Cross of violence
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | Cross of violence |
| Original title | Skokie |
| Country of production | United States |
| original language | English |
| Publishing year | 1981 |
| length | 124 minutes |
| Rod | |
| Director | Herbert Wise |
| script | Ernest Kinoy |
| production | Robert Berger |
| music | Ralph Berliner |
| camera | Alex Thomson |
| cut | Stephen A. Rotter |
| occupation | |
| |
Cross of Violence is an American television drama from 1981 directed by Herbert Wise starring Danny Kaye in a highly dramatic role of a concentration camp survivor who tries “with massive efforts to prevent an impending march of American neo-Nazis against the small-town Jewish population ” in his hometown of Skokie . The film is a true story inspired
action
USA 1977. The small town of Skokie in the US state of Illinois is located on the northern edge of the metropolis of Chicago . The place has a very large Jewish community, and after the end of the Second World War, a not inconsiderable number of Holocaust survivors settled here. Among them is the very elderly Max Feldman, who had lost several relatives in the German concentration camps. Feldman is furious when he learns one day that the National Socialist Party of America, a split from the American Nazi Party , under the leadership of the beefy Jew-hater Frank Collin, wants to abuse this previously very quiet small town for a march of its supporters. Feldman immediately set heaven and hell in motion to prevent this unbearable provocation against the Jews living here. But Max has to overcome all kinds of resistance, inside the Jewish community as well as in the authorities and courts. His Jewish friends Bert Silverman and Abbot Rosen, for example, think that one should simply ignore this Nazi provocation and simply make sure that no one goes to this meeting. This would also not give the media a platform to give great coverage of this hideous march.
Feldman, however, is strongly opposed to minimizing this risk. He thinks it is imperative to defend against the beginnings and reminds us that 40 years ago in Germany, too, he was advised to ignore the Nazis. The consequences are known. Even from the state side, the expected encouragement is not everywhere. Although the mayor of the city decides to forbid the sake of peace the march in Skokie, but his brown opponents rely on the 1st Amendment to the United States Constitution , according to which freedom of assembly should never be restricted, and also ensure plenty of publicity, to enforce their evidenced right of assembly. Collin even has the impertinence to have his rights sued by a Jewish ACLU attorney, Aryeh Neier. Only now do most of Skokie's Jewish residents decide not to leave Max Feldman standing alone in the rain any longer, and massive resistance against the looming brown threat is formed. Feldman makes it unmistakably clear that he is even ready, that if necessary, blood will flow as well and that he will attack the Nazis with a baseball bat. ACLU attorney Herb Lewisohn, the representative of the Jewish community, is trying to expose Collins' legal intentions as a deliberate act of abuse of the first Amendment. Collins troop can finally hold their march through Skokie, but they are framed by numerous citizens of Skokie staring at them, who make no secret of the fact that the brown mob is undesirable here.
Production notes
The film, produced by a private television broadcaster, was first broadcast in the United States on November 17, 1981. The film premiered in Germany on March 2, 1997 on ZDF.
While the majority of the roles (including Max Feldman) are fictional, others (Frank Collin, Aryeh Neier and Sol Goldstein) are real characters from the Skokie incident of 1977.
Awards
- Danny Kaye, who played his last film role here, received a 1982 Golden Globe nomination for his acting performance . There were other Primetime Emmy nominations for director Herbert Wise, producer Robert Berger, line producer Herbert Brodkin and screenwriter Ernest Kinoy.
- The Directors Guild of America presented Wise with the 1982 DGA Award .
- The Writers Guild of America presented Kinoy with the 1983 WGA Award .
Reviews
"Kaye ... in his most dramatic role, at the same time his best performance as a serious character interpreter."
"Danny Kaye makes a cutting appearance as a concentration camp survivor ... Above average."
"Extra-long but poignant study carried out by good actors."
Individual evidence
- ^ The large personal dictionary of films, Volume 4, p. 328
- ^ Cross of Violence in the Lexicon of International Films , accessed on November 9, 2018
Web links
- Cross of violence in the Internet Movie Database (English)