''My Life for Ireland'' (german: Mein Leben für Irland) is a
Nazi propaganda movie from 1941 directed by
Max W. Kimmich
Max Wilhelm Kimmich (4 November 1893 in Ulm – 16 January 1980 in Icking, Upper Bavaria), also known as M. W. Kimmich, was a German film director and screenwriter during the first half of the 20th century. He was the brother-in-law of Nazi Propag ...
, telling a story of an Irish nationalist family and their involvement in the
Irish struggle of independence over two generations. The movie was produced for Nazi-occupied Europe with the intent of challenging pro-British allegiances; yet in some cases it had the unintended effect of making audiences identify the Irish struggle with their own resistance against the Nazis.
The film's sets were designed by the
art director
Art director is the title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, film industry, film and television, the Internet, and video games.
It is the charge of a sole art director to supervise and ...
s
Wilhelm Depenau and
Otto Erdmann.
Plot
The film covers the story of two generations of an
Irish nationalist
Irish nationalism is a nationalist political movement which, in its broadest sense, asserts that the people of Ireland should govern Ireland as a sovereign state. Since the mid-19th century, Irish nationalism has largely taken the form of cu ...
family; starting with Michael O'Brien (
Werner Hinz
Werner Hinz (18 January 1903 – 10 February 1985) was a German film actor. He appeared in 70 films between 1935 and 1984.
Selected filmography
* '' The Old and the Young King'' (1935) - Kronprinz Friedrich ('Fritz')
* '' White Slaves'' ( ...
) and following with his son, also Michael (
Will Quadflieg
Friedrich Wilhelm "Will" Quadflieg (; 15 September 1914 – 27 November 2003) was a German actor from Oberhausen. He was the father of actor Christian Quadflieg. He is considered one of Germany's best post-war actors. One of his most widely rec ...
), eighteen years later in 1921.
The film commences in
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...
in 1903. A squad of police officers break into a thatched hovel and evict the family, throwing a young child to the floor. However they are ambushed by a group of Irish nationalists and a long fire fight ensues. Michael O'Brien is captured and is sentenced to death. While he is in prison, his pregnant fiancée Maeve visits him and they are secretly married. Afterwards, Michael hands his wife a silver cross that will always be worn by the best Irish freedom fighter. On the cross, the words ''My life for Ireland'' are engraved.
Eighteen years later, in 1921, his son Michael Jr. is expecting to pass his school leaving exams. As the son of an infamous Irish nationalist, he has been educated at
St Edwards College, a school run by British teachers. In this way the British government attempt to re-educate Irish pupils into "worthy" British citizens.
Cast
*
Anna Dammann, Maeve Fleming
*
René Deltgen
Renatus Heinrich Deltgen born 30 April 1909 in Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg; died 29 January 1979 in Cologne, West Germany) was a Luxembourgian stage and film actor
An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance ...
, Robert Devoy
*
Paul Wegener
Paul Wegener (11 December 1874 – 13 September 1948) was a German actor, writer, and film director known for his pioneering role in German expressionist cinema.
Acting career
At the age of 20, Wegener decided to end his law studies and conce ...
, Sir George Beverley
*
Werner Hinz
Werner Hinz (18 January 1903 – 10 February 1985) was a German film actor. He appeared in 70 films between 1935 and 1984.
Selected filmography
* '' The Old and the Young King'' (1935) - Kronprinz Friedrich ('Fritz')
* '' White Slaves'' ( ...
, Michael O'Brien Senior
*
Will Quadflieg
Friedrich Wilhelm "Will" Quadflieg (; 15 September 1914 – 27 November 2003) was a German actor from Oberhausen. He was the father of actor Christian Quadflieg. He is considered one of Germany's best post-war actors. One of his most widely rec ...
, Michael O'Brien Junior
*
Heinz Ohlsen
The H. J. Heinz Company is an American food processing company headquartered at One PPG Place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The company was founded by Henry J. Heinz in 1869. Heinz manufactures thousands of food products in plants on six contin ...
, Patrick O'Connor
*
Eugen Klöpfer
Eugen Gottlob Klöpfer (10 March 1886 in Talheim, Heilbronn – 3 March 1950 in Wiesbaden) was a German actor.
