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IMDbPro

The People Vs. Fritz Bauer

Original title: Der Staat gegen Fritz Bauer
  • 20152015
  • RR
  • 1h 45m
IMDb RATING
7.1/10
5.7K
YOUR RATING
The People Vs. Fritz Bauer (2015)
Trailer for The People vs. Fritz Bauer
Play trailer2:22
4 Videos
27 Photos
  • Biography
  • Drama
  • Thriller
The story of the man who brought high-ranking German Nazi criminal Adolf Eichmann to justice.The story of the man who brought high-ranking German Nazi criminal Adolf Eichmann to justice.The story of the man who brought high-ranking German Nazi criminal Adolf Eichmann to justice.
IMDb RATING
7.1/10
5.7K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Lars Kraume
  • Writers
    • Lars Kraume(screenplay)
    • Olivier Guez(screenplay)
    • Brian Cordray(Story Consultant)
  • Stars
    • Burghart Klaußner
    • Ronald Zehrfeld
    • Lilith Stangenberg
Top credits
  • Director
    • Lars Kraume
  • Writers
    • Lars Kraume(screenplay)
    • Olivier Guez(screenplay)
    • Brian Cordray(Story Consultant)
  • Stars
    • Burghart Klaußner
    • Ronald Zehrfeld
    • Lilith Stangenberg
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 11User reviews
    • 85Critic reviews
    • 61Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 16 wins & 10 nominations

    Videos4

    The People vs. Fritz Bauer
    Trailer 2:22
    The People vs. Fritz Bauer
    Theatrical Trailer
    Trailer 2:23
    Theatrical Trailer
    The People vs. Fritz Bauer
    Clip 3:36
    The People vs. Fritz Bauer
    "What are you going to do?"
    Clip 3:34
    "What are you going to do?"

    Photos27

    Burghart Klaußner in The People Vs. Fritz Bauer (2015)
    Burghart Klaußner in The People Vs. Fritz Bauer (2015)
    Lilith Stangenberg in The People Vs. Fritz Bauer (2015)
    Burghart Klaußner in The People Vs. Fritz Bauer (2015)
    Ronald Zehrfeld in The People Vs. Fritz Bauer (2015)
    Burghart Klaußner and Ronald Zehrfeld in The People Vs. Fritz Bauer (2015)
    Burghart Klaußner, Ronald Zehrfeld, and Lilith Stangenberg in The People Vs. Fritz Bauer (2015)
    Burghart Klaußner, Ronald Zehrfeld, and Lilith Stangenberg in The People Vs. Fritz Bauer (2015)
    The People Vs. Fritz Bauer (2015)
    The People Vs. Fritz Bauer (2015)
    The People Vs. Fritz Bauer (2015)
    Robert Atzorn, Sebastian Blomberg, Burghart Klaußner, and Ronald Zehrfeld in The People Vs. Fritz Bauer (2015)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Burghart Klaußner
    Burghart Klaußner
    • Fritz Baueras Fritz Bauer
    Ronald Zehrfeld
    Ronald Zehrfeld
    • Karl Angermannas Karl Angermann
    Lilith Stangenberg
    Lilith Stangenberg
    • Victoriaas Victoria
    Jörg Schüttauf
    Jörg Schüttauf
    • Paul Gebhardtas Paul Gebhardt
    Sebastian Blomberg
    Sebastian Blomberg
    • Ulrich Kreidleras Ulrich Kreidler
    Michael Schenk
    • Adolf Eichmannas Adolf Eichmann
    Rüdiger Klink
    • Heinz Mahleras Heinz Mahler
    Laura Tonke
    Laura Tonke
    • Fräulein Schüttas Fräulein Schütt
    Götz Schubert
    Götz Schubert
    • Georg August Zinnas Georg August Zinn
    Paulus Manker
    Paulus Manker
    • Friedrich Morlachas Friedrich Morlach
    Cornelia Gröschel
    Cornelia Gröschel
    • Charlotte Angermannas Charlotte Angermann
    Tilo Werner
    • Isser Harelas Isser Harel
    Dani Levy
    Dani Levy
    • Chaim Cohnas Chaim Cohn
    Robert Atzorn
    Robert Atzorn
    • Hans Jasperas Hans Jasper
    Andrej Kaminsky
    • Polizeibeamteras Polizeibeamter
    Carolin Stähler
    • Frau Kreidleras Frau Kreidler
    Stefan Gebelhoff
    • Willem Sassenas Willem Sassen
    Pierre Shrady
    Pierre Shrady
    • Eberhard Fritschas Eberhard Fritsch
    • Director
      • Lars Kraume
    • Writers
      • Lars Kraume(screenplay)
      • Olivier Guez(screenplay)
      • Brian Cordray(Story Consultant)
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The later work of the real Fritz Bauer contributed to the creation of an independent, democratic justice system in West Germany, as well as to the prosecution of Nazi war criminals and the reform of the criminal law and penal systems.
    • Goofs
      Fritz Bauer is shown checking into the American colony hotel to meet the Mossad. In 1957, that hotel was under Jordanian rule, and totally inaccessible to Israelis.
    • Connections
      Referenced in ZDF Magazin Royale: Das Problem der deutschen Filmlandschaft (2021)
    • Soundtracks
      Inkognito
      Performed by Lilith Stangenberg

