Under the Beach's Cobbles (1975)
"Unter dem Pflaster ist der Strand" (original title)

Berlin, 1974. Grischa and Heinrich are actors, accidentally locked in the rehearsal hall one night. He tries to seduce her; she's puts him off. Later she dumps her husband and sleeps with ... See full summary »

Director:

Helma Sanders-Brahms

Writers:

Heinrich Giskes, Grischa Huber,

Stars:

Grischa Huber, Heinrich Giskes, Ursula von Berg

2 wins.

Cast

Credited cast:
Grischa Huber	...	Grischa
Heinrich Giskes	...	Heinrich
Ursula von Berg	...	Berlin Woman
Gesine Strempel	...	Berlin Woman
Traute Klier-Siebert	...	Berlin Woman
Barbara Finkenstädt	...	Berlin Woman
Heinz Hoenig
Günter Lampe
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Helma Sanders-Brahms	...	Narrator (voice)

Storyline

Berlin, 1974. Grischa and Heinrich are actors, accidentally locked in the rehearsal hall one night. He tries to seduce her; she's puts him off. Later she dumps her husband and sleeps with Heinrich, who ups the ante by suggesting they have a child. She takes him seriously by initiating a journalistic project interviewing working mothers, asking how they balance work and family, delving into their sexual histories. Heinrich sulks when she spends evenings on the project, he's childish. Should she leave him? The story plays out against the backdrop of left-wing political agitation.

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Plot Keywords:

actor | mother | sex | 1970s | dog | 

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Details

Country:

West Germany

Language:

German

Release Date:

14 January 1975 (West Germany)

Also Known As:

Under the Pavement Lies the Strand

Filming Locations:

Berlin, Germany

Company Credits

Production Co:

Helma Sanders-Brahms Filmproduktion

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

User Reviews

Theater of the body in 1970s West Germany

Friends Heinrich and Grischa find fulfillment acting in political theater, their current production a Greek tragedy that examines the roots of patriarchy, modern gender relations, and women's loss of agency. The two are drawn together in part by their shared desire to live lives rich with the meaning they find in theater. Heinrich projects his need for a Große Liebe onto Grischa. Grischa is leaving her current relationship and is embarked on a journey of personal discovery interviewing West German working women about their attitudes towards work, family, men, abortion. She sees Heinrich as a comrade-in-arms who will support her exploration of women's lives. Grischa sets up a household with warm, loving Heinrich. The two share strong chemistry, politics and playfulness. Soon, however, Heinrich's idealized, self-involved image of love comes into conflict with the realities which 1970s West Germany defines for Grischa and the women she interviews. While Heinrich has the privilege of remaining in his head and wholly male, intellectual political theater, Grischa suddenly finds her choices are dramatically constrained by her woman's body. As the film closes Grischa and Heinrich embody archetypal roles, in a modern tragedy no longer on the stage.