Schtonk! (1992)

Director:

Helmut Dietl

Writers:

Helmut Dietl (writer)
Ulrich Limmer (screenplay)
(more)

Release Date:

12 March 1992 (Germany)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

Der Film zum Buch vom Führer

Plot:

Fritz is a falsifier drawing a picture of Eva Braun, the girlfriend of Adolf Hitler. He meets Hermann...

Plot Keywords:

Female Nudity | Beautiful Woman | Female Frontal Nudity | Nude Model | Hitler

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 6 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Götz George	...	Hermann Willié
Uwe Ochsenknecht	...	Fritz Knobel
Christiane Hörbiger	...	Freya von Hepp
Rolf Hoppe	...	Karl Lentz
Dagmar Manzel	...	Biggi
Veronica Ferres	...	Martha
Ulrich Mühe	...	Dr. Wieland
Martin Benrath	...	Uwe Esser
Hermann Lause	...	Kurt Glück
Karl Schönböck	...	Professor Strasser
Rosemarie Fendel	...	Mrs. Lentz
Georg Marischka	...	Von Klantz
Thomas Holtzmann	...	Notary Cornelius
Hark Bohm	...	Catholic pastor
Willy Harlander	...	Bavarian customs officer
Hans-Joachim Hegewald	...	Schuhback
Peter Roggisch	...	Obersturmbandführer
Günter Junghans	...	East german police officer
Armin Rohde	...	SS man
Robert Chalkey	...	Knobel as child
Thomas Tipton	...	GI
Harald Maack	...	Shipyard engineer
Helge Fischer	...	Musician
Wolfgang Menge	...	Valuer in London
Fritz Lichtenhahn	...	Valuer in Suisse
Eva Maria Kerkhoff	...	Secretary Wieland
Jan Koster	...	Bus driver
Mircea Crisan	...	Waiter (as Mircea Krishan)
Thomas Wüpper	...	SS man
Michael Kessler	...	SS man
Martin Feifel	...	SS man
Günther Bader	...	Hitler
Beate Loibl	...	Eva Braun
Harald Juhnke	...	Kummer
Andreas Lukoschik	...	Cashier

Directed by
Helmut Dietl

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Helmut Dietl		writer
Ulrich Limmer		screenplay
Ulrich Limmer		story

Produced by
Wolf-Dietrich Brücker	....	co-producer
Helmut Dietl	....	producer
Ulrich Limmer	....	executive producer
Günter Rohrbach	....	producer
Peter Sterr	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Konstantin Wecker

Cinematography by
Xaver Schwarzenberger

Film Editing by
Tanja Schmidbauer

Casting by
An Dorthe Braker

Production Design by
Benedikt Herforth
Götz Weidner

Costume Design by
Barbara Ehret
Bernd Stockinger

Makeup Department
Peter Knöpfle	....	makeup artist
Heidi Moser-Neumayr	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Heinz Hausner	....	production manager
Dieter Minx	....	production supervisor
Nikolaus Prediger	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Andi Lang	....	second assistant director
Michael Zens	....	first assistant director

Art Department
Peter Dürst	....	property master
Josef Plagge	....	construction coordinator

Sound Department
Hubert Bartholomae	....	sound post-production
Andreas Biegler	....	foley editor
Michael Kranz	....	sound mixer
Matthias Lempert	....	sound post-production
Chris Price	....	sound

Special Effects by
Otto Franke	....	special effects
Heinz Ludwig	....	special effects
Harrie Wiessenhaan	....	special effects supervisor

Visual Effects by
Sebastian Bulst	....	model maker
Helmut Neudorfer	....	model maker
Hans Neurohr	....	model maker
Joachim Grüninger	....	senior modelmaker (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Bernd Huebner	....	gaffer
Michael Stöger	....	camera operator

Casting Department
Michael Sauerteig	....	extras casting

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Nane Cornelius	....	wardrober
Monika Heim	....	wardrober

Editorial Department
Daniela Beauvais	....	assistant editor

Music Department
Peter Herbolzheimer	....	conductor
Peter Herbolzheimer	....	orchestrator
Mario Lauer	....	orchestrator
Rolf Moser	....	music coordinator
Bernd Strasser	....	music coordinator
Klaus Strazicky	....	music recordist
Klaus Strazicky	....	music scoring mixer
Chris Walden	....	orchestrator

Transportation Department
Armando Uebel	....	driver: properties

Other crew
Rudolf Roemmelt	....	title designer
Gretl Zeilinger	....	continuity

Production Companies

• Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR)

Distributors

• Artificial Eye (UK)
• Bavaria Film International (worldwide)
• Neue Constantin Film (1992) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Pyramide Distribution (France)
• VMP (????) (Germany) (VHS)

Other Companies

• MagicFX  models

Runtime:

115 min

Country:

Germany

Language:

German

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Certification:

Germany:6 (f) | UK:15

Filming Locations:

Alsterarkaden, Hamburg, Germany

Company:

Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR)

Trivia:

Near the end of the film, Dr. Lentz (Ulrich Mühe) sings a song at the party onboard the ship belongs to 'Hermann Willié'. The melody is taken from a famous German seaman-song of Hans Albers: "La Paloma"!

Movie Connections:

References The Great Dictator (1940)

Soundtrack:

Davon geht die Welt nicht unter

UNBALANCED, BUT WORTH A VIEW

Almost 2 hours is a bit two long for its basic story material, hence a film that has wonderful moments and scenes and plenty of satire, but also moments of boredom in which nothing (new) happens. Certainly successful in portraying the circumstances in which a forger could produce the notorious Hitler Diaries (it happened in 1983 and not only German press but the press world wide walked into the trap), the film shows that the yellow press and its sensation-hungry reporters made use of the curious fascination of the public world wide with the Nazi past.; as Harald Juhnke's character says to his chief-editor: "(with Hitler) we never had such a famous writer writing in our magazine ever before!".

For Germany the most painful aspect of the film might be the support for the publication from former Nazis represented by a character played by Karl Schönbock (82 years old here!); as a former intimate friend of Hitler he knows that the diaries are forged but gives full support: the end justifies the means. One of the memorable scenes is the arrival of the guests at the rally of former Nazi's and supporters: a memorable image when the guests walk to the house in the rain under their umbrellas illuminated by torches.

The cast is very good, with Götz George and Uwe Ochsenknecht outstanding. Both have scenes that are side splitting funny: George when he for the first time reads from the diaries and Ochsenknecht when he begins to think, talk and look like Hitler.

But as said, the film is too long for its own good. There are more memorable scenes than the those I have mentioned already, but for instance does the viewer really need to see all 60 diaries made? The use of the old song "La Paloma" in the scene on the boat is a nice idea, but it also takes too long. And what to think of the first scene (before and during the credits); it does not add anything to the things to come and is not funny either.

The for this film composed music itself is mediocre, but the use of recordings of Zarah Leander and that of a small yodel-theme are very clever. All in all: unbalanced, at moments very amusing and certainly worth a view.