The Tin Drum (1979)

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142 min - Drama | War - 11 April 1980 (USA)

7.6

Ratings: 7.6/10 from 10,413 users
Reviews: 69 user | 52 critic

Danzig in the 1920s/1930s. Oskar Matzerath, son of a local dealer, is a most unusual boy. Equipped with... See full summary »

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Won Oscar. Another 13 wins & 1 nomination See more awards »

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Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
	Mario Adorf	...	Alfred Matzerath
	Angela Winkler	...	Agnes Matzerath
	David Bennent	...	Oskar Matzerath
	Katharina Thalbach	...	Maria Matzerath
	Daniel Olbrychski	...	Jan Bronski
	Tina Engel	...	Anna Koljaiczek (jung)
	Berta Drews	...	Anna Koljaiczek
	Roland Teubner	...	Joseph Koljaiczek
	Tadeusz Kunikowski	...	Onkel Vinzenz
	Andréa Ferréol	...	Lina Greff (as Andréa Ferreol)
	Heinz Bennent	...	Greff
	Ilse Pagé	...	Gretchen Scheffler
	Werner Rehm	...	Scheffler
	Käte Jaenicke	...	Mutter Truczinski
	Helmut Brasch	...	Der Alte Heilandt (as Helmuth Brasch)

Full cast and crew »

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Storyline

Danzig in the 1920s/1930s. Oskar Matzerath, son of a local dealer, is a most unusual boy. Equipped with full intellect right from his birth he decides at his third birthday not to grow up as he sees the crazy world around him at the eve of World War II. So he refuses the society and his tin drum symbolizes his protest against the middle-class mentality of his family and neighborhood, which stand for all passive people in Nazi Germany at that time. However, (almost) nobody listens to him, so the catastrophe goes on... Written by Anonymous

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

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Taglines:

Academy Award Winner Best Foreign Language Film 1979 See more »

Genres:

Drama | War

Parents Guide:

View content advisory »

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Details

Country:

West Germany | France | Poland | Yugoslavia

Language:

Hebrew | Italian | German | Polish | Russian

Release Date:

11 April 1980 (USA) See more »

Also Known As:

El tambor de hojalata See more »

Filming Locations:

CCC-Atelier, Spandau, Berlin, Germany See more »

Box Office

Gross:

SEK 3,963,773 (Sweden)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Argos Films, Artémis Productions, Bioskop Film See more »

Show detailed company contact information on IMDbPro »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

142 min | Germany: 162 min (director's cut)

Sound Mix:

Mono (35 mm prints) | 70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)

Color:

Black and White | Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

See full technical specs »

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Did You Know?

Trivia

There are several references (on the English soundtrack/ subtitles) to 'Kashubians'. Jan Bronski is referred as a Kashubian by Alfred Matzerath. Kahsubia is an ethnic group, centred on north-central Poland, with the nominal capital being Gdansk (Danzig). Kashubians were considered by the Nazis as of German stock/ extraction. See more »

Goofs

Continuity: In one scene at the table Agnes is holding a fork with her left hand. On the next shot, she's holding the fork with her right hand. See more »

Quotes

Vendor: Look, if you please, at this extraordinary potato... this swelling, luxuriant flesh, forever conceiving new shapes... and yet so chaste. I love a potato, because it speaks to me.
See more »

Connections

Referenced in Le Skylab (2011) See more »

The Tin Drum (1979)
Die Blechtrommel (original title)

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