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IMDbPro

Berlin - Ecke Schönhauser

  • 19571957
  • 1h 21m
IMDb RATING
6.5/10
358
YOUR RATING
Berlin - Ecke Schönhauser (1957)
  • Crime
  • Drama
  • Romance
The story of a group of rebellious teens in East Berlin.The story of a group of rebellious teens in East Berlin.The story of a group of rebellious teens in East Berlin.
IMDb RATING
6.5/10
358
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Gerhard Klein
  • Writers
    • Gerhard Hartwig(dramatisation)
    • Gerhard Klein(scenario)
    • Wolfgang Kohlhaase
  • Stars
    • Harry Engel
    • Siegfried Weiß
    • Ingeborg Beeske
Top credits
  • Director
    • Gerhard Klein
  • Writers
    • Gerhard Hartwig(dramatisation)
    • Gerhard Klein(scenario)
    • Wolfgang Kohlhaase
  • Stars
    • Harry Engel
    • Siegfried Weiß
    • Ingeborg Beeske
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 3User reviews
    • 5Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Photos

    Berlin - Ecke Schönhauser (1957)
    Berlin - Ecke Schönhauser (1957)
    Berlin - Ecke Schönhauser (1957)
    Berlin - Ecke Schönhauser (1957)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Harry Engel
    Harry Engel
    • Karl-Heinz Erdmann
    Siegfried Weiß
    • Fritz Erdmann
    Ingeborg Beeske
    • Frau Erdmann
    Ekkehard Schall
    • Dieter
    Ilse Pagé
    Ilse Pagé
    • Angela
    Helga Göring
    • Angelas Mutter
    Erika Dunkelmann
    • Kohles Mutter
    Maximilian Larsen
    • Kohles Stiefvater
    Ernst-Georg Schwill
    • Kohle
    Manfred Borges
    • Bruder von Dieter
    Raimund Schelcher
    • VP-Kommissar
    Hartmut Reck
    • FDJler
    Adi Tischmeier
    • FDJ-Sekretärin
    Albert Zahn
    • Arbeiter
    Dorothea Thiesing
    • Dieters Zimmerwirtin
    Brigitte Stroh
    • Kohles Schwester
    Gerhard Soor
    • Geldwechsler
    Rolf Ripperger
    • Chef des Funkwagens
    • Director
      • Gerhard Klein
    • Writers
      • Gerhard Hartwig(dramatisation)
      • Gerhard Klein(scenario)
      • Wolfgang Kohlhaase
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

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    Did you know

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    • Trivia
      The film was criticized by many party officials for its negative portrayal of youth and life in East-Germany. Film critics, however, praised its authenticity. After much debate, the film was released in August 1957 - three months later it had already attracted over 1,5 million viewers.
    • Connections
      Featured in Auge in Auge - Eine deutsche Filmgeschichte (2008)

    User reviews3

    Review
    Top review
    8/10
    Socialism Wears a Human Face
    Berlin - Ecke Schönhauser depicts the youth of 1950s East Berlin as an aimless bunch, lacking goals, with no motivation to better themselves or to look beyond the thrill of the next dance or meaningless act of delinquency. Here the youth of the DDR have much in common with their American counterparts in films like Rebel Without a Cause. Unlike the spoiled LA kids choking on Eisenhower-era consumption, however, Berlin teenagers Dieter, Kohle, Karl-Heinz, Angelika and their friends live in poverty amid the ruins of WW II. Parents are missing, killed in the war. As the city rebuilds, piles of rubble disgorge live bombs. While the East struggles to repair the damage of the last war West Germany rearms, this time with nuclear weapons. The kids are all right, but they survive in a pretty grim environment. To the youths, adults belong to an alien race who cling to hypocritical bourgeois values. There are exceptions – a sympathetic police officer takes an interest in the plight of the young people, promising apprenticeships to the out-of-work kids.

    But Karl-Heinz has other plans: pre-Berlin Wall travel between the city's Capitalist and Communist zones is easy, and Karl-Heinz exchanges East Marks for West and sells stolen IDs, eager to make enough money to enable flight to the West. One of his crimes goes suddenly wrong, and Karl-Heinz is on the run. Kohle and Dieter try to call in a debt, tragedy ensues, and the two flee West, leaving behind Angelika, pregnant with Dieter's child.

    Kohle and Dieter find West Germans suspicious, interested in espionage and not exactly welcoming. To gain asylum the young men must claim they suffered political persecution, a charge the film shows is patently false. The two friends decide to part ways, Kohle excited about heading to a new life farther west while Dieter is drawn back to the DDR life he knows.

    As the film closes some important lessons have been learned: The BRD is a locus for crime of all sorts, and it draws criminals out of the East, a statement made explicit in the film's closing lines. Socialism faces challenges; it is not perfect, but it wears the human face of loving well-intentioned men and women.
    helpful•10
    5
    • mlwehle
    • Oct 31, 2008

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • August 30, 1957 (East Germany)
    • Country of origin
      • East Germany
    • Language
      • German
    • Also known as
      • Berlin-Schönhauser Corner
    • Filming locations
      • Berlin, Germany
    • Production company
      • Deutsche Film (DEFA)
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

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    • Runtime
      1 hour 21 minutes
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.33 : 1

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