''One or the Other of Us'' () is a 1974 West German film directed by

Wolfgang Petersen Wolfgang Petersen (14 March 1941 – 12 August 2022) was a German film director, screenwriter, and producer. He was nominated for two Academy Awards for the World War II submarine warfare film ''Das Boot'' (1981). His other films include ''The Ne ...

. It was Petersen's first theatrical feature film, and was based on the novel of the same name by Horst Bosetzky, published anonymously under his pseudonym -ky. The film is a

psychological thriller Psychological thriller is a genre combining the thriller and psychological fiction genres. It is commonly used to describe literature or films that deal with psychological narratives in a thriller or thrilling setting. In terms of context and co ...

and focuses on the intense conflict between a university professor and a

blackmail Blackmail is an act of coercion using the threat of revealing or publicizing either substantially true or false information about a person or people unless certain demands are met. It is often damaging information, and it may be revealed to fa ...

er. The film features

Klaus Schwarzkopf Klaus Schwarzkopf (18 December 1922, in Neuruppin – 21 June 1991, in Bochum) was a German actor. From 1971 until 1978 he starred in the Norddeutscher Rundfunk version of the popular television crime series ''Tatort''. He was also known as a res ...

and

Jürgen Prochnow Jürgen Prochnow ( ; born 10 June 1941) is a German-American actor. His international breakthrough was his portrayal of the good-hearted and sympathetic U-boat Captain "Der Alte" ("Old Man") in the 1981 war film ''Das Boot''. He is also known f ...

as the two main characters and won two

Bundesfilmpreis The German Film Award (), also known as Lola after its prize statuette, is the national film award of Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous co ...

Plot

Ziegenthals (

), a failed student, makes ends meet as an academic ghost writer. By accident he discovers that the respected professor of

sociology Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of Empirical ...

, Rüdiger Kolczyk (

), has

plagiarized Plagiarism is the fraudulent representation of another person's language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions as one's own original work.From the 1995 '' Random House Compact Unabridged Dictionary'': use or close imitation of the language and thought ...

his doctoral dissertation by translating the work of an American scholar. He decides to blackmail Kolczyk and to ask for 10,000 DM and additional monthly payments of 1,500 DM. Kolczyk initially agrees, but vows to Ziegenhals that "only one of us will survive". Looking for a way to fight back, Kolczyk tries to gather information about Ziegenhals from Miezi (

Elke Sommer Elke Sommer (; born Elke Baronin von Schletz, 5 November 1940) is a German actress. She appeared in numerous films in her heyday throughout the 1960s and 1970s, including roles in ''The Pink Panther (1963 film), The Pink Panther'' sequel ''A S ...

), a prostitute and a housemate and friend of Ziegenhals. As Miezi has saved enough money she is thinking of leaving her profession. At the same time her violent ex-boyfriend and former

pimp Procuring or pandering is the facilitation or provision of a prostitute or other sex worker in the arrangement of a sex act with a customer. A procurer, colloquially called a pimp (if male) or a madam (if female, though the term pimp has still ...

, Kalle Prötzel (

Claus Theo Gärtner Claus Theo Gärtner (born 19 April 1943) is a German television actor mainly known for his role as Josef Matula, the main character in the German detective show series ''Ein Fall für Zwei'' (''A Case For Two''). Gärtner spent his youth in Aus ...

), has been released from prison; he murders her and steals her savings. During the investigations the police find out that Miezi had an appointment with Kolczyk and discovers the payments Kolczyk makes to Ziegenhals. Being the main suspects in the murder investigation only increases the hatred between Kolczyk and Ziegenhals, who fight with all means available. Kolczyk, learning that Ziegenhals thinks that Kolczyk wants to kill him, starts playing with Ziegenhals' mind. For example, he sends him a package with an alarm clock, making Ziegenhals think that he has received a mail bomb. Ziegenhals meanwhile befriends Kolczyk's daughter Ginny (Kristina Nel) and makes her his lover. Although this forces them both to have to pretend in public that they are friends, the final disaster cannot be averted.

