Comedian Harmonists (1997)

Director:

Joseph Vilsmaier

Writers:

Jürgen Büscher (story)
Klaus Richter (writer)

Release Date:

25 December 1997 (Germany)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | Music

Tagline:

Eine Legende kehrt zurück.

Plot:

Comedian Harmonists tells the story of a famous, German male sextet, five vocals and piano, the "Comedian Harmonists"...

Plot Keywords:

Piano | Germany | Nazi | German | Jewish

Awards:

11 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Ben Becker	...	Robert Biberti
Heino Ferch	...	Roman Cycowski
Ulrich Noethen	...	Harry Frommermann
Heinrich Schafmeister	...	Erich A. Collin
Max Tidof	...	Ari Leschnikoff
Kai Wiesinger	...	Erwin Bootz
Meret Becker	...	Erna Eggstein
Katja Riemann	...	Mary Cycowski
Noemi Fischer	...	Chantal, Collin's Girlfriend
Dana Vávrová	...	Ursula Bootz
Otto Sander	...	Bruno Levy
Michaela Rosen	...	Ramona, the Madame
Günter Lamprecht	...	Eric Charell
Gérard Semaan	...	Roman's Father
Rolf Hoppe	...	Gauleiter Streicher

Also Known As:

The Harmonists (Canada: English title) (USA)

MPAA:

Rated R for some nudity.

Runtime:

Germany:126 min | USA:115 min

Country:

Germany | Austria

Language:

German

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Finland:K-8 | France:U | Germany:6 (f) (bw) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Bad Fischau, Lower Austria, Austria

Company:

Bavaria Film

Trivia:

In this film, Heino Ferch and Ulrich Noethen play Jews who are persecuted by the Nazi Regime. In Der Untergang (2004), Ferch played Albert Speer and Noethen played Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: During the performance on the USS Saratoga, black sailors are shown on the vessel mixed with white sailors. The navy did not integrate until 1949.

Quotes:

[the group has just been informed that, effective after that night's show, they are banned from performing in Germany. Roman undoes his collar, refusing to go on]
Roman Cycowski: No power on Earth can force me to sing in this country again.
Harry Frommermann: Roman, please.
[the audience begins clapping for the group to come out on stage]
Harry Frommermann: Don't you hear that? Those are our fans. At least for tonight. Do you guys understand? Our fans.

Movie Connections:

References Der blaue Engel (1930)

More than just a film about a group of singers

Taken at face value, one would think that a film about a singing group called the "Comedian Harmonists" in the Berlin of the nineteen twenties, would be dull indeed. Not so.At two and a half hours, not once did my attention wander.The director, Joseph Vilsmaier, does such a magnificent job of telling the story of this very popular, German singing group, that I would have liked to have been there to hear them in person.The hedonism of Berlin in the twenties. The rise of the 'Brown Shirts', the vilification of the Jews, Vilsmaier captures it perfectly, without stooping to mawkish sentiment.Of course, this film is more than just a film about a very popular singing group. It's also about the evils of national-socialism, allowing men like Streicher (one of Hitler's most vicious jew-baiters - even the top Nazis didn't like the man), to grow and flourish. The look of the period is excellent. Each character is deftly drawn, while still not losing sight that primarily,it was a group. There's a wonderful scene towards the end where the 'Harmonists' sing in front of thousands of sailors. Tremendously stirring! One quibble: the Algonquin Hotel in New York, where the Harmonists stay, was not, as far as I know, located down near the Brooklyn Bridge.But that shouldn't detract anybody from going to see this wonderful film.