Swing Kids (1993)

User Rating:

6.4/10   

Director:

Thomas Carter

Writer (WGA):

Jonathan Marc Feldman (written by)

Release Date:

5 March 1993 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Music

Tagline:

In a world on the brink of war. You either march to one tune or dance to another.

Plot:

The story of a close-knit group of young kids in Nazi Germany who listen to banned swing music from the US...

Plot Keywords:

Swing | Nazi | Germany | Swing Dancing | Political

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Robert Sean Leonard	...	Peter Müller
Christian Bale	...	Thomas Berger
Frank Whaley	...	Arvid
Barbara Hershey	...	Frau Müller
Tushka Bergen	...	Evey
David Tom	...	Willi Müller
Julia Stemberger	...	Frau Linge
Jayce Bartok	...	Otto
Noah Wyle	...	Emil Lutz
Johan Leysen	...	Herr Schumler
Douglas Roberts	...	Herr Hinz
Martin Clunes	...	Bannführer
Jessica Hynes	...	Helga (as Jessica Stevenson)
Carl Brincat	...	H.J. Thug
Mary Fogarty	...	Mama Klara Müller (as Mary Fogerty)

Runtime:

112 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Australia:M | Iceland:14 (original rating) | Iceland:16 (video rating) | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:12 | USA:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Prague, Czech Republic

Company:

Hollywood Pictures

Trivia:

On location in Prague in near freezing weather, Christian Bale was visited by 'Spielberg, Steven' (director of his feature film debut Empire of the Sun (1987)).

Goofs:

Anachronisms: In an establishing shot just after the Nazis steal the radio, the rear half of a Vauxhall Wyvern can be seen parked on the street; this car was not introduced until 1948.

Quotes:

Arvid: You think that just because you're not doing it yourself, you're not a part of it? Well, I'm sick and tired of doing my part.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: Outlaw (#6.19)" (1993)

Soundtrack:

DAPHNE (MANOIR DE MES REVES)

Strangulation Of Culture

I do love swing music and love the music and artists from the era. So did my parents who were contemporary with it. But they had the good fortune to love it in the USA. It was a dangerous thing to like Benny Goodman, Count Basie, Duke Ellington and most of all Arthur Shawronsky who the authorities did know was Artie Shaw. But these squares were the Gestapo and Swing Kids is about the youth who loved American swing music at considerable cost.

Robert Sean Leonard, Christian Bale, Frank Whaley are three friends who are into American swing at a time in their country when such "jungle" music was Verboten. Swing Kids is the story about how all three were dealing with the growing strangulation of culture. One of the opening scenes takes place at a forbidden swing club where the kids are cutting a rug to Benny Goodman when word comes the authorities are near. Without a beat the band turns into a typical German Oompah band, the kind of music Herr Schicklgruber deemed acceptable to German youth.

Which was being swallowed up by the Hitler Youth and the social pressures to join are enormous. Something that we in this country cannot fathom. I'm not a big fan of the current Pope, but about the only thing I'll give Benedict XVI a pass on was joining the Hitler Youth. At a certain point the wiggle room got less and less.

Barbara Hershey as Leonard's mother gives a good performance as a woman keeping company with a Gestapo official for a little more comfort. Her husband and Leonard and David Tom's father had been arrested by the Gestapo a few years back and died as a result of their custody. The Gestapo official is played by an unbilled Kenneth Branagh who took no billing for his part deliberately.

Swing Kids has a timely lesson for today if some in federal authority will care to learn it. The fundamentalist Moslems just as the Nazis hate our decadent culture. The answer is keep importing it into places like Iran by the cargo ship load. Don't bomb them to death, just send them our music and films.

By the way our own fundamentalist Christians hated that music as they hate the music of today. Something about authoritarianism of whatever stripe just hates contemporary culture, whatever it is at the time.

Swing Kids is a valuable lesson about freedom of expression wrapped up in a good entertaining package.