Le grand roi (1942)

King Frederick II (aka "Frederick the Great") of Prussia is engaged in a major battle against the Austrian army at Kunersdorf, and things aren't going well. The Austrians are inflicting ... See full summary »

Director:

Veit Harlan

Writer:

Veit Harlan (screenplay)

Stars:

Otto Gebühr, Kristina Söderbaum, Gustav Fröhlich

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Otto Gebühr	...	King Frederick II
Kristina Söderbaum	...	Luise Treskow
Gustav Fröhlich	...	Sgt. Treskow
Hans Nielsen	...	Niehoff
Hilde Körber	...	Elisabeth
Paul Wegener	...	Gen. Czernitscheff
Otto Wernicke	...	Oberst Rochow
Harry Hardt	...	Adjutant von Dessau
Hans Hermann Schaufuß	...	Gen. Zieten
Claus Clausen	...	Prince Heinrich (older)
Klaus Detlef Sierck	...	Prince Heinrich (younger) (as Claus Detlef Sierck)
Paul Henckels	...	Grenadier Spiller
Elisabeth Flickenschildt	...	Spiller's Wife
Franz Schafheitlin	...	Col. Bernburg
Kurt Meisel	...	Alfons

Storyline

King Frederick II (aka "Frederick the Great") of Prussia is engaged in a major battle against the Austrian army at Kunersdorf, and things aren't going well. The Austrians are inflicting major casualties, and his army is beginning to crumble. Defeat seems inevitable when a combination of events gives him hope that he may pull victory from the jaws of defeat after all.

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Plot Keywords:

prussian soldier | 18th century | prussian king | propaganda | uniform | 

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Genres:

Drama | History | War

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Details

Country:

Germany

Language:

German

Release Date:

1956 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Great King

Filming Locations:

Döberitz, Brandenburg, Germany

Company Credits

Production Co:

Tobis Filmkunst

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The movie contains a scene about a plan of the Habsburgers to poison King Frederic with hot chocolate. This is a not proven event. According to a legend his servant Christian Friedrich Glasow (not a french cook as in the movie) offered the king chocolate. Also unlike in the movie this event didn't kill anyone as Glasow warned the king in the last moment. It is also unknown if he actually wanted to poison him or if he was ordered to. Glasow himself died in 1757 in Spandau due to misuse of the government seal for private reasons.

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Goofs

During King Frederic's birthday party in which he honors Czar Peter III the tune "Boshe Czarya hrani" (God bless the Czar) is played. It was written in 1833 and was the anthem of the Russian Empire since then. The scene however is set in 1762.

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Quotes

King Frederick II: Yes, I have the gout. But not in my head.

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Crazy Credits

The opening credits says "The work on this movie started in the early summer of the year 1940. In its important scenes it stays faithful to the historical facts and depicts mostly the tasks of the 7-year-war in which the superior character of the king had to be challenged. Especially here he grew to a height which is unique in whole history. The main quotes of the king are from his own mouth."

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Connections

Referenced in Le cinéma allemand par Edgar Reitz: La nuit des cinéastes (1995)

User Reviews

Jackboots galore

'Der Große König' ('The Great King') was a Nazi propaganda film which won the 1942 Coppa Mussolini prize as the best foreign film released in Italy that year. One assumes that Mussolini's film critics were not completely objective. And yet this movie has excellent production values and a gripping story which (despite its too-long running time) still make it an appealing film for those of us who aren't Nazis.

This film recounts the travails of Prussian king Friedrich the Second during the battle of Kunersdorf, when his army were decimated by the Austrian forces. Just when defeat seemed certain, Russia's czar Peter the Great sent reinforcements.

When this movie was made, the early victories of Hitler's army were long past ... and it was now starting to look as if Germany might lose the war after all. 'The Great King' was clearly made to inspire German audiences to continue the struggle against overwhelming odds. Despite its odious Nazi agenda, this film is still eminently watchable. The battle scenes are impressive, and Otto Gebühr gives a fine performance in the lead role as Friedrich. There's also a splendid turn by Paul Wegener as the leader of the Russian forces. Wegener was a stiff and very mannered actor, but he manages to turn those traits to his advantage here.

Gustav Fröhlich, best known for playing the idealistic youth in 'Metropolis', gives a splendidly earnest performance here as Sergeant Treskow, who violates orders to give a crucial command to his men ... with disastrous results. The propaganda message here is that good Germans shouldn't take the initiative and think for themselves: instead, they should follow the orders of their wise leaders who know what's best for them.

Even though this movie is Nazi agitprop, the Third Reich imagery isn't crammed down our throats here the way it is in 'Triumph of the Will'. You can enjoy this movie without feeling any urge to goose-step. But the story could have been told more effectively in a shorter running time. I'll rate 'Der Grosse Konig' 6 points out of 10.