''Germany in Autumn'' (german: Deutschland im Herbst) is a 1978 West German

anthology film An anthology film (also known as an omnibus film, package film, or portmanteau film) is a single film consisting of several shorter films, each complete in itself and distinguished from the other, though frequently tied together by a single theme ...

about the period of 1977 known as the

German Autumn The German Autumn (german: Deutscher Herbst) was a series of events in Germany in 1977, mostly late in the year, associated with the kidnapping and murder of industrialist, businessman, and former SS member Hanns Martin Schleyer, president of ...

, which was dominated by incidents of terrorism. The film is composed of contributions from different filmmakers, including

Rainer Werner Fassbinder Rainer Werner Fassbinder (; 31 May 1945 – 10 June 1982), sometimes credited as R. W. Fassbinder, was a German filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the major figures and catalysts of the New German Cinema movement. Fassbinder's main ...

Alexander Kluge Alexander Kluge (born 14 February 1932) is a German author, philosopher, academic and film director. Early life, education and early career Kluge was born in Halberstadt, Province of Saxony (now Saxony-Anhalt), Germany. After growing up durin ...

Edgar Reitz Edgar Reitz (born 1 November 1932) is a German filmmaker and Professor of Film at the Staatliche Hochschule für Gestaltung (State University of Design) in Karlsruhe. He is best-known for his internationally acclaimed '' Heimat film series'' (1 ...

, Bernhard Sinkel, Alf Brustellin, Hans Peter Cloos, Katja Rupé, Peter Schubert and

Volker Schlöndorff Volker Schlöndorff (; born 31 March 1939 Friday) is a German film director, screenwriter and producer who has worked in Germany, France and the United States. He was a prominent member of the New German Cinema of the late 1960s and early 1970s, ...

. It was entered into the 28th Berlin International Film Festival, where it won a Special Recognition award.

Plot

The following fictional and documentary sequences are loosely intertwined.

Hanns-Martin Schleyer

The state memorial service of

Hanns-Martin Schleyer Hans "Hanns" Martin Schleyer (; 1 May 1915 – 18 October 1977) was a German business executive, and employer and industry representative, who served as President of two powerful commercial organizations, the Confederation of German Employers' A ...

, leading German industrialist and head of the Daimler-Benz corporation,Miriam Hansen et al, ''Alexander Kluge: Raw Materials for the Imagination'', (Amsterdam University Press, 2012), p. 56. kidnapped and killed by members of the

RAF The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

. Later we see a Turkish man arrested outside the memorial service for possession of a rifle, factory workers standing in silence to mark Schleyer's death, and hospitality staff at the memorial service preparing to serve snacks. Directed by Alexander Kluge.

Rainer Werner Fassbinder

A series of dialogues between Rainer Werner Fassbinder and his mother, his ex-wife

Ingrid Caven Ingrid may refer to: * Ingrid (given name) * Ingrid (record label), and artist collective * Ingrid Burley, rapper known mononymously as Ingrid * Tropical Storm Ingrid, various cyclones * 1026 Ingrid, an asteroid * InGrid, the grid computing pr ...

, his boyfriend

Armin Meier Armin Meier (born 3 November 1969) is a Swiss former cyclist. He was involved the Festina affair, and was part of the team that was disqualified from the 1998 Tour de France. Despite never testing positive for any drugs, he admitted to the use o ...

and others reflecting on the news of the alleged suicides of RAF members

Andreas Baader Berndt Andreas Baader (6 May 1943 – 18 October 1977) was one of the first leaders of the West German left-wing militant organization Red Army Faction (RAF), also commonly known as ''the Baader-Meinhof Group''. Life Andreas Baader was born in ...

Gudrun Ensslin Gudrun Ensslin (; 15 August 1940 – 18 October 1977) was a German far-left terrorist and founder of the West German far-left militant group Red Army Faction (, or RAF, also known as the Baader-Meinhof Gang). After becoming involved with co-fou ...

and Jan-Carl Raspe in the top-security prison of Stuttgart-Stammheim. Directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder.

Gabi Teichert

A history teacher called Gabi Teichert is questioning some of the curriculum she teaches, causing concern among her superiors. Narrated archive footage explores some of her research into German history, including the Mayerling incident, the German Military Railway, the

Spartacist uprising The Spartacist uprising (German: ), also known as the January uprising (), was a general strike and the accompanying armed struggles that took place in Berlin from 5 to 12 January 1919. It occurred in connection with the November Revolutio ...

