''Ohm Krüger'' (English: ''Uncle Krüger'') is a 1941 German

biographical film A biographical film or biopic () is a film that dramatizes the life of an actual person or group of people. Such films show the life of a historical person and the central character's real name is used. They differ from Docudrama, docudrama films ...

directed by

Hans Steinhoff Hans Steinhoff (10 March 1882 – 20 April 1945) was a German film director, best known for the propaganda films he produced in Nazi Germany. Life and career Steinhoff started his career as a stage actor in the 1900s and later worked as a sta ...

and starring Emil Jannings, Lucie Höflich, and Werner Hinz. It was one of a series of major propaganda films produced in

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

attacking the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. The film depicts the life of the South African politician Paul Kruger and his eventual defeat by the British during the Boer War. It was the first film to be awarded the 'Film of the Nation' award. It was re-released in 1944.

Plot

The film opens with a dying Paul Kruger ( Emil Jannings) speaking about his life to his nurse in a

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

hotel. The rest of the film is told in flashback.

Cecil Rhodes Cecil John Rhodes ( ; 5 July 185326 March 1902) was an English-South African mining magnate and politician in southern Africa who served as Prime Minister of the Cape Colony from 1890 to 1896. He and his British South Africa Company founded th ...

( Ferdinand Marian) has a great desire to acquire land in the Transvaal region of the Boers for its gold deposits. He sends Dr Jameson (Karl Haubenreißer) there to provoke border disturbances and secures support from

Joseph Chamberlain Joseph Chamberlain (8 July 1836 – 2 July 1914) was a British statesman who was first a radical Liberal Party (UK), Liberal, then a Liberal Unionist after opposing home rule for Ireland, and eventually was a leading New Imperialism, imperial ...

( Gustaf Gründgens). When Chamberlain seeks the support of

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

( Hedwig Wangel) and her son Edward, Prince of Wales (Alfred Bernau), she initially refuses but changes her mind when she is informed of the gold in the region. She invites Kruger to

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

and believes that she is tricking him into signing a treaty. Kruger, being suspicious of the British, has his own plans. Kruger signs the treaty, which gives the British access to the gold, but he imposes high taxes and establishes a monopoly over the sale of TNT, which forces the British to buy explosives at high prices. Hence, ultimately, Kruger tricks the British by signing the treaty. That impresses some of the British, as they find Krüger is their equal in matters of cunning, which is supposed to be the defining characteristic of the British. Having been outmaneuvered, Rhodes tries to buy Kruger's allegiance. Kruger and his wife Sanna, ( Lucie Höflich), however, are incorruptible. After being rejected, Rhodes shows Kruger a long list of members of the Boer council who work for the British. Kruger then becomes convinced that the Boers must fight if they are to keep their land, and he declares war against Britain and starts the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic and ...

. Initially, the Boers are on the ascendancy, with the Boers defeating the British at the Battle of Ladysmith and Magersfontein. Britain subsequently replaces Redvers Buller and Lord Roberts, appointing Lord Kitchener ( Franz Schafheitlin) as Supreme Commander of the armed forces. Kitchener launches an attack on the civilian population by destroying its homes, using human shields and placing the women and children in concentration camps in an attempt to damage the morale of the Boer Army. Kruger's son Jan ( Werner Hinz), who has pro-British sentiments because of his

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

education, visits a concentration camp to find his wife, Petra ( Gisela Uhlen), and is caught and hanged with his wife watching. When the women respond in anger, they are massacred. The flashback concludes in the Geneva hotel room. Kruger prophesies the destruction of Britain by major powers of the world.

