Hartmut Becker Movies
Based on a novel by Gerald Seymour, the two-part British miniseries starred John Thaw as Joshua Mantle, a solicitor's clerk pressed into duty by British intelligence. It is Joshua's job to find out why otherwise level-headed Intelligence officer Tracy Barnes (Zara Turner) suddenly, and without warning, attacked East German politician Dieter Krause (Hartmut Becker). Unfortunately, Joshua's superior officer Giles Fleming (Colin Baker) ambivalently balks at providing information vital to the investigation. Ultimately, Joshua teams up with Tracy herself to solve a mystery involving the dreaded East German secret police organization Stasi, a ten-year-old murder, and a far-reaching diplomatic coverup. The Waiting Time was originally telecast on October 28 and November 4, 1999. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Thaw, Zara Turner, (more)
- 1991
The made-for-cable costume drama Young Catherine is the story of Catherine the Great (Julia Ormond). As the film begins, Catherine is a teen-aged German girl who marries into the Russian royal family of the 18th century; by the end of the long production, she has ascended to the throne of Russia. Though the film looks fantastic, it is slightly too long and slowly paced to be consistently compelling. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide
Triumph of the Spirit is the true story of Salamo Arouch, a Greek-Jewish boxer imprisoned in Auschwitz during World War II. Arrested while attempting to help his family and friends escape the Nazi juggernaut, Arouch (Dafoe) is slated for extermination. He manages to survive--and to serve as an inspiration for his fellow inmates--by literally boxing for his life. He does this at the orders of his SS captors, who gamble on the outcome of Arouch's bouts. With each victory, Arouch is rewarded with extra bread rations, which he passes on to his family. Counterpointing the main story is the seemingly foredoomed romantic relationship between Arouch and female inmate Allegra (Wendy Gazelle). An uplifting coda rounds out this grim factual account. Triumph of the Spirit was filmed on location at Auschwitz--the first film of its kind to be lensed in that infamous locale. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Willem Dafoe, Edward James Olmos, (more)
- 1989
Originally titled simply Decimo Clandestino, this Lina Wertmuller "miniature" began life as an Italian TV drama. Piera Degli Esposti plays the widowed, impoverished mother of a huge farm family. The woman moves her nine children to Bologna, where their living conditions are deplorable. To avoid a hike in rent, she tells her landlady (Dominique Sanda) that she is living alone. Also known as To Save Nine (a curiously brief English-language title for a Wertmuller film!), IL Decimo Clandestino was expanded from 60 to 90 minutes for its theatrical release. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dominique Sanda, Hartmut Becker, (more)
During WWII, Sobibor was a notorious Nazi death camp. This gripping, fact-based drama chronicles the courage of an inmate who managed the largest escape from such a place. Thanks to him, over 300 prisoners were freed. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1985
- PG
Dyan Cannon stars in this 4-hour TV drama as Jenny Baines, an American woman of the pre-WW II era. Anxious to learn the fate of her son, a pilot who was shot down over Germany, Jenny travels to Berlin. Here she is reunited with her husband Hartmut Becker, who is now a high-ranking Nazi officer. With the help of allied prisoners, Jenny is smuggled into the POW camp where her son is presumably being held. The part of Jenny's son is played by Hugh Grant, meaning that Jenny's War is probably due for a revival. The 2-part drama was originally syndicated the week of October 26, 1985, as part of the Operation Prime Time series. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1985
The life and times of Marie Ward, the founder of the Loretto Order of nuns, (aka the Institute of Mary) are examined in this religious biography that is filmed on locations related to her activities. The unusually devout and independent nun originally came from a Catholic family in Yorkshire and took her vows and training at St. Omer in France. An activist to the core, she spent time helping those in prison and started the Institute of Mary in 1606, with the idea of bringing other nuns out into society to help those in need. As she defends her Institute to two successive Popes, it is ultimately banned until 1707, a half-century after her death. This bio also examines other difficulties and trials that made her career a challenge, and ultimately undermined her health.
~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Hannelore Elsner, Irm Hermann, (more)
- 1980
Framed as the memories of a young schoolgirl in a small German village, this realistic, harrowing drama focuses on the lives of the girl and her acquaintances during World War II. She and her friends of varying ages come up against the harsh cruelties of war in several shattering experiences. One of them is almost raped by a bitter and disfigured soldier, another makes a suicide pact with her lover, a professed Nazi is sent home from the war as a paraplegic, while a young man against the Nazis is among those killed in a bombing raid. The inhumanity of war is not confined to physical wounds, violent death, or rape; the drama goes on to paint twisted psyches that have been bent by unholy circumstances. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Erika Pluhar
It's late 1944, and the Allied armies are confident they'll win the World War II and be home in time for Christmas. What's needed, says British general Bernard Law Montgomery, is a knockout punch, a bold strike through Holland, where German troops are spread thin, that will put the Allies into Germany. Paratroops led by British major general Robert Urquhart (Sean Connery) and American brigadier general James Gavin (Ryan O'Neal) will seize a thin road and five bridges through Holland into Germany, with paratroops led by Lieutenant Col. John Frost (Sir Anthony Hopkins) holding the most critical bridge at a small town called Arnhem. Over this road shall pass combined forces led by British Lieutenant Gen. Brian Horrocks (Edward Fox) and British Lieutenant Col. Joe Vandeleur (Michael Caine). The plan requires precise timing, so much so that one planner tells Lieutenant Gen. Frederick Browning (Dirk Bogarde), "Sir, I think we may be going a bridge too far." The plan also has one critical flaw: Instead of a smattering of German soldiers, the area around Arnhem is loaded with crack SS troops. Disaster ensues. Based on a book by historian Cornelius Ryan, A Bridge Too Far is reminiscent of another movie based on a Ryan book, The Longest Day. Like that movie, it is loaded with more than 15 international stars, including Sir Laurence Olivier, Robert Redford, Hardy Krueger, Gene Hackman, Maximilian Schell, and Liv Ullman. ~ Nick Sambides, Jr., All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dirk Bogarde, James Caan, (more)
- 1971
Igor has a good job as an advertising manager, a nice house, his wife Hanna, and a mistress. He has invited Christine, the mistress, over to his house while his wife is away. They are deeply involved in the act of making love when his wife, who has returned early, discovers them. Igor desists, and makes ironic little comments about the situation. Hanna is not amused. She takes a gun, points it at him, and tells him to resume making love to Christine. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- 1970
When four American soldiers kidnap, rape, and murder a Vietnamese girl, the proceedings are observed by another American (Michael Verhoeven). The brutal attack is depicted in a most graphic manner, spending an inordinate amount of time on the repeated rape and subsequent evisceration of the 15-year-old girl. The bystander is helpless to save the girl but manages to file an official report of the incident. Unfortunately, the report is read and discarded. Unlike similar efforts, this film is based on actual events which took place in 1966. Given the tone of high-moral indignation of this film, some people, who have not forgotten their grievances from World War II, wonder how any German has the standing to lecture Americans on the subject of wartime atrocities. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Hartmut Becker
