Franz Rudnick Movies
- 1984
When Nazi "exterminator" Adolph Eichmann was tried for war crimes in 1961, more than one observer, taking into consideration Eichmann's "normal" veneer, commented upon "the banality of evil." Much the same can be said of the quietly chilling docudrama The Wannsee Conference. This re-creation of a January, 1942 meeting of several Nazi officials is based on the actual minutes of the conference. In calm, measured tones, the various Nazi higher-ups discuss the extermination of Europe's Jewish population. The film is shot in "real time": it runs 87 minutes, precisely the same amount of time consumed by the actual event. Don't let anyone ever tell you that a film consisting of an hour and a half of conversation is dull: The Wannsee Conference is one of the most disturbing pictures ever committed to celluloid. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Artzorn, Friedrich Georg Beckhaus, (more)
- 1981
Also known as Die Bleierne Zeit (The German Sisters), Marianne and Julienne is an extension of themes explored by director Margarethe von Trotta in her earlier Sisters, or the Balance of Happiness. Once more, the principal characters are two well-bred sisters, outwardly polar opposites of one another, but birds of a feather in many ways. Marianne (Barbara Sukowa) is a radical terrorist, while Juliane (Jutta Lampe) edits a mainstream feminist magazine. The film explores how the same ideological words can be harnessed for both order and chaos, depending on how far an activist is willing to go. Von Trotta based her screenplay for Marianne and Juliane on the real-life Enslein Sisters. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jutta Lampe, Barbara Sukowa, (more)
- 1979
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This West German film is a contemporary tale with gloomy overtones of the 19th Century August Strindberg one-act play The Stronger The sisters of the title are an executive secretary and her younger biology-student sibling. The secretary supports the student, exercising virtually total control over the younger girl's life. But as the film unfolds, it becomes clear that both women are utterly dependent upon one another. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jutta Lampe, Gudrun Gabriel, (more)
- 1976
In this crime thriller, Morelli (Mel Ferrer) is a writer whose books no longer sell well, at least in part because of his slavish worship of "the classics." His response to this insult to his pride is to kill young women in a horrific manner; he calls it "revolutionary disgust." Bossi (Klaus Kinski) is a newspaper reporter who convinces Morelli to write his memoirs, and he engineers certain of his own affairs to coincide with those of the murdering writer. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mel Ferrer, Klaus Kinski, (more)
21 Hours at Munich is a grim reenactment of the darkest days of the 1972 Munich Olympics. A gang of eight Arab terrorists storm the Israeli dormitory, killing two and taking hostage nine athletes. The terrorist's demands include the release of 200 Arabs held in Israeli jails; Israel follows its standard policy in dealing with terrorism and refuses to capitulate. There can be only one way that this film will end, but the tragedy of the occasion is buoyed by isolated moments of inspirational heroism. William Holden and Franco Nero head the cast, while sportscaster Jim McKay, whose emotional coverage of the actual events has since become famous, narrates the film. 21 Hours at Munich first aired on November 7, 1976. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1968
This erotic horror film is set in a dark medieval castle where the lusty Queen of France deflowers virgins, drains the life from them, hacks them up and tosses them in a huge tower. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
