''Schtonk!'' (subtitled ''Der Film zum Buch vom Führer''; "The film accompanying the ''

Führer ( ; , spelled or ''Fuhrer'' when the Umlaut (diacritic), umlaut is not available) is a German word meaning "leader" or "guide". As a political title, it is strongly associated with the Nazi Germany, Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler. Nazi Germany ...

's'' book") is a 1992 German satirical film which retells the story of the 1983 ''

Hitler Diaries The Hitler Diaries (german: Hitler-Tagebücher) were a series of sixty volumes of journals purportedly written by Adolf Hitler, but forged by Konrad Kujau between 1981 and 1983. The diaries were purchased in 1983 for 9.3 million Deutsche ...

'' hoax. It was written and directed by

Helmut Dietl Helmut Dietl (; 22 June 1944 – 30 March 2015) was a German film director and author from Bad Wiessee. Work After leaving grammar school in 1958, Dietl completed a degree in theatre studies and history of art. He then became head of photogra ...

Background

In 1983, the German magazine ''

Stern The stern is the back or aft-most part of a ship or boat, technically defined as the area built up over the sternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to the taffrail. The stern lies opposite the bow, the foremost part of a ship. Ori ...

'' began to publish the purported Hitler diaries with great fanfare. They were soon proven to be fake using basic analysis techniques. Co-writer and director Helmut Dietl researched the scandal for two years and was quoted as having to leave out several real events from the film because they were too outrageous. The title is a bow to

Charlie Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is consider ...

's classic ''

The Great Dictator ''The Great Dictator'' is a 1940 American anti-war political satire black comedy film written, directed, produced, scored by, and starring British comedian Charlie Chaplin, following the tradition of many of his other films. Having been the onl ...

'', in which the Tomainian dictator Adenoid Hynkel repeatedly uses "Schtonk!" as an expression of disgustthe word has no meaning in German.

Plot

Fritz Knobel (the film's alter-ego of real-life forger

Konrad Kujau Konrad Paul Kujau (27 June 1938 – 12 September 2000) was a German illustrator and forger. He became famous in 1983 as the creator of the so-called Hitler Diaries, for which he received DM 2.5 million (€2,421,020 in 2020 terms, adjusted for in ...

) supports himself by faking and selling Nazi memorabilia. He sells a portrait of

Eva Braun Eva Anna Paula Hitler (; 6 February 1912 – 30 April 1945) was a German photographer who was the longtime companion and briefly the wife of Adolf Hitler. Braun met Hitler in Munich when she was a 17-year-old assistant and model for his ...

and one volume of Hitler's alleged diaries to factory owner Karl Lenz. Lenz presents this to his guests during a "birthday party for the ''Führer''", among whom is sleazy journalist Hermann Willié. Willié works for the magazine ''"HH press"'', which links to

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

(as a licence plate abbreviation), where the ''Stern'' magazine is located and also to the common abbreviation for "''Heil Hitler''" among neo-Nazis. Knobel writes the subsequent diaries based on what happens around him; after he meets Martha and she becomes his lover beside his wife Biggi, she also becomes his inspiration for Eva Braun in the diaries. The rumors about his work cause a major Nazi craze among the high society, allowing former Nazi officials to use openly their Nazi ranks (e.g.

Obergruppenführer ' (, "senior group leader") was a paramilitary rank in Nazi Germany that was first created in 1932 as a rank of the ''Sturmabteilung'' (SA) and adopted by the ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) one year later. Until April 1942, it was the highest commissio ...

). Willié becomes even more obsessed buying the old

yacht A yacht is a sailing or power vessel used for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a , as opposed to a , such a pleasu ...

''Carin II'' of

Hermann Göring Hermann Wilhelm Göring (or Goering; ; 12 January 1893 – 15 October 1946) was a German politician, military leader and convicted war criminal. He was one of the most powerful figures in the Nazi Party, which ruled Germany from 1933 to 1 ...

and starting an affair with his (fictional) grandniece Freya von Hepp, based on Hermann Göring's daughter

Edda Göring Edda Carin Wilhelmine Göring (2 June 1938 – 21 December 2018) was the only child of German politician, military leader, and leading member of the Nazi Party Hermann Göring, by his second marriage to the German actress Emmy Sonnemann. Born ...

. Towards the end, the plot has developed its own dynamics, putting more and more pressure on Knobel to deliver the remaining volumes while permanently fearing the uncovering of the

forgery Forgery is a white-collar crime that generally refers to the false making or material alteration of a legal instrument with the specific intent to defraud anyone (other than themself). Tampering with a certain legal instrument may be forbidd ...