      Interpreted by Julian Maas/ Christoph Kaiser (as Christoph M. Kaiser) /Lilith Stangenberg

      Composed by Julian Maas / Christoph Kaiser / Ali Zuckowski

      Music publishers: Oblique Music + Ediaon Songreiter (UMP)

      © 2015 Colosseum Music Entertainment GmbH

    User reviews11

    Review
    Top review
    7/10
    "Do you like to hunt?" "Yes, but not on animals"
    "The People vs. Fritz Bauer" (2015 release from Germany; 105 min., original title "Der Staat gegen Fritz Bauer") brings the dramatic retelling of the circumstances within which Hesse Attorney General Bauer prosecuted former Nazis in post- WWII Germany. As the movie opens, we are reminded it is "Frankfurt in the late 1950s", and we get to know Fritz Bauer. In the opening scene he almost drowns in his bath tub (an accidental overdose of sleeping pills, it turns out). But the incident has caused concern with others. One of Bauer's State Attorneys (i.e. more junior prosecutor) invites Bauer to the country side. "Do you like to hunt?" he asks, to which Bauer replies "Yes, but not animals", ha! Indeed Bauer is working feverishly to track down Adolf Eichmann. At this point we're 15 min. into the movie but to tell you more of the plot would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.

    Couple of comments: first, this is NOT a bio-pic of Fritz Bauer. Indeed, we get little to no background information as to his life prior to 1957 or after 1960 (starting and closing points of the movie). In a way, this is unfortunate, as an unsuspecting viewer may not fully realize the importance of this man in German politics. Second, the movie's central theme that "the people" or "the state" (as the original German title reads) is against Bauer is somewhat misleading. It's really the German political establishment, which was riddled at the time with former Nazis, which tries to stifle Bauer's efforts. This theme was something of a taboo in Germany for decades following WWII. Just last year there was another German movie, also involving Bauer, called "Labyrinth of Lies", which also addressed this. Thirdly, strictly from a film viewing perspective, the production is rather "dry" and at times it feels like watching a European TV drama. But I nevertheless enjoyed it quite a bit. Last, the movie also spends quite a bit of time looking at one of Bauer's closest aides, State Attorney Angermann. At the end of the movie, there are some announcements about what became of Bauer. But inexplicably nothing is said about what became of Angermann. Not sure how that could've happened (and leading me to deduct one further star from my overall rating).

    "The People vs. Fritz Bauer" opened this weekend without any pre-release advertising or hype at my local art-house theatre here in Cincinnati. The Tuesday early evening screening where I saw this at was not attended well (1 person besides myself), which is a shame. Hopefully this is the type of movie that will find a larger audience once it gets exposure on Amazon Instant Video, and eventually is released on DVD/Blu-ray. If you are in the mood for a true historical drama about an important episode of German politics post -WWII, I can readily recommend that you check this out.
    helpful•18
    3
    • paul-allaer
    • Oct 19, 2016

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • October 1, 2015 (Germany)
    • Country of origin
      • Germany
    • Official site
      • Official site (Germany)
    • Languages
      • German
      • English
      • Yiddish
      • Spanish
      • French
    • Also known as
      • The People vs. Fritz Bauer
    • Filming locations
      • Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
    • Production companies
      • Zero One Film
      • Terz Film
      • Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR)
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $288,483
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $33,781
      • Aug 21, 2016
    • Gross worldwide
      • $3,083,973
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 45 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
      • Black and White
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

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