy Schiller received the GDR National First Class Prize .
- The film received special recognition at the 5th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.
Reviews
"Technically remarkable DEFA political drama, which in the finale turns into an apotheosis of the peace movement à la Moscow."
“The film was an expensive DEFA prestige company. ... But under the direction of Kurt Maetzig, everything in this film turned out to be so striking, so abundantly clear that the intended effect often turned into its opposite. The film was of no great artistic importance. "
Voices on the film
“In my life I have made many films and many television stories, but never again experienced such a wonderful feeling of well-being as with the Council of Gods . To have Yvonne Merin contributed. She was a wonderful woman, just not a good actress, but she couldn't help it. Maetzig loved her and gave her the role. "
Awards
- 1950: Special honorary diploma at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival
- 1950: National Prize 1st class for director (Kurt Maetzig), screenwriter (Friedrich Wolf), cameraman (Friedl Behn-Grund) and architect (Willy Schiller)
literature
- Ingrid Poss, Peter Warnecke (ed.): Trace of the films, contemporary witnesses about DEFA. Berlin 2006, ISBN 3-86153-401-0
Web links
- The Council of the Gods in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- The Council of Gods at filmportal.de
- The Council of Gods at the DEFA Foundation
Individual evidence
- ^ Alfred Bauer : German feature film Almanach. Volume 2: 1946-1955 , p. 146
- ^ Federal Agency for Civic Education, censorship of DEFA films in the Federal Republic , December 18, 2008
- ↑ The Council of Gods. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed March 2, 2017 .
- ^ Reclams Filmführer, 2.A. 1973, ISBN 3-15-010205-7