The Ogre (1996)

Frenchman Abel Tiffauges likes children, and wants to protect them against the grown-ups. Falsely suspected as child molester, he's recruited as a soldier in the 2nd World War, but very ... See full summary »

Director:

Volker Schlöndorff

Writers:

Michel Tournier (novel), Jean-Claude Carrière

Stars:

John Malkovich, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Gottfried John

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Malkovich	...	Abel Tiffauges
Armin Mueller-Stahl	...	Count von Kaltenborn
Gottfried John	...	Chief Forester
Marianne Sägebrecht	...	Frau Netta
Volker Spengler	...	Fieldmarshall Göring
Heino Ferch	...	SS-Officer Raufeisen
Dieter Laser	...	Professor Blättchen
Agnès Soral	...	Rachel
Sasha Hanau	...	Martine
Luc Florian	...	Prisoner of War
Laurent Spielvogel	...	Prisoner of War
Marc Duret	...	Prisoner of War
Philippe Sturbelle	...	Prisoner of War
Vernon Dobtcheff	...	Lawyer
Jacques Ciron	...	State Attorney

Storyline

Frenchman Abel Tiffauges likes children, and wants to protect them against the grown-ups. Falsely suspected as child molester, he's recruited as a soldier in the 2nd World War, but very soon he is taken prisoner of war. After shortly serving in Goerings hunting lodge, he becomes the dogsbody in Kaltenborn Castle, an elite training camp for German boys. Completely happy to take care of these children, he becomes a servant of Nazism, catching boys from the area as supplies for the camp.

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Plot Keywords:

children | castle | hunting | frenchman | dormitory | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

Germany France UK

Language:

English German French

Release Date:

12 September 1996 (Germany)

Also Known As:

Le roi des aulnes

Filming Locations:

Szymbark, Warminsko-Mazurskie, Poland

Box Office

Gross USA:

$50,935

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$50,935

Company Credits

Production Co:

Canal+, France 2 Cinéma, Héritage Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

Prior to the school fire, a caption says "Paris 1925". Upon his arrest as an adult, Abel, through his narration, remembers the fire as having happened "twenty years ago". This would place his adult scenes in 1945, but when he joins the French army after his arrest it is before the German occupation of Paris which would place his arrest in 1940. However, Abel is slow-witted and possibly does not have an accurate sense of time.

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Quotes

Abel: [voiceover] Young boys are so bold and courageous. No living creatures are as noble or as beautiful-- and yet so heartbreakingly awkward. I love nothing like I love the young boys. What a privilege, to gather them all in a castle they can call their own! Mostly they trust me, but sometimes they don't. And then I can feel the part of me that is made of stone. Hard and pitiless, I force them to come with me.

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Connections

Featured in Hollywood Profile: John Malkovich (1998)

User Reviews

Glorious failure?

Interesting film! Such a wealth of crucial questions, great performances - and yet, the final cohesion remains lacking here. The paradox of the enchantment of Nazism has been too little problematized in the cinema, and any attempt to say anything new on the subject is welcome. Schlöndorff does a cinematically good work, but where the film falters is in the way actual, brutal history and Abel's vision of Nazism as the Magic Kingdom are bound together. It's hard to pinpoint where the fault lies; there's just a sense of maybe trying too much at once. Anyway, an honorable and perhaps too multi-layered analysis of the 20th century nightmare.