Cast

* Emil Jannings : Paul Krüger * Lucie Höflich : Sanna Krüger * Werner Hinz : Jan Krüger * Gisela Uhlen : Petra Krüger * Ernst Schröder : Adrian Krüger * Elisabeth Flickenschildt : Miss Kock * Walter Werner : MP Kock * Fritz Hoopts : Colson * Ferdinand Marian :

* Gustaf Gründgens :

* Eduard von Winterstein : Commandant Cronje * Hans Adalbert Schlettow : Commandant De Wett * Friedrich Ulmer : General Joubert * Hedwig Wangel :

* Paul Bildt : Dutch Foreign Minister * Franz Schafheitlin : Lord Kitchener * Harald Paulsen : French Foreign Minister * Otto Graf : German Foreign Minister * Otto Wernicke : British concentration camp commandant * Gerhard Bienert :

Brown Brown is a color. It can be considered a composite color, but it is mainly a darker shade of orange. In the CMYK color model used in printing and painting, brown is usually made by combining the colors Orange (colour), orange and black. In the ...

* Josef Dahmen : British Soldier * Karl Martell : British Officer * Jack Trevor : British Officer * Walther Süssenguth : Sergeant * Max Gülstorff : Francis William Reitz * Lewis Brody : Lobenguela * Flockina von Platen : Flora Shaw * Karl Haubenreißer : Dr. Leander Jameson * Alfred Bernau : Edward, Prince of Wales

Propaganda message

''Ohm Krüger'' was one of a number of anti-British propaganda feature films produced by the Nazis during the war, most of which focused on countries with troubled relations with Britain to show the "true British character" such as in South Africa and Ireland. Some of the productions, such as '' The Fox of Glenarvon'' (1940) and '' My Life for Ireland'' (1941), represented British relations with Ireland. Other works focused on the

, most notably Ohm Krüger. It used the Boer War to present the British as violent and exploitative and as an enemy to civilisation. In doing so, it complemented the anglophobic views of the press, appealed to the German public's interest in regaining former German colonies and built upon Anglophobia in Germany that had grown with RAF bombing raids on German targets. It was one of a number of films intended to prepare Germany for a planned invasion of Britain. Its somewhat crude attack on Britain is typical of later films, such as '' Carl Peters'', after Hitler had come to the conclusion that no separate peace with Britain was possible. It depicts the British as seeking gold, symbolic of barrenness and evil, in contrast to the Boers, who raised crops and animals. Publicity material which accompanied the film particularly drew attention to the role of

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...

in the Boer War during which he served as a

journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...

. Tobis also advised the press to emphasise "what Churchill learnt in the Boer War":

'The same Churchill who in South Africa saw his ideas about exterminating the Boers followed throughout, as the English rulers, voicing polished humanitarian slogans, while driven by mere greed, unleashed the most contemptible actions on a people under attack. e same Churchill is now Albion's prime minister.

British concentration camps were portrayed in the film as intentionally inhumane. Meanwhile, major expansion of the German system of concentration camps was being implemented. Parallels were drawn between the Boer War and the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, and between Paul Krüger and

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

. Key British figures are demonised in the film, including

and the Prince of Wales (later

Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until Death and state funeral of Edward VII, his death in 1910. The second child ...

is presented as a drunkard, and the British concentration camp commandant, responsible for the killing of female inmates, resembles Churchill. The film also reflects German anger at the loss of all German colonies at the end of World War I though less directly than '' Carl Peters''.

Production

The first outline for ''Ohm Krüger'' was begun in September 1940 by Hans Steinhoff and Harald Bratt. The film had very high production costs of 5.477 million ℛℳ () to produce. At the time, Joseph Goebbels had been encouraging film-makers to have lower production costs, but he made an exception for ''Ohm Krüger'', declaring it to be ''reichswichtig'' (important for the State) due to its propagandistic and artistic value; in his ''Diaries'' Goebbels - at the "first showing of the completed ''Ohm Krüger''" at his house - wrote: "Great excitement. The film is unique. A really big hit. Everyone is thrilled by it. Jannings has excelled himself. An anti-England film beyond one's wildest dreams. Gauleiter Eigruber is also present and very enthusiastic". The production used 4000 horses, about 200 oxen, 180 ox wagons, 25,000 soldiers and 9000 women.

