''Die Entlassung'' (English title: ''The Dismissal'') is a 1942 German film directed by

Wolfgang Liebeneiner Wolfgang Georg Louis Liebeneiner (6 October 1905 – 28 November 1987) was a German actor, film director and theatre director. Beginnings He was born in Lubawka, Liebau in Prussian Silesia. In 1928, he was taught by Otto Falckenberg, the directo ...

about the dismissal of

Otto von Bismarck Otto, Prince of Bismarck, Count of Bismarck-Schönhausen, Duke of Lauenburg (, ; 1 April 1815 – 30 July 1898), born Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck, was a conservative German statesman and diplomat. From his origins in the upper class of J ...

. It was one of only four films to receive the honorary distinction "Film of the Nation" ("Film der Nation") by the

Reich Propaganda Ministry The Reich Ministry for Public Enlightenment and Propaganda (; RMVP), also known simply as the Ministry of Propaganda (), controlled the content of the press, literature, visual arts, film, theater, music and radio in Nazi Germany. The ministry ...

Censorship Office. The success of the 1940 film '' Bismarck'' led to this film as a sequel. The film is also known as ''Bismarck's Dismissal'' in the United Kingdom, ''Schicksalswende'' (West German rerun title) and ''Wilhelm II. und Bismarck'' (new West German title).

Plot summary

The film shows Bismarck being dismissed by

Wilhelm II of Germany Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor Albert; 27 January 18594 June 1941) was the last German Emperor (german: Kaiser) and King of Prussia, reigning from 15 June 1888 until his abdication on 9 November 1918. Despite strengthening the German Empir ...

and the dilettantes who surround him. An unscrupulous schemer plays on the king's desire to lead and so persuades him to the dismissal. This results in a disastrous

two-front war According to military terminology, a two-front war occurs when opposing forces encounter on two geographically separate fronts. The forces of two or more allied parties usually simultaneously engage an opponent in order to increase their chances ...

by destroying Bismarck's treaty with Russia and leaving him to lament with the question of who would complete his work.

Cast

Release and reception

The war with Russia delayed its release, and it was not exported, owing to the obvious parallels.

Motifs

Much emphasis was laid on Bismarck's notion of

Greater Germany Pan-Germanism (german: Pangermanismus or '), also occasionally known as Pan-Germanicism, is a pan-nationalist political idea. Pan-Germanists originally sought to unify all the German-speaking people – and possibly also Germanic-speaking ...

. His failure was depicted as leading to the

Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles (french: Traité de Versailles; german: Versailler Vertrag, ) was the most important of the peace treaties of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June ...

References

External links

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''Die Entlassung''
Full movie at Deutsche Filmothek 1942 films 1940s historical films German historical films 1940s German-language films German black-and-white films Films of Nazi Germany Films set in Prussia Films set in Berlin Films set in the 1880s Films set in the 1890s Cultural depictions of Otto von Bismarck Cultural depictions of Wilhelm II 1940s German films {{1940s-Germany-film-stub