''Question 7'' is a 1961 American-West German film directed by Stuart Rosenberg and starring

Michael Gwynn Michael Gwynn (30 November 1916 – 29 January 1976) was an English actor. He attended Mayfield College near Mayfield, Sussex. During the Second World War he served in East Africa as a major and was adjutant to the 2nd (Nyasaland) Battalion ...

Margaret Jahnen Margaret is a female first name, derived via French () and Latin () from grc, μαργαρίτης () meaning "pearl". The Greek is borrowed from Persian. Margaret has been an English name since the 11th century, and remained popular througho ...

and Christian de Bresson. It won the

National Board of Review Award for Best Film The National Board of Review Award for Best Film is one of the annual awards given (since 1932) by the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures. Winners * † = Winner of the Academy Award for Best Picture * ‡ = Nominated for the Academy Awa ...

. It was also entered into the

11th Berlin International Film Festival The 11th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 23 June to 4 July 1961. The Golden Bear was awarded to the Italian film ''La notte'' directed by Michelangelo Antonioni. Jury The following people were announced as being on the j ...

Plot

In post-war East Germany, Peter Gottfried is the son of minister Friedrich Gottfried. The Communist regime has decreed that all children of "

dissident A dissident is a person who actively challenges an established political or religious system, doctrine, belief, policy, or institution. In a religious context, the word has been used since the 18th century, and in the political sense since the 20th ...

s" will be denied entry to a prestigious music conservatory. Peter is anxious to be accepted, and in order to get in he prepares to answer the seven questions required by the conservatory, the seventh of which will require him to deny his religious convictions. Before this can happen, he is invited by the Socialist Unity Party to perform at the Berlin Youth Festival. Friedrich protests, knowing that the Communists intend to use his son as a political pawn, to "prove" to the world that East Germany affords equal rights to clergymen. In the end, it is Peter himself who decides to quit the Festival and defect to the West.

Cast

as Friedrich Gottfried * Margaret Jahnen as Gerda Gottfried * Christian De Bresson as Peter Gottfried * Almut Eggert as Anneliese Zingler *

Erik Schumann Erik Schumann (15 February 1925 – 9 February 2007) was a German actor. He appeared in 100 films and television shows between 1942 and 1997. He was most successful during the 1950s and 1960s, when he played leading roles in several German f ...

as Rolf Starke * Max Buchsbaum as Inspector Hermann *

John Ruddock John Ruddock (20 May 1897 – 24 September 1981) was a Peruvian-born British film and television actor. John Ruddock was born on 20 May 1897 in Lima, Peru as John Reynolds Ruddock. He was the first of seven children of his British father and Ame ...

as Martin Kraus * Leo Bieber as Herr Rettmann *

Fritz Wepper Fritz Wepper (born 17 August 1941, Munich, Germany) is a German film and television actor. He is best known for his role as Inspector Harry Klein in the long-running crime series ''Derrick'' (1974–1998). Wepper is also remembered for his roles ...

as Heinz Dehmert *

Eduard Linkers Eduard Linkers (11 October 1912 – 3 April 2004) was an Austrian actor. He appeared in more than 70 films between 1936 and 1988. Life He was born as Eduard Linker to a family of Jewish descent in Czernowitz, Austria-Hungary. He studied act ...

as Otto Zingler * Marianne Schubarth as Marta Zingler * Philo Hauser as Barber *

Rolf von Nauckhoff Rolf von Nauckhoff (1909–1968) was a Swedish film actor who worked mainly in Germany.World Filmography: 1967 p.152 Selected filmography * '' Johan Ulfstjerna'' (1936) - Student reading a poem (uncredited) * ''Shipwrecked Max'' (1936) - Waiter ...

as Karl Marschall * Helmo Kindermann as Luedtke * Manfred Fuerst as Professor Steffl

References

External links

* * 1961 films 1961 drama films American black-and-white films Films directed by Stuart Rosenberg Cold War films Films set in East Germany Films critical of communism American drama films UFA GmbH films Films shot in Berlin 1960s English-language films 1960s American films {{1960s-drama-film-stub

Plot

Cast

See also

References

External links