Oberst Redl
Encyclopedia
Colonel Redl is a 1985 drama film
by Hungarian
director István Szabó
. It tells the life story of an Austrian Imperial military officer Alfred Redl
(played by Klaus Maria Brandauer
) who was blackmailed into espionage for the Russian
secret service to prevent the revelation of his homosexuality
. The screenplay is adapted from British playwright John Osborne
's play A Patriot for Me
.
, the film charts the rise of Colonel Redl from a boy at military school, right up to his betrayal, compromise and suicide.
The film also charts the rise of inter-ethnic tensions in Austro-Hungary, which were to bring about the assassination in Sarajevo
- Redl is himself a Ruthenian
, one of the minor Slavic groups, and ends up suffering because of that.
Redl himself goes from being a fanatical supporter of the Habsburg monarchy, to a pathetic victim, but by that time it is too late for him.
Kubinyi is a Hungarian nobleman,and together the two slowly climb the ladder of career-officers. While Kubinyi slowly falls prey to the national aspirations of a Hapsburg-free Hungary, Redl remains faithful to his benefactor, to his raison d'etre. Redl feverishly defends his King and country by working to uncover the various nationalistic movements that threaten the Empire's solidarity. In time, he becomes Chief of Military Intelligence for the Austro-Hungarian empire. His superiors find the perfect servant in Redl. His loyalty to the crown is steadfast, but the parvenus around the aging Emperor sense that Redl is their worst enemy. Nationalism is just one of the many diseases gnawing away at the Empire. The self-interest and greed of the nobles-in-waiting prove to be an even greater danger. As head of counter-intelligence, Redl soon sniffs out the bloody dagger; Austrian and Hungarian aristocrats are planning a coup d'etát with the help of Tsarist Russia. Waiting to catch the guilty conspirators, Redl is caught instead.
Though he professes to hate politics and politicians, Redl also can't avoid them. When the leader for whom Redl is supposedly spying among the officer corps, draws up a list of who can't be exposed for traitorous activities (including Austrian nobles, Hungarians, Czechs, Serbs, Croatians, and even the usual scapegoats, Jews -- the aftershocks of the Dreyfuss affair are still rumbling), he tells Redl that he must find a double of himself, a Ukrainian. His hidden homosexuality becomes known to the court and he is put into a compromising position. Public disgrace with discharge from the service or take the 'more honorable' position of scapegoat that he, Colonel Redl, conspired with the Russians. Disloyalty to himself or disloyalty to the Emperor and Empire---to his new-found father and family? A cruel choice that Redl is forced to make. Now certain that he will be exposed, Redl surrenders to fate, quoting to his wife from Montaigne: "It's no sin to be involved. It's a sin to remain involved." He is put under house arrest and commits suicide with a pistol.
, but lost to The Official Story
.
It won the Jury Prize
at the 1985 Cannes Film Festival
.
by Hungarian
director István Szabó
. It tells the life story of an Austrian Imperial military officer Alfred Redl
(played by Klaus Maria Brandauer
) who was blackmailed into espionage for the Russian
secret service to prevent the revelation of his homosexuality
. The screenplay is adapted from British playwright John Osborne
's play A Patriot for Me
.
, the film charts the rise of Colonel Redl from a boy at military school, right up to his betrayal, compromise and suicide.
The film also charts the rise of inter-ethnic tensions in Austro-Hungary, which were to bring about the assassination in Sarajevo
- Redl is himself a Ruthenian
, one of the minor Slavic groups, and ends up suffering because of that.
Redl himself goes from being a fanatical supporter of the Habsburg monarchy, to a pathetic victim, but by that time it is too late for him.
