The night of the generals

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Movie
German title The night of the generals
Original title The Night of the Generals
Country of production Great Britain , France
original language English , French
Publishing year 1967
length 145 minutes
Age rating FSK 16
Rod
Director Anatole Litvak
script Joseph Kessel ,
Paul Dehn
production Sam Spiegel
music Maurice Jarre
camera Henri Decaë
cut Alan Osbiston
occupation
synchronization

The Night of the Generals , also known as The Night of the Generals (original title: The Night of the Generals ), is a British - French crime and war film by director Anatole Litvak from 1967. It is based on the novel of the same name by Hans Hellmut Kirst and premiered in London in late January 1967 . The Federal German rental start was on March 7, 1967.

action

In 1942 a prostitute was murdered in Warsaw . The defense - Officer Gray takes over the investigation as a witness a German General saw coming out of the room of the victim. The evidence that Grau collects incriminates three high officers: General von Seydlitz-Gabler, Major General Kahlenberg and Lieutenant General Tanz. Since all three have something to hide - namely the murder, an extramarital love affair and the collaboration on a plan of overthrow - the generals ensure that Grau is removed from the case and “praised” to Paris .

The case remained under lock and key until the three generals were summoned to Paris in 1944. There are currently plans to remove Hitler forged. Kahlenberg is one of the conspirators, while Seydlitz-Gabler is undecided. Tanz, who knows nothing about the plans, is loyal to the Nazi leader. Private Hartmann, orderly of General Tanz, witnesses a second murder of a prostitute in Paris. The killer is dance. He asks Hartmann to desert , since his word would not count against that of a general. Grau investigates the murder and realizes that it was committed in the same way as the murder in Warsaw. He resumes his investigation and identifies Tanz as the killer. Before Grau can arrest him, July 20, 1944 , comes the assassination attempt on Hitler. Shortly thereafter, Grau confronts Tanz with the evidence. Dance kills the investigator and portrays him as one of the conspirators.

Long after the end of the war, another prostitute was murdered in Hamburg in 1965 . The French Interpol official Morand takes on the case. He acts out of gratitude to Grau, who did not report his contacts to the Resistance during the occupation . At a reunion of old Nazis, Morand Tanz confronts the results of his investigation. When Morand presented Hartmann as his witness, Tanz went into an adjoining room and shot himself.

background

Alexandre Trauner, Oscar- winning for Das Appartement (1961), was responsible for the furnishings. The later Polish director Andrzej Żuławski was employed as an assistant director.

The film character of Lieutenant General Tanz is based on Paul Hausser , who, as SS Colonel Group Leader and Colonel General of the Waffen SS, suppressed the General's coup in France after the assassination attempt on July 20, 1944, and like the film General Tanz for a while after the war was in custody and, after his release, played a leading role in the veterans' associations of the Waffen SS.

Reviews

The film-dienst noted that Anatole Litvak's film wanted to be "a psychological study, time-lightening and restoration criticism" and at the same time "depict conspiracy conflicts (July 20) and conscience problems" without, however, "giving up melodrama, criminalistic stimulus and erotic tickling [...]" to want. In this way the night of the generals ends “in the colportage” and is only “[really] oppressive” in certain scenes, for example with the “destruction of a residential area in Warsaw”. According to the film magazine Cinema , the film adaptation of the novel "unfortunately has lengths". Instead of taking over as a director with “mass extermination and criticism of fascism, psychological study plus crime story”, “[Litvak] should have focused”. The conclusion was: "Ambitious, but completely overloaded."

Even the Protestant film observer did not think much of The Night of the Generals . The result was a “[a] elaborately shot crime film about a girl-murdering German general”, which “could neither offer the viewer a time picture nor a psychological study [...]” and whose “entertainment value was poor despite the large cast”.

Awards

Peter O'Toole received a David di Donatello for best foreign actor for his performance .

synchronization

The German dubbed version was produced by Ultra Film Synchron GmbH, Munich.

role actor Voice actor
Lieutenant General Dance Peter O'Toole Sebastian Fischer
Major gray Omar Sharif Michael Chevalier
Private Hartmann Tom Courtenay Joachim Ansorge
Major General Kahlenberg Donald Pleasence Wolfgang Buettner
Ulrike von Seydlitz-Gabler Joanna Pettet Heidi Treutler
Inspector Morand Philippe Noiret Holger Hagen
General von Seydlitz-Gabler Charles Gray Wolf Ackva
Eleonore von Seidlitz-Gabler Coral Browne Carola Höhn
Colonel Sandauer John Gregson Heinz Petruo
Otto Nigel Stock Benno Hoffmann
Field Marshal Erwin Rommel Christopher Plummer Paul Klinger
Liesowski Yves Brainville Benno Sterzenbach
doctor Sacha Pitoëff Alexander Allerson
Wionczek Charles Millot Holger Kepich
Colonel Raymond Gérôme Heinz Welzel
Kopatski Pierre Mondy Willy Friedrichs
Raymonde Nicole Courcel Marianne Mosa
From Stauffenberg Gérard Buhr Herbert Weicker
Houses Michael Goodliffe Erich Ebert
Colonel Mannheimer Patrick Allen Manfred Andrae
General Carl-Heinrich von Stülpnagel Harry Andrews Erik Jelde

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ The Night of the Generals. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed March 2, 2017 .Template: LdiF / Maintenance / Access used 
  2. ↑ See cinema.de
  3. ↑ Evangelischer Presseverband München, Review No. 102/1967.
  4. ↑ The Night of the Generals. In: synchronkartei.de. German synchronous index , accessed on June 26, 2017 .