"Regina auf den Stufen" (1990) TV series

Seasons:

1

Cast

Katja Riemann	...	Regina (10 episodes, 1992)
Mark Kuhn	...	Martin (10 episodes, 1992)
Serge Avedikian	...	Janos (9 episodes, 1992)
Jeane Manson	...	Henriette (9 episodes, 1992)
Erich Hallhuber	...	Paul Oldenhoff (8 episodes, 1992)
Karin Kienzer	...	Gaby Oldenhoff (8 episodes, 1992)
Roswitha Schreiner	...	Stups (5 episodes, 1992)
Hans Stetter	...	Onkel Fritz (5 episodes, 1992)

Also Known As:

Regina on the Ladder to Success (Europe: English title)

Country:

Germany | Austria

Language:

German

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Company:

Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen (ZDF)

Strong piece over 9 hours

10 episodes of 54 minutes makes 9 hours. With the 3-dvd set, you can watch it all in a row, and I did (on a bed-ridden day).

Katja Riemann sure shines (and won a price for Best New Actress) in this exuberant epic set in 1956/57 West Germany.

We get a quite complex story around Regina (fled from East Germany, to Munich). On a 1956 New Year's Day celebration, she gets involved with Martin, who was just freed from Soviet prisons. Then there's the genial (but weird) Hungarian photographer Janos.. and about a dozen other main characters, of which I liked most the old photographer Brunnhuber, and Stups, the secretary who made her own business.

The 1950s were quite nicely recreated (as far as I can tell, born 1956), mostly in period cars (let me drop some brand names: Steyr, Goliath, Lloyd, Borgward,...), and many other props. After initial doubts, the meandering story drew me in, a little bit more with each episode.

Utta Danella, after whose book this serial was made, has a reputation for popular but ultimately trivial novels for a female readership. That may well be, but even as a male I enjoyed this 9-hours show. Very much, even though I suffered through the only "action" scene where a Borgward Isabella is crashed...