Kubinyi is a Hungarian nobleman,and together the two slowly climb the ladder of career-officers. While Kubinyi slowly falls prey to the national aspirations of a Hapsburg-free Hungary, Redl remains faithful to his benefactor, to his raison d'etre. Redl feverishly defends his King and country by working to uncover the various nationalistic movements that threaten the Empire's solidarity. In time, he becomes Chief of Military Intelligence for the Austro-Hungarian empire. His superiors find the perfect servant in Redl. His loyalty to the crown is steadfast, but the parvenus around the aging Emperor sense that Redl is their worst enemy. Nationalism is just one of the many diseases gnawing away at the Empire. The self-interest and greed of the nobles-in-waiting prove to be an even greater danger. As head of counter-intelligence, Redl soon sniffs out the bloody dagger; Austrian and Hungarian aristocrats are planning a coup d'etát with the help of Tsarist Russia. Waiting to catch the guilty conspirators, Redl is caught instead.
Though he professes to hate politics and politicians, Redl also can't avoid them. When the leader for whom Redl is supposedly spying among the officer corps, draws up a list of who can't be exposed for traitorous activities (including Austrian nobles, Hungarians, Czechs, Serbs, Croatians, and even the usual scapegoats, Jews -- the aftershocks of the Dreyfuss affair are still rumbling), he tells Redl that he must find a double of himself, a Ukrainian. His hidden homosexuality becomes known to the court and he is put into a compromising position. Public disgrace with discharge from the service or take the 'more honorable' position of scapegoat that he, Colonel Redl, conspired with the Russians. Disloyalty to himself or disloyalty to the Emperor and Empire---to his new-found father and family? A cruel choice that Redl is forced to make. Now certain that he will be exposed, Redl surrenders to fate, quoting to his wife from Montaigne: "It's no sin to be involved. It's a sin to remain involved." He is put under house arrest and commits suicide with a pistol.
, but lost to The Official Story
.
It won the Jury Prize
at the 1985 Cannes Film Festival
.
by Hungarian
director István Szabó
. It tells the life story of an Austrian Imperial military officer Alfred Redl
(played by Klaus Maria Brandauer
) who was blackmailed into espionage for the Russian
secret service to prevent the revelation of his homosexuality
. The screenplay is adapted from British playwright John Osborne
's play A Patriot for Me
.
, the film charts the rise of Colonel Redl from a boy at military school, right up to his betrayal, compromise and suicide.
The film also charts the rise of inter-ethnic tensions in Austro-Hungary, which were to bring about the assassination in Sarajevo
- Redl is himself a Ruthenian
, one of the minor Slavic groups, and ends up suffering because of that.
Redl himself goes from being a fanatical supporter of the Habsburg monarchy, to a pathetic victim, but by that time it is too late for him.
Kubinyi is a Hungarian nobleman,and together the two slowly climb the ladder of career-officers. While Kubinyi slowly falls prey to the national aspirations of a Hapsburg-free Hungary, Redl remains faithful to his benefactor, to his raison d'etre. Redl feverishly defends his King and country by working to uncover the various nationalistic movements that threaten the Empire's solidarity. In time, he becomes Chief of Military Intelligence for the Austro-Hungarian empire. His superiors find the perfect servant in Redl. His loyalty to the crown is steadfast, but the parvenus around the aging Emperor sense that Redl is their worst enemy. Nationalism is just one of the many diseases gnawing away at the Empire. The self-interest and greed of the nobles-in-waiting prove to be an even greater danger. As head of counter-intelligence, Redl soon sniffs out the bloody dagger; Austrian and Hungarian aristocrats are planning a coup d'etát with the help of Tsarist Russia. Waiting to catch the guilty conspirators, Redl is caught instead.
Though he professes to hate politics and politicians, Redl also can't avoid them. When the leader for whom Redl is supposedly spying among the officer corps, draws up a list of who can't be exposed for traitorous activities (including Austrian nobles, Hungarians, Czechs, Serbs, Croatians, and even the usual scapegoats, Jews -- the aftershocks of the Dreyfuss affair are still rumbling), he tells Redl that he must find a double of himself, a Ukrainian. His hidden homosexuality becomes known to the court and he is put into a compromising position. Public disgrace with discharge from the service or take the 'more honorable' position of scapegoat that he, Colonel Redl, conspired with the Russians. Disloyalty to himself or disloyalty to the Emperor and Empire---to his new-found father and family? A cruel choice that Redl is forced to make. Now certain that he will be exposed, Redl surrenders to fate, quoting to his wife from Montaigne: "It's no sin to be involved. It's a sin to remain involved." He is put under house arrest and commits suicide with a pistol.
