Ludwig II (2012)
Ludwig II. Is a German-Austrian historical film by the directors Peter Sehr and Marie Noëlle from 2012. The production reports on the life of King Ludwig II of Bavaria .
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Crown Prince Ludwig suffers from the authoritarian upbringing of his father King Maximilian II and absolutely does not share his view of the war. In addition, through his love for music and the fine arts, he repeatedly incurs the displeasure of his father. For Ludwig, art is more important than daily bread.
Maximilian II died unexpectedly of a rose wound , and so Ludwig, full of idealism, ascended the Bavarian throne at the age of 18. In a time when war and poverty are omnipresent, he believes in a better world and wants to use his power to ensure that his people can live in peace and happiness. His empire should become the center of beauty, art and culture should flourish, instead of arms Ludwig wants to invest the state money in theater, music and education.
He spends his free time with young Sophie in Bavaria , his cousin and sister of the Austrian Empress. With her he can philosophize about music and the beauty of the world. In the castle, he has all of his rooms rebuilt and designed according to his ideas.
He loves Richard Wagner's operas , his passion and admiration for his works and their legends are so great that he wants to bring the controversial composer to his court. To achieve this, he instructs the well-known music lover Johann von Lutz to track down Wagner and bring him to him. He awaits the arrival of his idol with impatience and receives him with great respect. He settled Wagner's debts and obtained a pardon for the revolutionary and politically persecuted composer. His ministers rebel against Wagner's expensive sponsorship.
Ludwig throws himself into political business with initially great interest. He initiated a school reform and distributed musical instruments instead of weapons to his young cadets. He is of the opinion that should Bavaria ever be attacked, the music of Richard Wagner will sound against them, which would immediately disarm them. Even a conversation with his cousin Elisabeth of Austria , who wants to ask him for help in preventing the Prussians from waging war against Austria, fails because of his naive way of thinking that music alone is able to keep people's hearts at peace move.
Ludwig's ministers are not satisfied with the power that Wagner's ideas seem to have over the young king. The young king increasingly neglects the affairs of government. News of an imminent war reaches him while he is out and about with Wagner in the Bavarian mountains. The composer suggests that he exchange the ministers who now want to go to war with all their might. They in turn threaten to resign themselves if Ludwig does not part with Wagner and his influence. Since the king fears for his friend's life, he urges him to leave Bavaria. He must find that the circumstances of his time are against him. So his beloved kingdom gets involved in the war with Prussia against his will. Resigned and showing signs of the first delusional illnesses, Ludwig withdraws. The news of the defeat of his army hits him hard. After all, he spent the money that was earmarked for modern rifles on musical instruments. In his need his stable master Richard Hornig is at his side, but he does not want to admit his affection for men. In order to deal with the war defeat, he travels his country and shows himself to his people. And he plans his wedding to Sophie because he is convinced that the people expect this of him. As part of the wedding preparations, Wagner arrives at court again to take over the musical design. On this occasion Ludwig gets to know the young singer Heinrich Vogel, whom he absolutely wants to hear singing as Lohengrin , which causes Wagner's displeasure.
Sophie demands a proof of love in the form of a kiss from her groom. This leads to a scandal, and Ludwig cancels his already planned and longed-for wedding because he has to admit that he and his fiancée (because of his homosexual disposition, to which he does not confess to her or to others ) can connect no more than intimate friendship. In a letter he asks Sophie's forgiveness and understanding. In his opinion, she has a right to be happy, which she would not succeed at his side in the long run.
In addition to these private problems, political events are catching up with him again. Bavaria's defeat by Prussia forces the country to enter the war against France as a forced ally of Bismarck. Bismarck's efforts to create an all-German empire headed by an emperor destroyed the dream of a sovereign Bavarian kingdom that would continue to exist. Ludwig's brother Otto suffers a nervous breakdown and has to be taken to a sanatorium. The attending physician assumes that Otto will not wake up from his mental derangement. Ludwig promises to build his brother his own castle where he can be who he is. Just as he longs himself to have a place where he can be who he is. With this in mind, he had Neuschwanstein Castle built.
Nevertheless, Ludwig does not come to rest, the abysses of his soul are too deep, which torment him and make him despair. Disillusioned, he withdraws and takes refuge in the world of opera melodies. He does not want to admit the financial problems that the state budget has to suffer due to its splendid construction activities. But reality catches up with him, and Ludwig's opponents form up to overthrow him - with his castles in his dream realm of fantasy. Even his loyal and devoted Johann von Lutz, whom he had made minister, must doubt Ludwig's common sense. After a fire breaks out in the castle, Richard Hornig is seriously injured. The sadness of never being allowed to stand by his love for the stable master drives him even further into madness, which his opponents are now increasingly aware of. One of his ministers had a medical report drawn up in order to overthrow the king.
Ludwig senses the plan and intends to blow himself up with his locks before he can be chased away from them. But this project fails because of the appropriate explosives. The minister succeeds in bringing the king into medical care against his will in Berg Castle.
Desperate about the disregard for his royal privileges and his current treatment as a “poor lunatic”, he decided to escape this treatment. While taking a walk with his doctor, he escapes him and runs into Lake Starnberg , where he drowns.
"I want to remain an eternal mystery to myself and others ..."
Reviews
“The directors Peter Sehr and Marie Noëlle are now stepping up with their epic biographical historical film Ludwig II to let the people behind the legend come into their own. Thanks to excellent actors, opulent original locations and meticulous detailed work over long stretches, this succeeds very well [...] Ludwig II convinces with magnificent show values, impressive acting and a refreshingly unaffected approach. "
“It took a while before the fairy tale king Ludwig came back to the cinemas. But even in Peter Sehr's and Marie Noelle's new film, the eternal riddle remains unsolved [...] That Ludwig's castles are now tourist magnets, that they have proven to be by no means ruinous in the long term, but rather as a good investment, is revealed by Sehr and Noelle actual motive for her Ludwig II . Your film also wants to be a world cultural heritage, but at the level of state institutions. "
“The two title actors in the new biopic about Bavaria's king don't have the charisma of Helmut Berger . Nevertheless, Ludwig II by Peter Sehr and Marie Noelle is infotainment worth seeing [...] More enlightenment than aura, more television play than melodrama. The myth of Ludwig has evidently done away with. "
DVD
The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray on September 20, 2013.
Awards
- Bavarian Film Award 2012: Young Actor Award (Sabin Tambrea)
- New Faces Award 2013: Young Actor Award (Sabin Tambrea)
- German Film Award 2013: Nomination in the category Best Acting Achievement - Male Leading Role (Sabin Tambrea)
Web links
- Ludwig II. In the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Ludwig II at filmportal.de
- Ludwig II at crew united