Weisse Massai, Die (2005)

Director:

Hermine Huntgeburth

Writers:

Corinne Hofmann (novel)
Johannes W. Betz (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

15 September 2005 (Germany)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Plot:

Based upon an autobiographical novel by Swiss writer Corinne Hofmann, the film tells of a girl, Carola...

Plot Keywords:

Based On Novel

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Nina Hoss	...	Carola Lehmann
Jacky Ido	...	Lemalian
Katja Flint	...	Elisabeth
Antonio Prester	...	Pater Bernardo (as Nino Prester)
Janek Rieke	...	Stefan
Helen Namaso Lenamarken	...	Lemalians Mama
Nicolas Sironka	...	Mini-Chief
Damaris Itenyo Agweyu	...	Asma (as Damaris Agweyu)
Barbara M. Ahren	...	Carolas Mutter (as Barbara Magdalena Ahren)
Robert Dölle	...	Frank
Barbara Herschbach	...	Jenny
Morgan Lematampash	...	Tom
Kiriniyaga Lenamatiyo	...	John
Christine Namkuny	...	Saguna
John Erick	...	Mike
Charles Magati Ongeri	...	Moses
Maya Akinyi Spybey	...	Sarai
Salim	...	Samburukrieger 1
Nicolas Lenarniyu	...	Samburukrieger 2
Christopher Okinda	...	Beamter Infoschalter (as Christopher Odhiambo Okinda)
Paul Ramtu	...	Beamter Maralal
Tony Rimwa	...	Busfahrer (as Tonny Rimwah)
Claire Russell	...	Flughafen Hostess

Directed by
Hermine Huntgeburth

Writing credits
Corinne Hofmann		(novel)
Johannes W. Betz		(screenplay)
Hermine Huntgeburth		adaptation
Günter Rohrbach		adaptation
Ruth Toma		narrator´s script

Produced by
François Ivernel	....	executive producer
Brendan McCarthy	....	executive producer
Cameron McCracken	....	executive producer
Günter Rohrbach	....	producer
Jürgen Tröster	....	line producer
Mark Woods	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Niki Reiser

Cinematography by
Martin Langer

Film Editing by
Eva Schnare

Casting by
An Dorthe Braker
Jorgelina Depetris Pochintesta

Production Design by
Susann Bieling
Uwe Szielasko

Costume Design by
Maria Dimler

Makeup Department
Gregor Eckstein	....	key makeup artist
Sabine Hehnen-Wild	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Mark Nolting	....	unit manager
Bernhard Thür	....	production manager

Art Department
Babett Pönisch	....	props

Sound Department
André Bendocchi-Alves	....	dialog editor: 40°Film
Stefan Busch	....	supervising sound editor
Claudia Enzmann	....	dialog editor
Lisa Geffcken-Reinhard	....	foley editor
Nico Krebs	....	sound editor
Eckhard W. Kuchenbecker	....	sound mixer
Matthias Pasedag	....	sound engineer
Philipp Sellier	....	foley recordist
Martin Steyer	....	sound mixer
Martin Steyer	....	sound re-recording mixer

Visual Effects by
Lutz Lemke	....	title sequence designer/animator

Camera and Electrical Department
Donat Schilling	....	steadicam operator

Casting Department
Thomas L. Carter	....	casting assistant

Music Department
Rainer Bartesch	....	conductor

Other crew
Yasmina Majid	....	production assistant: extra shoot, Munich
Cornelia Popp	....	production coordinator
Jule Schulze	....	production coordinator
Andreas Schumann	....	production assistant

Production Companies

• Constantin Film Produktion

Distributors

• Constantin Film (2005) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Benelux Film Distribution (2006) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Bontonfilm (2006) (Czech Republic) (theatrical)
• Divisa Home Video (2007) (Spain) (DVD)
• Dutch FilmWorks (DFW) (2006) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• FS Film Oy (2006) (Finland) (theatrical)
• FS Film Oy (2007) (Finland) (DVD)
• Prorom Media-Trade (2006) (Romania) (all media)
• Rialto Film AG (2005) (Switzerland) (theatrical)
• Telexcel/ImpactoCine (2006-????) (Argentina) (theatrical)

Also Known As:

The White Massai (International: English title)

Runtime:

131 min | Argentina:131 min (Mar del Plata Film Festival)

Country:

Germany

Language:

German | Swahili | English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Hungary:16 | Brazil:16 | Australia:M | Netherlands:12 | Germany:12 | Czech Republic:12 | Finland:K-15 | South Korea:18 | Argentina:13

Filming Locations:

Kenya

Company:

Constantin Film Produktion

Trivia:

The cast and crew lived in tents among the Samburu during the entire shoot. They also studied their language and customs.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Smagsdommerne: (#3.14)" (2006)

Very good movie even with its flaws

The movie is based on the book "The white Masai", and on the true life of Corinne Hofmann, the author of the book.

She becomes attracted to a Masai man while on a trip to Kenya, and eventually moves in with him and marries him. This movie is about love, cultural differences and hard facts of life. It is very romantic but also heart stopping in the struggles for cultural understanding.

The movie does not strictly follow the story of the book, but makes a good job of squeezing the essentials into a 2 hour movie. The tensions, the hardships etc, are well caught much thanks to good acting performances.

I really miss a lot of information in the movie. E.g. how was her relation with other people in the village, especially with "Mama" in the same hut. Also there is often a lack of explaining what other people in the tribe thought of her actions. Some cultural differences are quite insufficiently covered, e.g. how her way to talk to other men contributed to the jealousy of her husband. Many of the hardships in the book are also left out in the movie.

What is truly great about the movie and the story, is that her failures are not hidden. Its not a movie about that the native life in Africa is "so hard" for a sane westerner to live. The sacrifices made from both sides are vast, from their cultural positions and values, but still they are not sufficient to bridge the gap in so many issues.

It is a really good movie. I recommend it to anyone. Ignore the other whining comments here. The movie does a good job, if not perfect, fitting the story into a 2 hour movie. The cultural differences are there to see and think about, even if some things were left out.