, but lost to The Official Story
.
It won the Jury Prize
at the 1985 Cannes Film Festival
.
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
by Hungarian
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
director István Szabó
István Szabó
István Szabó is a Hungarian film director, screenwriter, and opera director.Szabó is the most internationally famous Hungarian filmmaker since the late 1960s. Working in the tradition of European, auteurist art cinema, he has made films that represent many of the psychological and political...
. It tells the life story of an Austrian Imperial military officer Alfred Redl
Alfred Redl
Alfred Redl was an Austrian officer who rose to head the counter-intelligence efforts of Austria-Hungary. He was one of the leading figures of pre-World War I espionage. His term in office was marked by innovation, and he used very high technology for the time to ensnare foreign intelligence...
(played by Klaus Maria Brandauer
Klaus Maria Brandauer
Klaus Maria Brandauer is an Austrian actor, film director, and professor at the Max Reinhardt Seminar in Vienna.-Personal life:...
) who was blackmailed into espionage for the Russian
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
secret service to prevent the revelation of his homosexuality
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
. The screenplay is adapted from British playwright John Osborne
John Osborne
John James Osborne was an English playwright, screenwriter, actor and critic of the Establishment. The success of his 1956 play Look Back in Anger transformed English theatre....
's play A Patriot for Me
A Patriot for Me
A Patriot For Me is a 1965 play by the English playwright John Osborne, based on the true story of Alfred Redl. It was notable for being denied a licence for performance by the censor of the time....
.
Historical background
Set in the Austro-Hungarian empire in the period before World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, the film charts the rise of Colonel Redl from a boy at military school, right up to his betrayal, compromise and suicide.
The film also charts the rise of inter-ethnic tensions in Austro-Hungary, which were to bring about the assassination in Sarajevo
Sarajevo
Sarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
- Redl is himself a Ruthenian
Ruthenians
The name Ruthenian |Rus']]) is a culturally loaded term and has different meanings according to the context in which it is used. Initially, it was the ethnonym used for the East Slavic peoples who lived in Rus'. Later it was used predominantly for Ukrainians...
, one of the minor Slavic groups, and ends up suffering because of that.
Redl himself goes from being a fanatical supporter of the Habsburg monarchy, to a pathetic victim, but by that time it is too late for him.
Plot
Redl is an ambitious military officer in pre-World War I Austria whose career path is set early on. Redl's mother wants to restore her family's past glory through her son, and Redl soon wins favor everywhere for his talent, drive and loyalty to the Empire's ideal: tolerance for all and devotion to the Crown. In military school, he's forced to inform on Kubinyi, a student who's the source of a practical joke; though he beats himself up for being a Judas, he soon realizes that to rise in the ranks he must overcome his peasant background and hide his homosexuality by ingratiating himself with his superiors.Kubinyi is a Hungarian nobleman,and together the two slowly climb the ladder of career-officers. While Kubinyi slowly falls prey to the national aspirations of a Hapsburg-free Hungary, Redl remains faithful to his benefactor, to his raison d'etre. Redl feverishly defends his King and country by working to uncover the various nationalistic movements that threaten the Empire's solidarity. In time, he becomes Chief of Military Intelligence for the Austro-Hungarian empire. His superiors find the perfect servant in Redl. His loyalty to the crown is steadfast, but the parvenus around the aging Emperor sense that Redl is their worst enemy. Nationalism is just one of the many diseases gnawing away at the Empire. The self-interest and greed of the nobles-in-waiting prove to be an even greater danger. As head of counter-intelligence, Redl soon sniffs out the bloody dagger; Austrian and Hungarian aristocrats are planning a coup d'etát with the help of Tsarist Russia. Waiting to catch the guilty conspirators, Redl is caught instead.