, and the poisoning of

Erwin Rommel Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel () (15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944) was a German field marshal during World War II. Popularly known as the Desert Fox (, ), he served in the ''Wehrmacht'' (armed forces) of Nazi Germany, as well as servi ...

by the Nazi government. Documentary footage appears later on in the film of the 1977 SDP conference in which speakers condemn the actions of left-wing terrorists. Gabi Teichert, from the earlier sequences, is in the audience studiously taking notes during a speech by

Max Frisch Max Rudolf Frisch (; 15 May 1911 – 4 April 1991) was a Swiss playwright and novelist. Frisch's works focused on problems of identity, individuality, responsibility, morality, and political commitment. The use of irony is a significant featur ...

. Directed by Alexander Kluge.

Franziska Busch

A young woman is punched in an underground car park. Another young woman driving past the incident, Franziska Busch, gets out of her car and thwarts the assailant. She then brings the victim home and takes care of her. The scene is accompanied by a song by

Wolf Biermann Karl Wolf Biermann (; born 15 November 1936) is a German singer-songwriter, poet, and former East German dissident. He is perhaps best known for the 1968 song "Ermutigung" and his expatriation from East Germany in 1976. Early life Biermann was b ...

. The RAF co-founder

Horst Mahler Horst Mahler (born 23 January 1936) is a German former lawyer and political activist. He once was a far-left militant and a founding member of the Red Army Faction who later became a Maoist, before switching to neo-Nazism. Between 2000 and 200 ...

is interviewed in prison by a TV company and claims that fascism continues to exist in West Germany after the Nazi era. He also unpicks the moral contradictions of left-wing terrorism. Franziska Busch watches the interview footage in the TV studio auditorium where her boyfriend works. Busch begins to make propaganda films with a revolutionary group she is part of. They film the German singer Wolf Biermann performing 'Girl in Stuttgart' a monologue which questions the official version of events regarding the Stammheim death night. Directed by Bernhard Sinkel and Alf Brustellin.

''Schatten der Angst'' (Shadow of Fear)

In Munich a woman is visited by an injured man who is bleeding from the forehead and welcomes him into her apartment. She sees his face on a newspaper among the headshots of wanted terrorists, but chooses not to inform on him. Directed by Hans Peter Cloos and Katja Rupé.

Grenzstation

Customs officers patrol a crossing between French and Germany. An unmarried couple driving through are stopped and have their identification papers checked. The guard speculates that the woman bears a resemblance to one of the wanted terrorists. They are eventually let through. Directed by Edgar Reitz.

Bundeswehr

Documentary footage of the German army performing various land and air drills across the German countryside. Directed by Peter Schubert.

The Postponed Antigone

A board of mostly male TV producers meet to discuss an upcoming televisation of

Sophocles Sophocles (; grc, Σοφοκλῆς, , Sophoklễs; 497/6 – winter 406/5 BC)Sommerstein (2002), p. 41. is one of three ancient Greek tragedians, at least one of whose plays has survived in full. His first plays were written later than, or co ...

' tragedy ''

Antigone In Greek mythology, Antigone ( ; Ancient Greek: Ἀντιγόνη) is the daughter of Oedipus and either his mother Jocasta or, in another variation of the myth, Euryganeia. She is a sister of Polynices, Eteocles, and Ismene.Roman, L., & Roma ...

''. They discuss preceding the broadcast with a disclaimer, given the febrile political atmosphere and the play's exploration of death, authority and political resistance. After much debate they agree not to broadcast the play at all. Written by

Heinrich Böll Heinrich Theodor Böll (; 21 December 1917 – 16 July 1985) was a German writer. Considered one of Germany's foremost post-World War II writers, Böll is a recipient of the Georg Büchner Prize (1967) and the Nobel Prize for Literature (1972). ...

and directed by

Funeral

The film concludes with Kluge's footage from the funeral of Andreas Baader, Gudrun Ensslin and Jan-Carl Raspe, which is attended by hundreds of protestors, some of whom are subsequently arrested. Directed by Alexander Kluge. The film begins and ends with the same quote from 'Frau Wilde (mother of five)', April 1945: ‘When cruelty has reached a certain point, it no longer matters who is responsible – it simply has to stop’. Frau Wilde had been buried alive after a bombardment and was speaking to an American army psycho-specialist.

