''Kuhle Wampe'' (full title: ''Kuhle Wampe, oder: Wem gehört die Welt?'', translated in English as ''Kuhle Wampe or Who Owns the World?'', and released in the USA as ''Whither Germany?'' by Kinematrade Inc.) is a 1932 German feature film about unemployment, homelessness and

left wing Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...

politics in the

Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic (german: link=no, Weimarer Republik ), officially named the German Reich, was the government of Germany from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a constitutional federal republic for the first time in history; hence it is al ...

produced by Prometheus Film. The script was conceived and written by

Bertolt Brecht Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known professionally as Bertolt Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a pl ...

. He also directed the concluding scene: a political debate between strangers on a train about the world coffee market. The rest of the film was directed by

Slatan Dudow Slatan Theodor Dudow ( bg, Златан Дудов, Zlatan Dudov) (30 January 1903 - 12 July 1963) was a Bulgarian born film director and screenwriter who made a number of films during the Weimar Republic and in East Germany. Biography Dudow was ...

. The film music was composed by

Hanns Eisler Hanns Eisler (6 July 1898 – 6 September 1962) was an Austrian composer (his father was Austrian, and Eisler fought in a Hungarian regiment in World War I). He is best known for composing the national anthem of East Germany, for his long artisti ...

. Kuhle Wampe itself was a tent camp on the

Müggelsee The Müggelsee (), also known as the Großer Müggelsee, is a natural lake in the eastern suburbs of Berlin, the capital city of Germany. It is the largest of the Berlin lakes by area, with an area of , a length of The lake is in the Berlin d ...

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

. ''Wampe'' is

Berlin dialect Berlin German, or Berlin dialect (High German: ''Berliner Dialekt'', ''Berliner Mundart'', ''Berlinerisch'' or ''Berlinisch''; derogative: ''Berliner Schnauze'', ), is the dialect spoken in the city of Berlin as well as its surrounding metrop ...

for "stomach", so the title could be rendered "Empty Stomach". The film was banned in Germany in 1932 due to the accusations that it depicted the president, the legal system, and religion in a negative light but, following protests, the ban was lifted for a recut version. The film remained unseen for many years. However, a restored print is now available and a video was released by the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

in 1999, along with a documentary video essay on the original film by Andrew Hoellering, son of the film's producer

George Hoellering George Michael Hoellering (20 July 1897 – 10 February 1980) was an Austrian film director, producer and cinema manager. He directed ''Hortobagy'' (1936) about the Puszta in Hungary, as well as the 1951 British film ''Murder in the Cathedral'', w ...

Synopsis

Kuhle Wampe takes place in early-1930s Berlin. The film begins with a

montage Montage may refer to: Arts and entertainment Filmmaking and films * Montage (filmmaking), a technique in film editing * ''Montage'' (2013 film), a South Korean film Music * Montage (music), or sound collage * ''Montage'' (Block B EP), 2017 ...

of newspaper headlines describing steadily-rising unemployment figures; followed by scenes of a young man looking for work in the city and the family discussing the unpaid back rent. Then the young man, brother of the protagonist Anni, removes his wristwatch and commits suicide by

defenestration Defenestration (from Modern Latin ) is the act of throwing someone or something out of a window. The term was coined around the time of an incident in Prague Castle in the year 1618 which became the spark that started the Thirty Years' War. Th ...

. Shortly thereafter, they are evicted from their apartment. Now homeless, the family moves into a garden colony of sorts with the name "Kuhle Wampe". Anni, the family's daughter and the only family member who still has a job, becomes pregnant and then engaged to her boyfriend, Fritz, who complains that their marriage was forced on him because of her pregnancy. Anni leaves Fritz and moves to her friend Gerda's apartment. She later finds herself in a worker's sporting event where she meets Fritz, who has recently lost his job, and they reunite. The climactic scene (written by Brecht) depicts an impromptu political debate. On their return home by train, Anni, Fritz and other workers argue with middle-class, wealthy passengers about the worldwide financial crisis. One of the workers notes that the well-off will not change the world, to which one of the wealthy asks quizzically, "Who else, then, can change the world?" Gerda replies, "Those who don’t like it." The film ends with the singing of the

Solidarity Song ''Solidarity'' is an awareness of shared interests, objectives, standards, and sympathies creating a psychological sense of unity of groups or classes. It is based on class collaboration.''Merriam Webster'', http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictio ...

, with lyrics by Brecht and music from

Cast

Video release

*''Kuhle Wampe'', BFIV053, subtitled, black and white, 68 minutes running time, with a 48-minute documentary *
Kuhle Wampe, or Who Owns the World?
' DEFA Film Library DVD, restored, subtitled, black & white, 69 minutes running time *
Kuhle Wampe — Censored!
' reconstruction of the censorship case against the original film, DEFA Film Library DVD, subtitled, black & white, 63 minutes running time

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kuhle Wampe Oder: Wem Gehort Die Welt? 1932 films 1932 drama films German drama films Films of the Weimar Republic 1930s German-language films Films with screenplays by Bertolt Brecht Political drama films Social realism in film Great Depression films Films set in Berlin German black-and-white films Plays by Bertolt Brecht Films directed by Slatan Dudow 1930s German films