Professor Mamlock (1961 film)
Encyclopedia
This article is about the 1961 film. For the play upon which it was based, see Professor Mamlock (play)
. For the film by Herbert Rappaport
, see Professor Mamlock (1938 film)
.
Professor Mamlock is an East German drama film
. It was released in 1961.
, written in French exile by the director's father Friedrich Wolf at 1933. It featured most of the cast that participated in the 1959 Kammerspiele
staging of the play.
When Wolf was asked why he decided to make another film adaptation of the play - the first was done in 1938 - he answered "Our objective was not the persecution of Jews... But the destiny of a liberal intellectual, who is forsaken by his class. This individual no longer believes in the middle class, and yet he does not find his way to the working class. His only escape becomes suicide".
on 23 July 1961. Wolf also received the Silver Lotus Award in the II International Film Festival of India
, held in New Delhi in November 1961.
Daniela Berghahn considered the film as "paradigmatic" to DEFA's treatment of the persecution of Jews by the Nazis: by contrasting the a-political, lethargic Mamlock to his son, Rolf, the passionate communist and resistance fighter, Wolf condemned the professor for failing to join the resistance and "utterly scandalously... Made him accountable for his own fate." Anthony S. Coulson analyzed the picture is as a belated metamorphosis of the title character, who ceases denying reality only when all is lost: "Mamlock's transformation is presented as a renunciation of his previous self... But that insight comes too late to save him and his kind... His fate is attributed to his failure to fight... Wolf's film reaffirms the political pathos of his father's play."
Professor Mamlock (play)
This article is about the play. For the film by Herbert Rappaport, see Professor Mamlock . For the film by Konrad Wolf, see Professor Mamlock .Professor Mamlock is a theater play written by Friedrich Wolf at 1933...
. For the film by Herbert Rappaport
Herbert Rappaport
Herbert Rappaport , known in the Soviet Union as Gerbert Moritsevich Rappaport, was an Austrian-Soviet screenwriter and film director....
, see Professor Mamlock (1938 film)
Professor Mamlock (1938 film)
This article is about the 1938 film. For the play upon which it was based, see Professor Mamlock . For the film by Konrad Wolf, see Professor Mamlock ....
.
Professor Mamlock is an East German drama film
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...
. It was released in 1961.
Plot
Professor Mamlock, a respected Jewish surgeon, is certain that the Weimar Republic would survive the political crisis of the early 1930s. He disapproves of his son, Rolf, a communist activist who openly opposes the Nazis. When Hitler rises to power, Mamlock loses his work and his dignity. Realizing the mistake he made by being politically apathetic, Mamlock commits suicide. The film ends with his dead face blending away from the screen, on which appears the inscription: "there is no greater crime than not wanting to fight when fight one must."Cast
- Wolfgang Heinz as Professor Mamlock,
- Ursula Burg as Ellen Mamlock
- Hilmar ThateHilmar ThateHilmar Thate is a German actor. He has appeared in 40 films and television shows since 1955.-Selected filmography:* The Gleiwitz Case * Professor Mamlock * Der geteilte Himmel * Angels of Iron...
as Rolf Mamlock - Doris Abeßer as Ruth Mamlock
- Herwart Grosse as Dr. Friedrich Carlsen
- 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...
as Dr. Hirsch - Harald Halgardt as Dr. Hellpach
- Lissy Tempelhof as Dr. Inge Ruoff
- Agnes Kraus as Nurse Hedwig
- Franz Kutschera as Werner Seidel
- Ulrich TheinUlrich TheinUlrich Thein was a German actor film director and screenwriter. He appeared in 44 films and television shows between 1953 and 1995...
as Ernst - Günter Naumann as Kurt Walter
- Günther Grabbert as Simon
- 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...
as SA man - Kurt Jung-AlsenKurt Jung-AlsenKurt Jung-Alsen was a German film director and screenwriter. He directed 24 films between 1954 and 1976.-External links:...
as Schneider
Production
The film was adapted from the play Professor MamlockProfessor Mamlock (play)
This article is about the play. For the film by Herbert Rappaport, see Professor Mamlock . For the film by Konrad Wolf, see Professor Mamlock .Professor Mamlock is a theater play written by Friedrich Wolf at 1933...
, written in French exile by the director's father Friedrich Wolf at 1933. It featured most of the cast that participated in the 1959 Kammerspiele
Deutsches Theater
The Deutsches Theater in Berlin is a well-known German theatre. It was built in 1850 as Friedrich-Wilhelm-Städtisches Theater, after Frederick William IV of Prussia. Located on Schumann Street , the Deutsches Theater consists of two adjoining stages that share a common, classical facade...
staging of the play.
When Wolf was asked why he decided to make another film adaptation of the play - the first was done in 1938 - he answered "Our objective was not the persecution of Jews... But the destiny of a liberal intellectual, who is forsaken by his class. This individual no longer believes in the middle class, and yet he does not find his way to the working class. His only escape becomes suicide".
Reception
Professor Mamlock sold 940,000 tickets in East Germany. The film won the Gold Prize in the II Moscow International Film FestivalMoscow International Film Festival
Moscow International Film Festival , is the film festival first held in Moscow in 1959. From its inception to 1995 it was held every second year in July, alternating with the Karlovy Vary festival. The festival has been held annually since 1995....
on 23 July 1961. Wolf also received the Silver Lotus Award in the II International Film Festival of India
International Film Festival of India
The International Film Festival of India , founded in 1952, is one of the most significant film festivals in Asia. Held annually in the beach town of Goa, in the Western Coast of the country, the festival aims at providing a common platform for the cinemas of the world to project the excellence of...
, held in New Delhi in November 1961.
Daniela Berghahn considered the film as "paradigmatic" to DEFA's treatment of the persecution of Jews by the Nazis: by contrasting the a-political, lethargic Mamlock to his son, Rolf, the passionate communist and resistance fighter, Wolf condemned the professor for failing to join the resistance and "utterly scandalously... Made him accountable for his own fate." Anthony S. Coulson analyzed the picture is as a belated metamorphosis of the title character, who ceases denying reality only when all is lost: "Mamlock's transformation is presented as a renunciation of his previous self... But that insight comes too late to save him and his kind... His fate is attributed to his failure to fight... Wolf's film reaffirms the political pathos of his father's play."
External links
- Original 1961 poster on ostfilm.de.
- Professor Mamlock. PROGRESS-Film Verleih.