Early life
Born to Karl Klöpfer and his wife Karoline, née Hörsch, Eugen attended the Realschule ("secondary school") in Heilbro ...
, Duffy
*
Hans Bergmann
Hans may refer to:
__NOTOC__ People
* Hans (name), a masculine given name
* Hans Raj Hans, Indian singer and politician
** Navraj Hans, Indian singer, actor, entrepreneur, cricket player and performer, son of Hans Raj Hans
** Yuvraj Hans, Punjabi ...
, captain of the '
Black and Tans
Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have ...
'
*
Claus Clausen, Patrick Pollock
*
Will Dohm
Will Dohm (8 April 1897 – 28 November 1948) was a German film actor. He is the father of the actress Gaby Dohm.
Selected filmography
* '' Waterloo'' (1929)
* '' Cruiser Emden'' (1932)
* '' Peter Voss, Thief of Millions'' (1932)
* '' The Tunnel ...
, Barrington (teacher)
*
Karl John, Raymond Davitt
*
Hans Quest
Hans Quest (1915–1997) was a German actor and film director.
Selected filmography
Director
*''Wenn der Vater mit dem Sohne'' (1955)
*''The Happy Wanderer'' (1955)
*''Charley's Aunt'' (1956)
*'' Wenn Poldi ins Manöver zieht'' (1956)
*'' Ein Man ...
, Henry Beverley
*
Wilhelm Borchert, Thomas O'Neill
*
Jack Trevor
Anthony Cedric Sebastian Steane (14 December 1893 – 19 December 1976), known by the stage name Jack Trevor, was a British film actor of the silent and early sound era. Based in Weimar (and later Nazi) Germany, he acted in 67 films between ...
as the president of the martial court
*Charles John, Raymond Davitt
Propaganda
This film contributed to the era of anti-British films made by Nazi Germany. In this film, as in ''
Der Fuchs von Glenarvon
''The Fox of Glenarvon'' (German: ''Der Fuchs von Glenarvon'') is a German propaganda film from the Nazi era portraying the years of the Irish fight for independence during World War I. It was produced in 1940 by Max W. Kimmich and starred Olga C ...
'', the British are depicted as brutal and unscrupulous but no match for the "earthy"
Irish race. A British officer, for instance, abandons an Irish sergeant on the battlefield, taking the last water bottle with him, and is later shown winning a
VC. It lacks, however, the cruder propaganda of later films, such as ''
Carl Peters
Carl Peters (27 September 1856 – 10 September 1918), was a German colonial ruler, explorer, politician and author and a major promoter of the establishment of the German colony of East Africa (part of the modern republic Tanzania).
Life
H ...
'' and ''
Ohm Krüger
''Ohm Krüger'' (English: ''Uncle Krüger'') is a 1941 German biographical film directed by Hans Steinhoff and starring Emil Jannings, Lucie Höflich, and Werner Hinz. It was one of a series of major propaganda films produced in Nazi Germany ...
'', when Hitler had given up hope of making peace with Great Britain. The anti-British atmosphere of ''
Der Fuchs von Glenarvon
''The Fox of Glenarvon'' (German: ''Der Fuchs von Glenarvon'') is a German propaganda film from the Nazi era portraying the years of the Irish fight for independence during World War I. It was produced in 1940 by Max W. Kimmich and starred Olga C ...
'', for example, can be judged from its opening sequence, which depicts a meeting of Irish revolutionaries:
ASSEMBLY: We must build new roads
LEADER: With what shall we build new roads?
ASSEMBLY: With the bones of our enemy!
LEADER: And who is our enemy?
ASSEMBLY: England!
Some German viewers in ethnically mixed areas expressed fears that it would stimulate Poles to rebellion. The film, however, enjoyed a positive response from many audiences.
[Fox, Jo (2007). ''Film propaganda in Britain and Nazi Germany: World War II cinema''. Berg Publishers, p. 171. ]
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:My Life For Ireland
Nazi propaganda films
Films of Nazi Germany
German historical films
1941 films
Films set in Dublin (city)
Films set in 1903
Films set in 1921
1940s historical films
Films directed by Max W. Kimmich
Tobis Film films
German black-and-white films