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IMDb > Institute Benjamenta, or This Dream People Call Human Life (1995)

Institute Benjamenta, or This Dream People Call Human Life (1995) More at IMDbPro »

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Institute Benjamenta, or This Dream People Call Human Life (1995) -- Open-ended Trailer from Zeitgeist

Overview

User Rating:
6.9/10   627 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
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Writers:
Alan Passes (writer)
Stephen Quay (writer)
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Contact:
View company contact information for Institute Benjamenta, or This Dream That One Calls Human Life on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
23 August 1996 (USA) more
Genre:
Drama more
Plot:
Jakob arrives at the Institute Benjamenta (run by brother and sister Johannes and Lisa Benjamenta) to learn to become a servant... more | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
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Awards:
4 wins & 2 nominations more
User Comments:
Eccentrically sombre more

Cast

  (Complete credited cast)
Mark Rylance ... Jakob
Alice Krige ... Lisa Benjamenta
Gottfried John ... Herr Benjamenta
Daniel Smith ... Kraus
Joseph Alessi ... Pepino
Jonathan Stone ... Hebling
César Sarachu ... Inigo (as Cesar Sarachu)
Peter Lovstrom ... Jorgenson
Uri Roodner ... Schilinski
Peter Whitfield ... Null
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
Institut Benjamenta oder Dieser Traum, den man menschliches Leben nennt (Germany)
Institute Benjamenta
Institute Benjamenta, or This Dream That One Calls Human Life (USA)
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Runtime:
104 min
Country:
UK | Japan | Germany
Language:
English | German
Sound Mix:
Mono
Certification:
France:U | UK:PG
Company:
Image Forum more

Fun Stuff

Quotes:
Jakob: I shall never let myself be rescued, nor shall I ever rescue anybody. more
Movie Connections:
Featured in Celluloid Dreams (2002) more

FAQ

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4 out of 4 people found the following comment useful:-
Eccentrically sombre, 8 November 2000
8/10
Author: Afracious from England

A quiet and softly spoken man arrives at a ghostly building to enrol for the servants class taught there. He rings the doorbell and is greeted by a monkey's face through the small hole in the door. The man's name is Jakob. He enters and meets one of the two owners (a brother and sister). The brother is unpleasant, and informs Jakob that there are no favourites here.

Jakob goes into class to meet the other students. They all announce their names to him and then fall over. The lessons are presumptuous and iterative. They involve the men swaying from side to side and standing on one leg. They really are quite eccentric. The institute seems to be its own little world away from reality, with its low ceiling rooms. The sister soon has a strange fondness for Jakob. This is a very sombre film, but has a unique air to it. The pacing is pedestrian, but you stay with it. The acting is good, and the camerawork is meticulous and probing.

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Widescreen version on DVD? parasoft
DVD cover kamil_g
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Related Links

Full cast and crew Company credits External reviews
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