Though he professes to hate politics and politicians, Redl also can't avoid them. When the leader for whom Redl is supposedly spying among the officer corps, draws up a list of who can't be exposed for traitorous activities (including Austrian nobles, Hungarians, Czechs, Serbs, Croatians, and even the usual scapegoats, Jews -- the aftershocks of the Dreyfuss affair are still rumbling), he tells Redl that he must find a double of himself, a Ukrainian. His hidden homosexuality becomes known to the court and he is put into a compromising position. Public disgrace with discharge from the service or take the 'more honorable' position of scapegoat that he, Colonel Redl, conspired with the Russians. Disloyalty to himself or disloyalty to the Emperor and Empire---to his new-found father and family? A cruel choice that Redl is forced to make. Now certain that he will be exposed, Redl surrenders to fate, quoting to his wife from Montaigne: "It's no sin to be involved. It's a sin to remain involved." He is put under house arrest and commits suicide with a pistol.
Cast
- Klaus Maria BrandauerKlaus Maria BrandauerKlaus Maria Brandauer is an Austrian actor, film director, and professor at the Max Reinhardt Seminar in Vienna.-Personal life:...
as Alfred Redl ezredes - Hans Christian BlechHans Christian BlechHans Christian Blech was a German film, stage and television character actor who found success both in his native land and in Hollywood....
as von Roden ezredes - Armin Mueller-StahlArmin Mueller-StahlArmin Mueller-Stahl is a German film actor, painter, writer and musician.-Early life:Mueller-Stahl was born in Tilsit, East Prussia...
as Trónörökös - Gudrun LandgrebeGudrun LandgrebeGudrun Landgrebe is a German actress.Landgrebe was born in Göttingen, grew up in Bochum, and attended theatre school in Cologne from 1968 until 1971. In 1971 she made her debut at Stadttheater Bielefeld. She also appeared in Heimat as the character Klärchen Sisse...
as Kubinyi Katalin - Jan NiklasJan NiklasJan Niklas is a German actor. He is best known for playing in TV films such as Peter The Great, Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna and Anne Frank: The Whole Story. He also played in the Hungarian film Colonel Redl which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.-Early life:Jan...
as Kubinyi Kristóf - László Mensáros as Ruzitska ezredes
- András BálintAndrás BálintAndrás Bálint is a Hungarian actor. He has appeared in over 75 films and television shows since 1958.-Selected filmography:* Father * The Confrontation * Szerelmesfilm * Trotta...
as Dr. Gustav Sonnenschein - László GálffiLaszlo GalffiLászló Gálffi is a Hungarian actor. He was born in Budapest.One of his better known roles is that of King Ludwig II of Bavaria in Tony Palmer's epic film production of Wagner, in which Galffi acted alongside cinema greats Richard Burton, John Gielgud, Ralph Richardson, Laurence Olivier and Vanessa...
as Alfredo Velocchio - Dorottya Udvaros as Clarissa
- Károly Eperjes as Jaromil Schorm hadnagy
- Róbert Rátonyi as Ullmann báró
Awards
The film won the BAFTA Award for Best Foreign Language Film. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language FilmAcademy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
The Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film is one of the Academy Awards of Merit, popularly known as the Oscars, handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
, but lost to The Official Story
The Official Story
The Official Story is a 1985 Argentine drama film directed by Luis Puenzo, and written by Puenzo and Aída Bortnik. It stars Norma Aleandro, Héctor Alterio, and Chunchuna Villafañe, among others. In the United Kingdom, it was released as The Official Version.The film is about an upper middle class...
.
It won the Jury Prize
Jury Prize (Cannes Film Festival)
The Jury Prize is an award presented at the Cannes Film Festival. It is chosen by the jury from the 'official section' of movies at the festival. It is considered the third most prestigious prize at the film festival, after the Palme d'Or and the Grand Prix....
at the 1985 Cannes Film Festival
1985 Cannes Film Festival
-Jury:*Miloš Forman *Claude Imbert *Edwin Zbonek *Francis Veber *Jorge Amado *Mauro Bolognini *Michel Perez *Mo Rothmann *Néstor Almendros *Sarah Miles...
