Playing for Time (1980)

Female prisoners in a Nazi concentration camp (Auschwitz) are spared from death in return for performing music for their captors.

Directors:

Daniel Mann, Joseph Sargent (uncredited)

Writers:

Arthur Miller, Fania Fénelon (autobiography: "The Musicians of Auschwitz")

Stars:

Vanessa Redgrave, Jane Alexander, Maud Adams

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 5 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Vanessa Redgrave	...	Fania Fenelon
Jane Alexander	...	Alma Rose
Maud Adams	...	Mala
Christine Baranski	...	Olga
Robin Bartlett	...	Etalina
Marisa Berenson	...	Elzvieta
Verna Bloom	...	Paulette
Donna Haley	...	Katrina
Lenore Harris	...	Charlotte
Mady Kaplan	...	Varya
Will Lee	...	Shmuel
Anna Levine	...	Michou
Viveca Lindfors	...	Frau Schmidt
Melanie Mayron	...	Marianne
Marcell Rosenblatt	...	Giselle

Storyline

In World War II, the Jewish French musician and cabaret singer Fania Fenelon Goldstein is sent by the Nazis from Paris to the Auschwitz Concentration Camp. The guards take her clothing and luggage and they cut her hair very short. One day, when she is very weak, she hears someone asking whether any prisoner could sing Giacomo Puccini's Madama Butterfly and she joins the group of musicians that have been spared from the gas chambers to entertain the Nazis performing music for them. She convinces the conductor Alma Rose to invite her friend Marianne, telling that she would be a talented singer. Along the years of abusive treatment, they survive but losing their dignity.

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Plot Keywords:

nazi concentration camp | nazi | singer | prisoner | musician | 

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Genres:

Drama | Music

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English German French

Release Date:

30 September 1980 (USA)

Also Known As:

Playing for Time

Filming Locations:

Fort Indiantown Gap, Annville, Pennsylvania, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Szygzy Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

150 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The real Fania Fenelon wanted Liza Minnelli to play her. Fenelon is quoted as saying "I wanted Liza Minnelli. She's small, she's full of life, she sings and dances." Julie Andrews was also briefly considered for the role of Fenelon.

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Goofs

When the man and woman are hanged, even after the stool they stand on is pushed down and they actually hang, the nooses are very loose around their neck.

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Connections

Referenced in Northern Exposure: Nothing's Perfect (1992)

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Soundtracks

The Blue Danube
(uncredited)
Music by Johann Strauss
Arranged by Norman Gold

User Reviews

An Excellent Movie

It has been years since I have seen this on TV. Being Jewish and understanding the holocaust, I love this movie with Vanessa Redgrave. I just wish it came on TV more. The visuals were excellent, the plot very real, and it was an absolute delight to see how well it was portrayed.