Cast

Hannelore Hoger Hannelore Hoger (; born 20 August 1942) is a German actress and director. From 1958–1961 she studied acting at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg. She has appeared in numerous German films, television programs, and stage production ...

as Gabi Teichert, history teacher *

Angela Winkler Angela Winkler (born 22 January 1944) is a German actress. Life and career Born in Templin, Winkler trained to be a medical technologist in Stuttgart. Interested in theater, she went to Munich, where she took acting classes with Ernst Fritz F ...

Franziska Walser Franziska Walser (born 23 March 1952) is a German actress. She appeared in more than fifty films since 1976. She is the oldest daughter of writer Martin Walser Martin Walser (; born 24 March 1927) is a German writer. Life Walser was born in ...

Ismene In Greek mythology, Ismene (; grc, Ἰσμήνη, ''Ismēnē'') is the daughter and half-sister of Oedipus, daughter and granddaughter of Jocasta, and sister of Antigone, Eteocles, and Polynices. She appears in several plays of Sophocles: at the ...

, sister of Antigone *

Helmut Griem Helmut Griem (6 April 1932 – 19 November 2004) was a German film, television and stage actor, and director. Biography Born in Hamburg, Griem was primarily a stage actor, appearing at the Thalia Theater in Hamburg, the Deutsches Schauspielhaus ...

Creon Creon may refer to: Greek history * Creon, the first annual eponymous archon of Athens, 682–681 BC Greek mythology * Creon (king of Thebes), mythological king of Thebes * Creon (king of Corinth), father of Creusa/Glauce in Euripides' ''Medea' ...

, uncle of Antigone *

Mario Adorf Mario Adorf (; born 8 September 1930) is a German actor, considered to be one of the great veteran character actors of European cinema. Since 1954, he has played both leading and supporting roles in over 200 film and television productions, am ...

Heinz Bennent Heinz Bennent (18 July 1921 – 12 October 2011) was a German actor. Biography Bennent was born in Stolberg, and served in the Luftwaffe during World War II. His career began after the end of World War II in Göttingen. He moved to Switzerland ...

, Otto Friebel, Michael Gahr,

Dieter Laser Klaus Dieter Laser (17 February 1942 – 29 February 2020) was a German actor. Laser's career spanned over five decades, appearing in both German and English-language productions. He achieved recognition for his lead role in the 2009 film '' The ...

Enno Patalas Enno Patalas (15 October 1929, in Quakenbrück – 7 August 2018, in Munich) was a German film historian, collector, and expert film preservationist. A former head of the Munich Film Museum (1973–1994), his restorations include films such as ' ...

as the TV producers *

Vadim Glowna Vadim Glowna (; 26 September 1941 – 24 January 2012) was a German actor and film director. Since 1964 he appeared in more than 150 films and television shows. He directed the 1983 film '' Dies rigorose Leben'', which won an Honourable Me ...

as husband *

Katja Rupé Katja is a feminine given name. In Germany, the Netherlands, Flanders, and Scandinavia, it is a pet form of Katherine. Katja may refer to: Music *Katja Andy (1906–2013), German-American pianist * Katja Ebstein (born 1945), German singer *Katj ...

as Branka, pianist * Hans Peter Cloos as wounded foreigner *

Soundtrack

The musical theme of the film is an excerpt from the second movement in G major of the quartet in C major, Op. 76 No. 3 L'Empereur by

Joseph Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions ...

. Mozart's Requiem in D minor is heard at the funeral ceremony of Hanns-Martin Schleyer and when the three-pointed star flags at Daimler-Benz are at half-mast. After the funeral of Andreas Baader, Gudrun Ensslin and Jan-Carl Raspe of the RAF, the film ends with the song " Here's to You" by

Joan Baez Joan Chandos Baez (; born January 9, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and activist. Her contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest and social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 60 years, releasing more ...

and

Ennio Morricone Ennio Morricone (; 10 November 19286 July 2020) was an Italian composer, orchestrator, conductor, and trumpeter who wrote music in a wide range of styles. With more than 400 scores for cinema and television, as well as more than 100 classica ...

in homage to anarchists Nicola Sacco and Bart Vanzetti, while a young mother with her little daughter in the red jacket escapes public disturbances at Dornhalden cemetery.

References

External links

* 1978 films Cultural depictions of the Red Army Faction German anthology films Films about terrorism in Europe Films directed by Alexander Kluge Films directed by Edgar Reitz Films directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder Films directed by Volker Schlöndorff Films set in 1977 West German films 1970s German films {{1970s-Germany-film-stub