.
External links
Colonel Redl ( (original title); ) is a 1985 drama filmDrama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
by Hungarian
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
director István Szabó
István Szabó
István Szabó is a Hungarian film director, screenwriter, and opera director.Szabó is the most internationally famous Hungarian filmmaker since the late 1960s. Working in the tradition of European, auteurist art cinema, he has made films that represent many of the psychological and political...
. It tells the life story of an Austrian Imperial military officer Alfred Redl
Alfred Redl
Alfred Redl was an Austrian officer who rose to head the counter-intelligence efforts of Austria-Hungary. He was one of the leading figures of pre-World War I espionage. His term in office was marked by innovation, and he used very high technology for the time to ensnare foreign intelligence...
(played by Klaus Maria Brandauer
Klaus Maria Brandauer
Klaus Maria Brandauer is an Austrian actor, film director, and professor at the Max Reinhardt Seminar in Vienna.-Personal life:...
) who was blackmailed into espionage for the Russian
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
secret service to prevent the revelation of his homosexuality
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
. The screenplay is adapted from British playwright John Osborne
John Osborne
John James Osborne was an English playwright, screenwriter, actor and critic of the Establishment. The success of his 1956 play Look Back in Anger transformed English theatre....
's play A Patriot for Me
A Patriot for Me
A Patriot For Me is a 1965 play by the English playwright John Osborne, based on the true story of Alfred Redl. It was notable for being denied a licence for performance by the censor of the time....
.
Historical background
Set in the Austro-Hungarian empire in the period before World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, the film charts the rise of Colonel Redl from a boy at military school, right up to his betrayal, compromise and suicide.
The film also charts the rise of inter-ethnic tensions in Austro-Hungary, which were to bring about the assassination in Sarajevo
Sarajevo
Sarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
- Redl is himself a Ruthenian
Ruthenians
The name Ruthenian |Rus']]) is a culturally loaded term and has different meanings according to the context in which it is used. Initially, it was the ethnonym used for the East Slavic peoples who lived in Rus'. Later it was used predominantly for Ukrainians...
, one of the minor Slavic groups, and ends up suffering because of that.
Redl himself goes from being a fanatical supporter of the Habsburg monarchy, to a pathetic victim, but by that time it is too late for him.
Plot
Redl is an ambitious military officer in pre-World War I Austria whose career path is set early on. Redl's mother wants to restore her family's past glory through her son, and Redl soon wins favor everywhere for his talent, drive and loyalty to the Empire's ideal: tolerance for all and devotion to the Crown. In military school, he's forced to inform on Kubinyi, a student who's the source of a practical joke; though he beats himself up for being a Judas, he soon realizes that to rise in the ranks he must overcome his peasant background and hide his homosexuality by ingratiating himself with his superiors.Kubinyi is a Hungarian nobleman,and together the two slowly climb the ladder of career-officers. While Kubinyi slowly falls prey to the national aspirations of a Hapsburg-free Hungary, Redl remains faithful to his benefactor, to his raison d'etre. Redl feverishly defends his King and country by working to uncover the various nationalistic movements that threaten the Empire's solidarity. In time, he becomes Chief of Military Intelligence for the Austro-Hungarian empire. His superiors find the perfect servant in Redl. His loyalty to the crown is steadfast, but the parvenus around the aging Emperor sense that Redl is their worst enemy. Nationalism is just one of the many diseases gnawing away at the Empire. The self-interest and greed of the nobles-in-waiting prove to be an even greater danger. As head of counter-intelligence, Redl soon sniffs out the bloody dagger; Austrian and Hungarian aristocrats are planning a coup d'etát with the help of Tsarist Russia. Waiting to catch the guilty conspirators, Redl is caught instead.
