Luther film
A Luther film is a film that deals with the life and work of Martin Luther . In a narrower sense, it means feature films including television films that deal with Luther's biography. In a broader sense, however, documentaries such as Curt Oertel's The Obedient Rebel also belong to the Luther films.
backgrounds
Productions from 1911
Even in the days of the silent film, several feature films were made about the reformer. The first was written in 1911. It was called Doctor Martinus Luther and was about 20 minutes long. In 1913, 1923 and 1927 further silent Luther films were released, the last two with church support. A Luther film series planned in 1931 was never realized. The author of the series should be Carl Leyst kitchen master. After 1933, a short cinematic representation of Luther can only be found in the film The Immortal Heart , which was influenced by the time.
Productions after 1945
It was not until 1952, The obedient rebel by Curt Oertel staged. The following year followed the film Martin Luther by Irving Pichel , which was also shot in black and white and which was also financed by US Lutherans. The Luther feature film was the first American-German co-production after the war. In 1956, however, the film Thomas Müntzer - A film of German history , a real anti-Luther film, was published in the GDR, which met with criticism, especially in the FRG. The first Luther color film was probably the US feature film Luther in 1968 .
In 1983 - on the occasion of the 500th birthday of Martin Luther - in addition to numerous documentaries about Luther, other feature films were produced, for example Rainer Wolffhardt's Martin Luther . The GDR also tried with the utmost intensity to integrate Martin Luther into the socialist image of history. The planned production of a movie called Martin Luther based on a book by Helga Schütz was canceled early, but Kurt Veth's television production Martin Luther , with a total playing time of 450 minutes, was realized. After this little boom in the genre and with the end of the Cold War , fewer Luther films were produced. In 2003, Luther's most recent feature film, Luther , was released, which is again an American-German co-production. In the period that followed, more and more documentaries were created. The 2003 DVD release of the Luther feature film also included an audio commentary by producer Brigitte Rochow and production designer Rolf Zehetbauer . In said comment, the producer openly thought about another film adaptation, in which, however, the life of Luther's wife, Katharina von Bora should be more central. However, such a film was never made by her. Such an approach was only implemented in 2016 with a view to the Reformation anniversary in 2017 . The feature film "Katharina Luther" was first broadcast on February 22, 2017 in the evening program of ARD , followed by the documentary Luther and the Women .
classification
In the course of time, more than ten feature films and an almost innumerable number of documentaries have been made and embody different influences. In a very simplified way, the films can be classified according to Protestant, Catholic and left-wing intellectual communist influences. Further nuances and variants are also recognizable. The motivation of the individual participants is not only guided by audience demand, but also by inner conviction. Many of the productions mentioned were created with support from the Protestant side, recognizable, for example, from the participation of the Eikon . Some Luther films were not a commercial success either, for example the silent film from 1923, the same applied to the silent film production from 1927. Alexandre Astruc , screenwriter for the Luther film Brother Martin , for example, when asked where his interest in the character Martin Luther, and thus his, came from The motivation for participating in a Luther film project comes from: [...] What fascinates me most about this material is the groundbreaking new spirit that came into the world with Martin Luther. [...] .
Overview of the Luther feature films and Luther television films
Overview of the Lutherd documentation
| year | Movie title | Country of production | Director | Luther actor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1952 | The obedient rebel | FRG | Curt Oertel | |
| 1967 | Credo: Martin Luther - Wittenberg 1517 | GDR | Rudi Mueller | |
| 1983 | A student from Mansfeld - Martin Luther's youth | GDR | Heide Gauert | |
| 1981 | Martin Luther | GDR | Joachim Hadaschik | |
| 1983 | Who took the time to speak - Martin Luther at the Wartburg | GDR | Hanna Emuth | |
| 1983 | Citizen Luther - Wittenberg 1508–1546 | GDR | Lew Hohmann | |
| 1983 | Copyright by Luther | GDR | Lew Hohmann | |
| 2002 | Here I Stand: The Life and Legacy of Martin Luther | United States | TN Mohan | |
| 2003 | Martin Luther - A life between God and the devil | Germany | Lew Hohmann |
Jan Henning Kraus and Matthias Hummitzsch |
| 2004 | Luther against the Pope | France | Jean-François Delassus |
Romain Redler and Claude Brosset |
| 2005 | Luther - His life, way and legacy | Germany | Thomas Meewes | Joseph Fiennes |
| 2007 | Luther - fight with the devil | Germany | Günther Klein | Ben Becker |
| 2017 | Luther and the women | Germany | Gabriele Rose |
More movies
Kari Tikka published an opera called Luther in 2000 . It was also made into a film. The musical film adaptation, which should also be counted among the Luther films, cannot be classified in the aforementioned subdivision, feature film and documentary.
Films in which Luther appears, but in which he is only a marginal figure, for example in Michael Kohlhaas - The Rebel , are not considered Luther films.
On the 450th anniversary of Luther's death in 1996, the 30-minute documentary Luther Pictures by Dietmar Buchmann was broadcast for the first time on ARTE as part of a theme evening on Martin Luther . The said film deals with the change, but also with the abuse of the image of Luther over time. Pictures by Lucas Cranach the Elder and Lucas Cranach the Younger are shown. However, the main focus of the film is on Luther's portrayal in the film. Excerpts from the Luther films Luther - A Film of the German Reformation (1928), Martin Luther (1953), Thomas Müntzer - A Film of German History (GDR 1956), Der arme Mann Luther (1965) and Martin Luther (GDR 1983) are shown . Prof. Alfred Grosser and Friedrich Schorlemmer are interviewed as experts.