Reception

Directives were issued to the press by the Reich Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda (RMVP) about how to cover the film. They were instructed to draw attention to the significance of the film, but to emphasise its aesthetic rather than its political content. The film was approved by the censors on 2 April 1941, and premiered on 4 April. It was well-received, attracting a quarter of a million viewers in four days upon its initial release, largely as a result of the high expectations generated by the propaganda press campaign, with word-of-mouth recommendations also being important in the film's popularity. It earned 5.5 million ℛℳ () at the box office for a loss of 801,000 ℛℳ (). The '' Sicherheitsdienst'' (SD; Nazi intelligence service) reported that the film exceeded expectations, with audiences particularly praising the 'unity of political conviction, artistic expression and acting performances'. The public were also reportedly impressed by the fact that a film of ''Ohm Krügers quality could be produced in wartime. The film was particularly popular with young audiences, according to both SD reports and film surveys. Some, however, did question the authenticity of the film. Internationally, the film was officially released in only eight independent states (including Italy), all of which were closely linked to Nazi Germany, and in France (first in the occupied zone, later also in

Vichy France Vichy France (; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was a French rump state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II, established as a result of the French capitulation after the Battle of France, ...

Awards and honours

''Ohm Krüger'' won the Mussolini Cup for best foreign film at the 1941

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the ...

, at which the Italian Minister for Popular Culture, Alessandro Pavolini, praised particularly the film's propaganda value and the role of Emil Jannings. Within Germany, the film was the first to be given the honorary distinction 'Film of the Nation' (''Film der Nation'') by the Reich Propaganda Ministry Censorship Office. Only three other films received this rating, namely '' Heimkehr'' (1941), '' The Great King'' (1942) and '' Die Entlassung'' (1942). Joseph Goebbels also presented Emil Jannings with the 'Ring of Honour of the German Cinema'.

Re-release

The success of the film led Goebbels to re-release it in October 1944, as inspiration for the '' Volkssturm''. On 31 January 1945, the film was banned, for fear that the morale of German audiences would be harmed by images of Boer refugees whose houses had been destroyed - 'images that by the time replicated the harsh realities of everyday life in Germany'.Vande Winkel, ''Ohm Krügers Travels'', p. 121.

References

Works cited

* *

Bibliography

* Fox, Jo, ''Film Propaganda in Britain and Nazi Germany'' * Hake, Sabine, ''German National Cinema'' * Hallstein, C.W., 'Ohm Kruger: The Genesis of a Nazi Propaganda Film', ''Literature Film Quarterly'' (2002) * Klotz, M, 'Epistemological ambiguity and the fascist text: Jew Süss, Carl Peters, and Ohm Krüger', ''New German Critique'', 74 (1998) *Taylor, Richard, ''Film Propaganda: Soviet Russia and Nazi Germany'' * Vande Winkel, R, 'Ohm Krüger's Travels: a Case Study in the Export of Third-Reich Film Propaganda', ''Historical Reflections / Réflexions Historiques'', 35:2 (2009), pp. 108–124. * Welch, David, ''Propaganda and the German Cinema, 1939-1945''

External links

*
Ohm Krüger
at the

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ohm Kruger Films of Nazi Germany Nazi propaganda films 1941 films 1940s biographical films 1940s historical films German biographical films German historical films German epic films Films set in South Africa Films set in Switzerland Films set in London Films set in the 1890s Films set in the 1900s Second Boer War films Films directed by Hans Steinhoff Cultural depictions of Cecil Rhodes Cultural depictions of Paul Kruger Depictions of Queen Victoria on film Cultural depictions of Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener Tobis Film films German black-and-white films Cultural depictions of Edward VII 1940s German-language films Films scored by Theo Mackeben Nazi-era films restricted in Germany