Though he professes to hate politics and politicians, Redl also can't avoid them. When the leader for whom Redl is supposedly spying among the officer corps, draws up a list of who can't be exposed for traitorous activities (including Austrian nobles, Hungarians, Czechs, Serbs, Croatians, and even the usual scapegoats, Jews -- the aftershocks of the Dreyfuss affair are still rumbling), he tells Redl that he must find a double of himself, a Ukrainian. His hidden homosexuality becomes known to the court and he is put into a compromising position. Public disgrace with discharge from the service or take the 'more honorable' position of scapegoat that he, Colonel Redl, conspired with the Russians. Disloyalty to himself or disloyalty to the Emperor and Empire---to his new-found father and family? A cruel choice that Redl is forced to make. Now certain that he will be exposed, Redl surrenders to fate, quoting to his wife from Montaigne: "It's no sin to be involved. It's a sin to remain involved." He is put under house arrest and commits suicide with a pistol.
Cast
- Klaus Maria BrandauerKlaus Maria BrandauerKlaus Maria Brandauer is an Austrian actor, film director, and professor at the Max Reinhardt Seminar in Vienna.-Personal life:...
as Alfred Redl ezredes - Hans Christian BlechHans Christian BlechHans Christian Blech was a German film, stage and television character actor who found success both in his native land and in Hollywood....
as von Roden ezredes - Armin Mueller-StahlArmin Mueller-StahlArmin Mueller-Stahl is a German film actor, painter, writer and musician.-Early life:Mueller-Stahl was born in Tilsit, East Prussia...
as Trónörökös - Gudrun LandgrebeGudrun LandgrebeGudrun Landgrebe is a German actress.Landgrebe was born in Göttingen, grew up in Bochum, and attended theatre school in Cologne from 1968 until 1971. In 1971 she made her debut at Stadttheater Bielefeld. She also appeared in Heimat as the character Klärchen Sisse...
as Kubinyi Katalin - Jan NiklasJan NiklasJan Niklas is a German actor. He is best known for playing in TV films such as Peter The Great, Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna and Anne Frank: The Whole Story. He also played in the Hungarian film Colonel Redl which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.-Early life:Jan...
as Kubinyi Kristóf - László Mensáros as Ruzitska ezredes
- András BálintAndrás BálintAndrás Bálint is a Hungarian actor. He has appeared in over 75 films and television shows since 1958.-Selected filmography:* Father * The Confrontation * Szerelmesfilm * Trotta...
as Dr. Gustav Sonnenschein - László GálffiLaszlo GalffiLászló Gálffi is a Hungarian actor. He was born in Budapest.One of his better known roles is that of King Ludwig II of Bavaria in Tony Palmer's epic film production of Wagner, in which Galffi acted alongside cinema greats Richard Burton, John Gielgud, Ralph Richardson, Laurence Olivier and Vanessa...
as Alfredo Velocchio - Dorottya Udvaros as Clarissa
- Károly Eperjes as Jaromil Schorm hadnagy
- Róbert Rátonyi as Ullmann báró
Awards
The film won the BAFTA Award for Best Foreign Language Film. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language FilmAcademy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
The Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film is one of the Academy Awards of Merit, popularly known as the Oscars, handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
, but lost to The Official Story
The Official Story
The Official Story is a 1985 Argentine drama film directed by Luis Puenzo, and written by Puenzo and Aída Bortnik. It stars Norma Aleandro, Héctor Alterio, and Chunchuna Villafañe, among others. In the United Kingdom, it was released as The Official Version.The film is about an upper middle class...
.
It won the Jury Prize
Jury Prize (Cannes Film Festival)
The Jury Prize is an award presented at the Cannes Film Festival. It is chosen by the jury from the 'official section' of movies at the festival. It is considered the third most prestigious prize at the film festival, after the Palme d'Or and the Grand Prix....
at the 1985 Cannes Film Festival
1985 Cannes Film Festival
-Jury:*Miloš Forman *Claude Imbert *Edwin Zbonek *Francis Veber *Jorge Amado *Mauro Bolognini *Michel Perez *Mo Rothmann *Néstor Almendros *Sarah Miles...