A similar film was made in 2003 under the name of film star Martin Luther . The 15-minute film contains excerpts from Die Wittenberger Nachtigall (1913) (or: Doctor Martin Luther. A life picture for the German people ), Luther - A film of the German Reformation (1928), Martin Luther (1953), Der arme Mann Luther ( 1965), The Reformer (1968), Brother Martin (1981), Martin Luther (FRG 1983) and Martin Luther (GDR 1983). The film has not yet been broadcast on television. It is only shown as part of museum education in the Saxony-Anhalt area .
The story series We Germans and The Germans also contain episodes that focus on Martin Luther. In the series Mitten Europa , episodes eight, nine and ten deal to a considerable extent with Martin Luther's life. The seventh part of the television series 2000 Years of Christianity , which deals with the history of Christianity , deals with Luther's work.
Humorous representations such as in Meeting of Minds , in the football game of the philosophers or in the Adventures of Martin Luther from The Meaning of Life have so far not made it to feature length or have not focused on Martin Luther in their performance.
References and comments
- ↑ Esther Pia Wipfler comments on this film that this film served the national Protestant propaganda. See EP Wipfler: Luther in Silent Film: On the Change in Protestant Mentality as Reflected in Film History up to 1930 . In: Archive for Reformation History , Vol. 98, 2007, page 183 ff. And page 197
- ↑ Cf. Document title - Luther in Silent Film - Résumé ( Memento of the original from February 22, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ See EP Wipfler: Luther in Silent Film: On the Change in Protestant Mentality as Reflected in Film History up to 1930 . In: Archive for Reformation History , Vol. 98, 2007, page 195
- ^ Jäschke, Wolfgang: Martin Luther. Reformer - heretic - national hero? . Munich, 1983: ISBN 3-442-06443-0
- ^ Robert Walinski-Kiehl: History, Politics and East German Film: The Thomas Müntzer (1956) Socialistic Epic . In: Central European history: CEH . Volume 39, p. 31 f.
- ↑ In order to finance the film, the makers of the film had circulated calls for the subscription of shares in advance. However, after the film was finished and released, the money was not paid back, and no interest was paid. This was justified by the fact that the income did not cover the production costs. See EP Wipfler: Luther in Silent Film: On the Change in Protestant Mentality as Reflected in Film History up to 1930 . In: Archive for Reformation History , vol. 98, 2007, p. 182 f.
- ^ Wolfgang Jäschke: Martin Luther. Reformer - heretic - national hero? . Munich, 1983, p. 152.
- ↑ In the documentation, extremely many excerpts from the feature film Luther from 2003 were used and the content is also based on this.
- ↑ The theme evening was called: Rebel und Gottesmann - Martin Luther - A Legacy for Europe
- ↑ Direction and script came from Dietmar Buchmann . The contribution was produced by Eikon , on behalf of MDR and in collaboration with ARTE . - See Lutherbilder - film by Dietmar Buchmann and Landesmediendienste Bayern eV - Lutherbilder
- ↑ The intention of the film is described in the first few minutes with the words: "This film wants to show how the image of Luther was revered and transfigured, used and misappropriated."
- ↑ Direction and script came from Christian Mertens. And Alexandra Schmidt (see Hamburg Media School - Die Graduiert des Filmstudiums - Alexandra Schmidt ( Memento of the original from November 17, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this note. ). The film was produced by the Potsdam University of Film and Television on behalf of the Luther Memorials Foundation in Saxony-Anhalt . Scientific advice was provided by Dr. Esther Wipfler and Dr. Volkmar Joestel . (According to a leaflet for the said film, which Dr. Esther Wipfler published as accompanying material and the library of the University of Film and Television, Potsdam - complete catalog )
- ↑ Luther is played here by Georg Prang . See The Internet Movie Database - The Germans - Luther and the Nation
- ↑ Luther cannot be seen in the original version. He is only spoken of.
literature
- Esther P. Wipfler: Martin Luther in Motion Pictures: History of a Metamorphosis , Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht (2011)
- Esther P. Wipfler: Luther in the silent film. On the change in the Protestant mentality as reflected in film history up to 1930 . In: Archive for Reformation History, Vol. 98 (2007), pp. 167-198, ISSN 0003-9381 .
- Horst Dähn, Joachim Heise : Luther and the GDR. The reformer and GDR television . Edition Ost, Berlin 1996, ISBN 3-929161-81-8 .
- Johannes Horstmann: On the change in the Luther image in facial writing and in film , Catholic Academy Schwerte (1983)
- Margret Trapmann, Fritz Hufen (Ed.): Martin Luther. Reformer, heretic, national hero? Texts, images, documents in ARD and ZDF . Goldmann, Munich 1983, ISBN 3-442-06443-0 .
- Werner Hess : Martin Luther. An introduction to his life with images from the documentary "The Obedient Rebel" by Curt Oertel and the feature film "Martin Luther" produced by Lutheran Church Production and Louis de Rochemont Associates New York . Stuttgart: Evang. Verl.-Werk, 1954