The Blue Max (film)

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Movie
German title The Blue Max
Original title The Blue Max
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1966
length 156 minutes
Age rating FSK 12
Rod
Director John Guillermin
script Ben Barzman
production Christan Ferry
Elmo Williams / Twentieth Century Fox
music Jerry Goldsmith
camera Douglas Slocombe
cut Max Benedict
occupation

The Blue Max is an aviation and war film that takes place in World War I and tells the rise and fall of a very ambitious German fighter pilot who came from a humble background. The basis of the script was the novel The Blue Max by Jack D. Hunter from 1964. The film captivates with its extraordinary flight scenes.

action

Lieutenant Bruno Stachel, a young man of petty bourgeois origins, came to a fighter squadron fresh from flying school in 1918, the last year of the First World War, after two years as a non-commissioned officer in the infantry . With his undisguised ambition to win the order Pour le Mérite (nickname: Blauer Max in homage to Max Immelmann , his first bearer from the field of the air force) as soon as possible by killing 20 people , he excites in the one shaped by the nobility , one from his point of view obsolete terms of honor committed and decadent officer caste. In particular, a rivalry develops with Wilhelm "Willi" von Klugermann, a flying ace who is only missing one single shot to get to the "Blue Max".

Stachel shoots down an enemy aircraft on the first use. Since the shooting could not be confirmed by an observer, it is not counted to Stachel's disappointment. On his next mission he fights against a British plane manned by two men. The gunner fails due to Stachel's fire. Stachel wants to give the defenseless aviator a chance and force it to land on his airfield. Shortly before landing, however, the wounded and temporarily unconscious gunner comes to, sees the German machine and takes up his machine gun to shoot sting again. Stachel has to fire back and the British plane crashes on the German airfield, killing both occupants. Stachel is then suspected of dishonor by squadron leader Captain Otto Heidemann, who was unable to observe the circumstances. In his opinion, this time Stachel only wanted enough witnesses to be shot down. However, Stachel's allegedly callous behavior is appreciated by General Graf von Klugermann (Willis' uncle). The general is also of the opinion that heroes like Stachel, coming from a humble background, are useful for war propaganda in the context of the general tiredness of war. The general's wife, Käti, who has a sexual relationship with Willi, also seems to enjoy the cool and ambitious sting.

During a mission, Stachel sees two British planes harassing Freiherr von Richthofen , the Red Baron . He shoots one down, but is wounded himself and can only make an emergency landing with difficulty.

He is brought back to the squadron base by Klugermann. There he meets von Richthofen, who thanks for the rescue and asks Stachel to come into his own squadron - which Stachel rejects to Heidemann's disappointment.

As the savior of Richthofens , Stachel was ordered to Berlin, where he convinced the Field Marshal General to allow a still immature new monoplane to be used in the war. He is invited to a social evening in General von Klugermann's house. He stays until the end and then sleeps with Kati. Back at the front, Willi von Klugermann furiously learns of Stachel's success at Käti. During a joint mission, he challenges Stachel to a daring flight maneuver. When the two rivals try to outdo each other, Willi crashes and dies.

On his return, Stachel states that two kills by Klugermann can be attributed to him. Although he because of a jammed his machine gun was able to make only 40 shots, he sticks to his version.

During a mission, Stachel lets himself into a dogfight against an express order in order to complete his 20 kills. The captain then threatens Stachel with the court martial , but this is again covered from above. Stachel travels to Berlin to be awarded the Blue Max . Anti-war demonstrations are already taking place there. Stachel is billeted the evening before the award of the Blue Max . The Countess visits him in his room. She reveals to him that she plans to flee to Switzerland because of the impending defeat and asks Stachel to accompany her. Outraged, he refuses. The countess leaves the room crying.

Stachel is awarded the Blue Max the next day . Captain Heidemann is flying the new monoplane for the first time as part of the celebrations. Meanwhile, General von Klugermann found out on the phone that his offended wife had reported the two unlawful killings of Stachel to the General Field Marshal. This calls for a court martial against Stachel. The general now fears for the reputation of the officer corps. After landing, Heidemann stated that the monoplane was a faulty design and dangerous to life. The general concealed this when he immediately asked Stachel to board the new aircraft himself and to show the audience what it was made of. Sting starts before Heidemann can intervene. As expected, the monoplane breaks apart during Stachel's daring maneuvers in the air and Stachel falls to his death, averting the feared disgrace by the court martial. Stachel is now posthumously considered a hero.

criticism

  • prisma-online : “Elaborate, technically brilliant war film about a flight squadron at the end of the First World War: 'The Blue Max', staged in 1965 by the English director John Guillermin and now color restored, impresses not only with gripping aerial combat scenes, but also with its interesting dramaturgy of interpersonal relationships in the military. The international top line-up succeeds again and again in dialogue to criticize the soldierly heroism and the code of honor. 'Blauer Max' is what the English called the order 'Pour le Mérite', the highest German honor for bravery during the First World War, whose bearers included Manfred Freiherr von Richthofen and the later Hitler paladin Hermann Göring. "
  • Lexicon of international film : “Elaborate war spectacle in the fighter pilot milieu of the First World War, staged in the style of the dream factory. The aerial combat shots are a technical masterpiece for the time. "

Awards

  • In 1967 Wilfred Shingleton won the British Film Academy Award for Best Production Design. The film was also nominated for Best Cinematography , Best Costumes and Best Newcomer (Jeremy Kemp). That same year, George Peppard took fifth place in the Laurel Awards for Best Actor in a Drama .

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ The blue max. In: Prism online. Retrieved January 29, 2017 .
  2. ^ The blue max. In: Lexicon of international film . Film service , accessed January 29, 2017 .Template: LdiF / Maintenance / Access used