.
External links
Colonel Redl ( (original title); ) is a 1985 drama filmDrama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
by Hungarian
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
director István Szabó
István Szabó
István Szabó is a Hungarian film director, screenwriter, and opera director.Szabó is the most internationally famous Hungarian filmmaker since the late 1960s. Working in the tradition of European, auteurist art cinema, he has made films that represent many of the psychological and political...
. It tells the life story of an Austrian Imperial military officer Alfred Redl
Alfred Redl
Alfred Redl was an Austrian officer who rose to head the counter-intelligence efforts of Austria-Hungary. He was one of the leading figures of pre-World War I espionage. His term in office was marked by innovation, and he used very high technology for the time to ensnare foreign intelligence...
(played by Klaus Maria Brandauer
Klaus Maria Brandauer
Klaus Maria Brandauer is an Austrian actor, film director, and professor at the Max Reinhardt Seminar in Vienna.-Personal life:...
) who was blackmailed into espionage for the Russian
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
secret service to prevent the revelation of his homosexuality
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
. The screenplay is adapted from British playwright John Osborne
John Osborne
John James Osborne was an English playwright, screenwriter, actor and critic of the Establishment. The success of his 1956 play Look Back in Anger transformed English theatre....
's play A Patriot for Me
A Patriot for Me
A Patriot For Me is a 1965 play by the English playwright John Osborne, based on the true story of Alfred Redl. It was notable for being denied a licence for performance by the censor of the time....
.
Historical background
Set in the Austro-Hungarian empire in the period before World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, the film charts the rise of Colonel Redl from a boy at military school, right up to his betrayal, compromise and suicide.
The film also charts the rise of inter-ethnic tensions in Austro-Hungary, which were to bring about the assassination in Sarajevo
Sarajevo
Sarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
- Redl is himself a Ruthenian
Ruthenians
The name Ruthenian |Rus']]) is a culturally loaded term and has different meanings according to the context in which it is used. Initially, it was the ethnonym used for the East Slavic peoples who lived in Rus'. Later it was used predominantly for Ukrainians...
, one of the minor Slavic groups, and ends up suffering because of that.
Redl himself goes from being a fanatical supporter of the Habsburg monarchy, to a pathetic victim, but by that time it is too late for him.
Plot
Redl is an ambitious military officer in pre-World War I Austria whose career path is set early on. Redl's mother wants to restore her family's past glory through her son, and Redl soon wins favor everywhere for his talent, drive and loyalty to the Empire's ideal: tolerance for all and devotion to the Crown. In military school, he's forced to inform on Kubinyi, a student who's the source of a practical joke; though he beats himself up for being a Judas, he soon realizes that to rise in the ranks he must overcome his peasant background and hide his homosexuality by ingratiating himself with his superiors.Kubinyi is a Hungarian nobleman,and together the two slowly climb the ladder of career-officers. While Kubinyi slowly falls prey to the national aspirations of a Hapsburg-free Hungary, Redl remains faithful to his benefactor, to his raison d'etre. Redl feverishly defends his King and country by working to uncover the various nationalistic movements that threaten the Empire's solidarity. In time, he becomes Chief of Military Intelligence for the Austro-Hungarian empire. His superiors find the perfect servant in Redl. His loyalty to the crown is steadfast, but the parvenus around the aging Emperor sense that Redl is their worst enemy. Nationalism is just one of the many diseases gnawing away at the Empire. The self-interest and greed of the nobles-in-waiting prove to be an even greater danger. As head of counter-intelligence, Redl soon sniffs out the bloody dagger; Austrian and Hungarian aristocrats are planning a coup d'etát with the help of Tsarist Russia. Waiting to catch the guilty conspirators, Redl is caught instead.