Cast

as Professor Rüdiger Kolczyk *

as Bernd Ziegenhals *

as Miezi *

Ulla Jacobsson Ulla Jacobsson (23 May 1929 – 20 August 1982) was a Swedish actress. She had the lead role in One Summer of Happiness (1951) and played the only female speaking role in the film '' Zulu'' (1964). Early life Jacobsson was born in Mölndal, ...

as Reinhild Kolczyk *

Kristina Nel Kristina may refer to: Places *the Swedish name of Ristiina, a town in Finland People *the Swedish name of Christina of Sweden * Kristina (born 1987), Slovak singer *Kristina Adolphson (born 1937), Swedish actress * Kristina Apgar (born 1985), Am ...

as Ginny Kolczyk *

Anita Kupsch Anita or ANITA may refer to: Arts * ''Anita'' (1967 film), an Indian film * ''Anita'' (2009 film), an Argentine film * ''Anita'' (2021 film), a Hong Kong film *'' Anita: Swedish Nymphet'', a 1973 erotic film People * Anita (given name), people ...

as Sekretary Beate Blau * Walter Gross as Grandfather Melzer * Fritz Tillmann as Dr Sievers *

Berta Drews Berta Emilie Helene Drews (; 19 November 1901 – 10 April 1987) was a German stage and film actress. She appeared in more than 60 films from 1933 to 1983. She was married to actor Heinrich George. The couple had two sons, including actor ...

as Mother Braats *

as Kalle Prötzel

Production and distribution

''One or the Other of Us'' was Petersen's first theatrical feature film. Petersen had already directed several high-profile films for television, including four episodes for the ''Tatort'' television series. Klaus Schwarzkopf and Jürgen Prochnow had already played in some of Petersen's ''Tatort'' productions. The script was based on the novel of the same name written by Horst Bosetzky, a professor of sociology. At this time the identity of Horst Bosetzky was unknown as due to his position as a professor he published under the pseudonym -ky. ''One or the Other of Us'' was shot in October and November 1973 in

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 ...

and

Sylt Sylt (; da, Sild; Sylt North Frisian, Söl'ring North Frisian: ) is an island in northern Germany, part of Nordfriesland district, Schleswig-Holstein, and well known for the distinctive shape of its shoreline. It belongs to the North Frisian ...

. The film was shot in

Eastmancolor Eastmancolor is a trade name used by Eastman Kodak for a number of related film and processing technologies associated with color motion picture production and referring to George Eastman, founder of Kodak. Eastmancolor, introduced in 1950, was on ...

on 35 mm in a 1.66:1 aspect ratio. The film made its theatrical debut on 22 February 1974 at the Gloria-Palast in

. It was first aired on television on 12 February 1982 on

ZDF ZDF (, short for Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen; ; "Second German Television") is a German public-service television broadcaster based in Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate. It is run as an independent nonprofit institution, which was founded by all fe ...

. The film was released on VHS in 1998 and on

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...

in 2008 in Germany.

Awards and honors

''One or the Other of Us'' won two

e in 1974: * ''Filmband in Gold'' for Best New Director (Wolfgang Petersen) * ''Filmband in Gold'' for Best Cinematography (

Charly Steinberger Charly Steinberger (1937–2019) was an Austrian cinematographer. He also directed one film, the 1975 comedy ''Monika and the Sixteen Year Olds''.A Companion to German Cinema p.316 He was married to the actress Susanne Uhlen. Selected filmography ...

) It was also chosen as West Germany's official submission to the 47th Academy Awards for

Best Foreign Language Film This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

, but did not manage to receive a nomination.Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

References

Bibliography

External links

*
''One or the Other of Us''
at filmportal.de/en {{German submission for Academy Awards 1974 films 1970s psychological thriller films German psychological thriller films West German films Films directed by Wolfgang Petersen Films set in Berlin Films based on thriller novels Films based on German novels Films scored by Klaus Doldinger 1974 directorial debut films 1970s German-language films 1970s German films