. The volumes are convincing enough to fool the enthusiastic journalists, who are willing to overlook some oddities, especially a false monogram "FH" instead of "AH" on one of the volumes. They even invent ''alternative facts'' for their explanation (the term " Führerhauptquartier" instead of "Adolf Hitler" for instance). Later Knobel manages to manipulate a forensic graphoanalysis to his advance but it seems only a matter of time until the truth is discovered. The constant fear and the struggle with a too close identification with the person he is writing about make Knobel collapse. His two spouses take over the initiative forcing him to pull himself out of the forgery business just in time, while the others fall, similar to the

end of World War II End of World War II can refer to: * End of World War II in Europe * End of World War II in Asia World War II officially ended in Asia on September 2, 1945, with the surrender of Japan on the . Before that, the United States dropped two atomic ...

, more or less hard according to their personal level of belief.

Cast

Götz George Götz George (; 23 July 1938 – 19 June 2016) was a German actor, the son of actor couple Berta Drews and Heinrich George. His arguably best-known role is that of Duisburg detective Horst Schimanski in the TV crime series ''Tatort''. Early lif ...

Hermann Willié (journalist; fictional equivalent of

Gerd Heidemann Gerd Heidemann (born 4 December 1931) is a German journalist best known for his role in the publication of purported Hitler Diaries that were subsequently proved to be forgeries. In the 1970s, Heidemann bought the yacht ''Carin II'', which had ...

) *

Uwe Ochsenknecht Uwe Adam Ochsenknecht (; born 7 January 1956) is a German actor and singer. Career Films Ochsenknecht has starred in include '' Das Boot'' (1981), ''Schtonk!'' (1992), and the TV miniseries '' Frank Herbert's Dune'' (2000). In the early 1990 ...

Fritz Knobel (forger Konrad Kujau) *

Christiane Hörbiger Christiane Hörbiger (13 October 1938 – 30 November 2022) was an Austrian stage, film, and television actress. Her first major film role was Mary Vetsera in '' Kronprinz Rudolfs letzte Liebe'' in 1955. She appeared on the stage of the Burgthe ...

Freya von Hepp (

's grandniece, Willié's/Heidemann's noble girl friend) *

Dagmar Manzel Dagmar Manzel (born 1 September 1958) is a German actress. She has appeared in more than 80 films and television shows since 1979. She starred in the 1986 film '' So Many Dreams'', which was entered into the 37th Berlin International Film Festiv ...

Biggi *

Veronica Ferres Veronica Maria Cäcilia Ferres (; born 10 June 1965) is a German film, television, and stage actress. Her 2007 portrayal of Sara Bender in ''Die Frau vom Checkpoint Charlie'', based on the true story of Jutta Fleck, earned her the award for Be ...

Martha *

Ulrich Mühe Friedrich Hans Ulrich Mühe (; 20 June 1953 – 22 July 2007) was a German film, television and theatre actor. He played the role of Hauptmann (Captain) Gerd Wiesler in the Oscar-winning film ''Das Leben der Anderen'' (''The Lives of Others'', 200 ...

Dr. Wieland *

Harald Juhnke Harald Juhnke () (born Harry Heinz Herbert Juhnke, 10 June 1929 – 1 April 2005), was a German actor, comedian, and singer. Life and career Juhnke was born in Berlin-Charlottenburg. His father was a police officer and his mother came from a ...

Pit Kummer *

Hermann Lause Hermann Lause (7 February 1939 - 28 March 2005) was a German film actor. He appeared in more than seventy films from 1966 to 2005. He died of cancer. Selected filmography References External links * 1939 births 2005 deaths People f ...

Kurt Glück *

Martin Benrath Martin Benrath (9 November 1926 – 31 January 2000) was a German film actor. He appeared in more than 60 films between 1954 and 2000. Partial filmography * ' (1954), as Michael Godeysen * '' The Angel with the Flaming Sword'' (1954), as J ...

Uwe Esser * Rosemarie FendelMrs. Lentz

Reception

The film was a huge hit in Germany but performed badly in many other territories.

Awards

In 1992, ''Schtonk!'' won three awards at the

German Film Award The German Film Award (), also known as Lola after its prize statuette, is the national film award of Germany. It is presented at an annual ceremony honouring cinematic achievements in the German film industry. Besides being the most important ...

s in the categories "Outstanding Feature Film", "Outstanding Individual Achievement: Actor" (Götz George) and "Outstanding Individual Achievement: Direction" (Helmut Dietl), as well as the Best Screenplay Award at the Tokyo International Film Festival (Helmut Dietl, Ulrich Limmer). In 1993, Harald Juhnke won the Ernst Lubitsch Award for his role as Pit Kummer. ''Schtonk!'' was nominated for an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

and a

Golden Globe The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of t ...

in the category of "Best Foreign Language Film" in 1993, losing to the French film '' Indochine'' in both cases.

References

External links

* {{German submission for Academy Awards 1992 films 1990s satirical films German comedy films 1990s German-language films German films based on actual events Films set in Hamburg Films set in West Germany Films about con artists Films about journalists Comedy films based on actual events Films à clef Fiction about hoaxes 1990s German films