Though he professes to hate politics and politicians, Redl also can't avoid them. When the leader for whom Redl is supposedly spying among the officer corps, draws up a list of who can't be exposed for traitorous activities (including Austrian nobles, Hungarians, Czechs, Serbs, Croatians, and even the usual scapegoats, Jews -- the aftershocks of the Dreyfuss affair are still rumbling), he tells Redl that he must find a double of himself, a Ukrainian. His hidden homosexuality becomes known to the court and he is put into a compromising position. Public disgrace with discharge from the service or take the 'more honorable' position of scapegoat that he, Colonel Redl, conspired with the Russians. Disloyalty to himself or disloyalty to the Emperor and Empire---to his new-found father and family? A cruel choice that Redl is forced to make. Now certain that he will be exposed, Redl surrenders to fate, quoting to his wife from Montaigne: "It's no sin to be involved. It's a sin to remain involved." He is put under house arrest and commits suicide with a pistol.
Cast
- Klaus Maria BrandauerKlaus Maria BrandauerKlaus Maria Brandauer is an Austrian actor, film director, and professor at the Max Reinhardt Seminar in Vienna.-Personal life:...
as Alfred Redl ezredes - Hans Christian BlechHans Christian BlechHans Christian Blech was a German film, stage and television character actor who found success both in his native land and in Hollywood....
as von Roden ezredes - Armin Mueller-StahlArmin Mueller-StahlArmin Mueller-Stahl is a German film actor, painter, writer and musician.-Early life:Mueller-Stahl was born in Tilsit, East Prussia...
as Trónörökös - Gudrun LandgrebeGudrun LandgrebeGudrun Landgrebe is a German actress.Landgrebe was born in Göttingen, grew up in Bochum, and attended theatre school in Cologne from 1968 until 1971. In 1971 she made her debut at Stadttheater Bielefeld. She also appeared in Heimat as the character Klärchen Sisse...
as Kubinyi Katalin - Jan NiklasJan NiklasJan Niklas is a German actor. He is best known for playing in TV films such as Peter The Great, Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna and Anne Frank: The Whole Story. He also played in the Hungarian film Colonel Redl which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.-Early life:Jan...
as Kubinyi Kristóf - László Mensáros as Ruzitska ezredes
- András BálintAndrás BálintAndrás Bálint is a Hungarian actor. He has appeared in over 75 films and television shows since 1958.-Selected filmography:* Father * The Confrontation * Szerelmesfilm * Trotta...
as Dr. Gustav Sonnenschein - László GálffiLaszlo GalffiLászló Gálffi is a Hungarian actor. He was born in Budapest.One of his better known roles is that of King Ludwig II of Bavaria in Tony Palmer's epic film production of Wagner, in which Galffi acted alongside cinema greats Richard Burton, John Gielgud, Ralph Richardson, Laurence Olivier and Vanessa...
as Alfredo Velocchio - Dorottya Udvaros as Clarissa
- Károly Eperjes as Jaromil Schorm hadnagy
- Róbert Rátonyi as Ullmann báró
Awards
The film won the BAFTA Award for Best Foreign Language Film. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language FilmAcademy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
The Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film is one of the Academy Awards of Merit, popularly known as the Oscars, handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
, but lost to The Official Story
The Official Story
The Official Story is a 1985 Argentine drama film directed by Luis Puenzo, and written by Puenzo and Aída Bortnik. It stars Norma Aleandro, Héctor Alterio, and Chunchuna Villafañe, among others. In the United Kingdom, it was released as The Official Version.The film is about an upper middle class...
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It won the Jury Prize
Jury Prize (Cannes Film Festival)
The Jury Prize is an award presented at the Cannes Film Festival. It is chosen by the jury from the 'official section' of movies at the festival. It is considered the third most prestigious prize at the film festival, after the Palme d'Or and the Grand Prix....
at the 1985 Cannes Film Festival
1985 Cannes Film Festival
-Jury:*Miloš Forman *Claude Imbert *Edwin Zbonek *Francis Veber *Jorge Amado *Mauro Bolognini *Michel Perez *Mo Rothmann *Néstor Almendros *Sarah Miles...
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