The Tin Drum (1979)

In 1924, Oskar Matzerath is born in the Free City of Danzig. At age three, he falls down a flight of stairs and stops growing. In 1939, World War II breaks out.

Director:

Volker Schlöndorff

Writers:

Günter Grass (novel), Jean-Claude Carrière

Stars:

David Bennent, Mario Adorf, Angela Winkler

Won 1 Oscar. Another 16 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Mario Adorf	...	Alfred Matzerath
Angela Winkler	...	Agnes Matzerath
David Bennent	...	Oskar Matzerath
Katharina Thalbach	...	Maria Matzerath
Daniel Olbrychski	...	Jan Bronski
Tina Engel	...	Anna Koljaiczek (jung)
Berta Drews	...	Anna Koljaiczek
Roland Teubner	...	Joseph Koljaiczek
Tadeusz Kunikowski	...	Onkel Vinzenz
Andréa Ferréol	...	Lina Greff (as Andréa Ferreol)
Heinz Bennent	...	Greff
Ilse Pagé	...	Gretchen Scheffler
Werner Rehm	...	Scheffler
Käte Jaenicke	...	Mutter Truczinski
Helmut Brasch	...	Der Alte Heilandt (as Helmuth Brasch)

Storyline

Danzig in the 1920s/1930s. Oskar Matzerath, son of a local dealer, is a most unusual boy. Equipped with full intellect right from his birth he decides at his third birthday not to grow up as he sees the crazy world around him at the eve of World War II. So he refuses the society and his tin drum symbolizes his protest against the middle-class mentality of his family and neighborhood, which stand for all passive people in Nazi Germany at that time. However, (almost) nobody listens to him, so the catastrophe goes on...

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Plot Keywords:

nazi | boy | nazi uniform | subjective camera | surrogate uncle | 

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Taglines:

Academy Award Winner Best Foreign Language Film 1979

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Genres:

Drama | War

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film was initially banned in Ireland. After an appeal, it was released theatrically, uncut, in 1981.

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Goofs

When Oskar breaks the teacher's glasses, the pattern of spots on his face change.

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Quotes

Bebra: You must join us, you must!
Oskar Matzerath: You know, Mr. Bebra... to tell the truth, I prefer to be a member of the audience, and let my little art flower in secret.
Bebra: My dear Oskar, trust an experienced colleague. Our kind must never sit in the audience. Our kind must perform and run the show, or the others will run *us*. The others are coming. They will occupy the fairgrounds, they will stage torchlight parades, build rostrums, fill the rostrums, and from those rostrums preach our destruction.

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Alternate Versions

Although reluctant to do so the BBFC were forced to remove 19 secs from UK cinema and video versions under the Protection of Children Act to remove a scene showing Oskar pressing his face against Maria's pubic region. The cuts were waived in 2003 when it was decided that the scene did not constitute an indecent image.

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Connections

Referenced in The Censor (1980)

User Reviews

A Strange Fantasy

Danzig in the 1920s/1930s. Oskar Matzerath, son of a local dealer, is a most unusual boy. Equipped with full intellect right from his birth he decides at his third birthday not to grow up as he sees the crazy world around him at the eve of World War II.

This is very much a fantasy film. IMDb says it is a war drama, which is true enough, being set in the place and time that it is. But this is less about the war and more about Oskar, which I think makes it a fantasy film. His imagination is incredible, or perhaps more incredible is the idea that none of this is his imagination at all. His ability to alter the world around him is quite interesting.

The idea of a tin drum as a symbol of protest makes sense. It becomes even more interesting when put in the hands of a small child, protesting against life itself. Such an action is unheard of.

Details

Country:

West Germany France Poland Yugoslavia

Language:

German Italian Hebrew Polish Russian Latin

Release Date:

11 April 1980 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Tin Drum

Filming Locations:

Wedding, Berlin, Germany

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$6,881

Company Credits

Production Co:

Franz Seitz Filmproduktion, Bioskop Film, Artemis Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

142 min 162 min (director's cut) 132 min (1980 cut)

Sound Mix:

Mono (35 mm prints) 70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)

Color:

Black and White Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1