On the Sunny Side (film)
Encyclopedia
On the Sunny Side is an East German musical comedy film, directed by Ralf Kirsten and starring Manfred Krug
. It was released in 1962.
singer, is sent to an drama school by his factory's committee. Due to his troublesome conduct, he is expelled. Hoff meets a young woman called Ottilie who is unimpressed by him; he bets with his friends that he shall manage to charm her. Hoff begins to work in the construction site where she serves as a group manager, although she has troubles enforcing her will on her male subordinates. He only has success with her after director Jens Krüger guides him to become a diligent laborer. In addition to his work, he continues to perform in amateur plays. When theater manager Pabst sees him acting, he invites him to join his cast. Hoff and Ottilie decide to marry.
The film's script was largely inspired by leading star Manfred Krug
's biography: he worked in a steel factory before turning to an acting career. Krug's Jazz band and his singing career were also a central theme in the plot.
1st class in collective for their work on the picture at March 1962. Steineckert also received the Art Prize of the Free German Trade Union Federation
.
Krug's biographer Ralf Schenk wrote that On the Sunny Side "proved wrong the known saying that if DEFA would produce a comedy, the audiences would remain at home and cry." Sabine Hake noted that, while the studio consistently opposed the concept of a star system, the film turned Krug into East Germany's only "genuine screen idol". On the Sunny Side was the actor's breakthrough picture, and he became famous after its release. Ina-Lyn Reif wrote that the state's artistic establishment perceived Krug as "capturing the younger generation's mood" after the release of On the Sunny Side.
Sabine Brummel commented that the film "virtually lacked a political saying", an uncommon feature in DEFA's productions up to that time, and even presented a realistic depiction of the workplace: the construction team did not accept Ottilie as their manager because she was a woman, and the Workers' Brigade leader was incompetent. Still, On the Sunny Side "made concessions to the censure" by featuring the devout communist Jens Krüger as a positive father figure, and "ideology did have its place". Rebecca Menzel pointed out that the film was the first East German picture to portray jeans in a neutral manner; Krug and other workers wore them. At the time, they were considered a bourgeois form of clothing and were banned in schools.
Manfred Krug
Manfred Krug is a German actor and singer.-Life and work:After moving to East Germany at the age of 13, Manfred Krug worked at a steel plant before beginning his acting career on the stage and, ultimately, in film...
. It was released in 1962.
Plot
Martin Hoff, a steel smelter and an amateur actor and JazzJazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
singer, is sent to an drama school by his factory's committee. Due to his troublesome conduct, he is expelled. Hoff meets a young woman called Ottilie who is unimpressed by him; he bets with his friends that he shall manage to charm her. Hoff begins to work in the construction site where she serves as a group manager, although she has troubles enforcing her will on her male subordinates. He only has success with her after director Jens Krüger guides him to become a diligent laborer. In addition to his work, he continues to perform in amateur plays. When theater manager Pabst sees him acting, he invites him to join his cast. Hoff and Ottilie decide to marry.
Cast
- Manfred KrugManfred KrugManfred Krug is a German actor and singer.-Life and work:After moving to East Germany at the age of 13, Manfred Krug worked at a steel plant before beginning his acting career on the stage and, ultimately, in film...
: Martin Hoff - Marita Böhme: Ottilie Zinn
- Heinz SchubertHeinz Schubert (actor)Heinz Schubert was a German actor, drama teacher and photographer, best known for playing the role of Alfred Tetzlaff in the German television comedy sitcom Ein Herz und eine Seele.- Life :...
: Felix Schnepf - Rolf HerrichtRolf HerrichtRolf Oskar Ewald Günter Herricht , was an East German comedian.-Early life:Herricht graduated from school in 1943 after passing a 'War Abitur', a form of an Abitur designated to free school pupils to be mobilized...
: Hoff's friend - Peter SturmPeter SturmNot to be confused with the National Institute for Research in Computer Science and Control director by the same name.Josef Michel Dischel , known by his adopted stage name Peter Sturm, was an Austrian and an East German actor.-Early life:Josef Michel Dischel was born into a religious Jewish family...
: Pabst - Fred Mahr: Jens Krüger
- Gert Andreae: Matze Wind
- Günter Naumann: driver
- Werner Lierck: director
- Willi Neuenhahn: viewer
- Rolf Römer: Hoff's friend
- Heinz Lyschik: Hoff's friend
Production
During the end of the 1950s, the DEFA Studio's management noted the public's demand for entertainment and responded by producing a series of light comedies, relatively free from ideological messages. According to Heiko R. Blum, On the Sunny Side "distinguished itself by its unmitigated portrayal of real life."The film's script was largely inspired by leading star Manfred Krug
Manfred Krug
Manfred Krug is a German actor and singer.-Life and work:After moving to East Germany at the age of 13, Manfred Krug worked at a steel plant before beginning his acting career on the stage and, ultimately, in film...
's biography: he worked in a steel factory before turning to an acting career. Krug's Jazz band and his singing career were also a central theme in the plot.
Reception
According to DEFA historian Dagmar Schittly, On the Sunny Side was the most popular East German film of the early 1960, and was very successful with the audience. Director Ralf Kirsten, Krug, writers Heinz Kahlau and Gisela Steineckert and cinematographer Hans Heinrich were awarded the Heinrich Greif PrizeHeinrich Greif Prize
The Heinrich Greif Prize was an East German state award bestowed on individuals for contribution to the state's cinema and television industry.-History:...
1st class in collective for their work on the picture at March 1962. Steineckert also received the Art Prize of the Free German Trade Union Federation
Free German Trade Union Federation
The Free German Trade Union Federation, in German Freier Deutscher Gewerkschaftsbund , was the trade union federation in East Germany. It was part of the National Front and had representatives in the Volkskammer....
.
Krug's biographer Ralf Schenk wrote that On the Sunny Side "proved wrong the known saying that if DEFA would produce a comedy, the audiences would remain at home and cry." Sabine Hake noted that, while the studio consistently opposed the concept of a star system, the film turned Krug into East Germany's only "genuine screen idol". On the Sunny Side was the actor's breakthrough picture, and he became famous after its release. Ina-Lyn Reif wrote that the state's artistic establishment perceived Krug as "capturing the younger generation's mood" after the release of On the Sunny Side.
Sabine Brummel commented that the film "virtually lacked a political saying", an uncommon feature in DEFA's productions up to that time, and even presented a realistic depiction of the workplace: the construction team did not accept Ottilie as their manager because she was a woman, and the Workers' Brigade leader was incompetent. Still, On the Sunny Side "made concessions to the censure" by featuring the devout communist Jens Krüger as a positive father figure, and "ideology did have its place". Rebecca Menzel pointed out that the film was the first East German picture to portray jeans in a neutral manner; Krug and other workers wore them. At the time, they were considered a bourgeois form of clothing and were banned in schools.
External links
- On the Sunny Side on the IMDb.