Men without a beard

Movie
Original title	Men without a beard
Country of production	GDR
original language	German
Publishing year	1971
length	82 minutes
Rod
Director	Rainer Simon
script	Inge Desert Rainer Simon
production	DEFA
music	Peter Rabenalt
camera	Claus Neumann
cut	Helga Gentz
occupation
Hermann Beyer : Teacher Nickel Manfred Böhm : Otto Hintz Käthe Reichel : Mrs. Hintz Dieter Franke : Director Menschke Gerd Grasse : Bluestock Barbara Döbel : Hannchen Petra Thierbach : Margot Zeidler Angelika Witzsch : Carla Anton Jürgen Hruska : Christoph Höhne Peter Schmidt : Rudi Helm Rolf Hoppe : gangsters Erdmute Schmid : Miss Kunschus Margot Busse : Rita Ursula Staack : Rosi Schucht Horst Hiemer : Richard Günter Zschäckel : Kalle Ostara Körner : Aunt Grete Kurt Radeke : Uncle Kuhnat Heinz-Karl Konrad : Man on the train

Men without a Beard is a German DEFA feature film by Rainer Simon from 1971 based on the novel Das Klassenfest by Uwe Kant from 1969.

action

Teacher Nickel, who has only been working at the school in Spreewald for six months, is a class teacher in a ninth grade and issues the half-year reports. One of the pupils, Otto Hintz, 15 years old, is sent into the winter holidays with a certificate stating that at the end of the school year his promotion to the tenth grade is in danger.

Otto lives alone with his mother, who still affectionately calls him "Ottchen". However, she seems to be overwhelmed with the upbringing of her son. The only idea she has is to promise Otto a moped if he should be relocated in the summer. But now Otto first goes on vacation to see his grandparents, who live in a small village. Since they do not have a television, he is sent to the neighbors to see the desired film. Here he meets their daughter, who is about the same age. The rest of his stay, the two spend most of the time together, so that a little love develops.

After classes have started again, teacher Nickel tries to improve Otto's performance, as it is clear to him that Otto is not stupid, just listless. Otto also has a special problem: he is a dreamer. He constantly closes his eyes and sees himself as a great hero. Sometimes he's an acclaimed student who is a role model for the whole school. Sometimes he is a fighter who takes on rogues, villains, crooks and villains on the roofs of the railway in order to save the world. But back to reality he first has to speak to the headmaster of his school for a discussion, who wants to talk about his future in the presence of two classmates, the class teacher and another teacher. But Otto comes too late and explains that he first had to rescue a neighbor's canary from a tree. As a result of the debate, he will receive tutoring from his FDJ group. The film ends with an open mind in all directions.

production

The dramaturgy was in the hands of Gudrun Deubener .

Men without a beard was filmed on ORWO color and had after two previews on May 14, 1971 in the film and television club of the House of Young Talents in Berlin and on May 18, 1971 in the Berlin Central Club of the Art Union "Die Möwe", Luisenstrasse 18, then its festive premiere on May 20, 1971 in the Colosseum cinema in Berlin . It was first broadcast on GDR television in the second program on January 2, 1974.

criticism

According to Helmut Ullrich in the Neue Zeit , it is a lovable film in which everyday life is captured in a fresh, spontaneous and relaxed manner. The pointed and often cheeky-funny dialogue is presented with casual casualness in the way people really talk. Rainer Simon's directorial talent proves to be versatile and stylish, his film has a density of reality and playfulness.

Günter Sobe found in the Berliner Zeitung that this contemporary film is a pleasant film with an unobtrusive, deliberately unobtrusive story, which is not, however, a very satisfactory film.

The lexicon of international film states that this is a thematically discussion-worthy film that is successful in its grotesque exaggerations. It is emphatically unconventional in its design.

literature

• Men without a beard In: F.-B. Habel : The great lexicon of DEFA feature films . Schwarzkopf & Schwarzkopf, Berlin 2000, ISBN 3-89602-349-7 , pp. 381 to 382.

Web links

• Men without a beard in the Internet Movie Database (English)
• Men without a beard at filmportal.de
• Men without a beard at the DEFA Foundation

Individual evidence

1. ^ Berliner Zeitung on May 13, 1971; P. 8
2. ↑ Neue Zeit on May 13, 1971; P. 8
3. ^ Berliner Zeitung on May 16, 1971; P. 14
4. ↑ Neue Zeit of May 25, 1971; P. 4
5. ↑ Berliner Zeitung of May 25, 1971; P. 6
6. ↑ Men without a beard. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed March 2, 2017 .