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Berlin Outlaws
Angels of Iron (Germany, 1980/81)
Engel aus Eisen
Based on a true story: During the Berlin Airlift in 1948, Werner Gladow uses the turmoil in the city to form a gang with the intention of dominating the Berlin underworld. As long as the city is in chaos and the police paralyzed, he can be sure of success—until the Soviet blockade ends and order is restored. Director Thomas Brasch and the movie’s principal actors went into exile from East to West Berlin during the exodus of intellectuals following East Germany’s expulsion of the poet and singer Wolf Biermann in 1976. The cast also includes the 1950s teenage idol Karin Baal, and Hanns Zischler, a well-known actor in Wim Wenders’ films.
DCP, b/w, 105 min. Director: Thomas Brasch. Producer: Heinz Angermeyer, Joachim von Vietinghoff. Screenwriter: Thomas Brasch. Cinematographer: Walter Lassally. Editor: Stefan Arnsten, Tanja Schmidbauer. Cast: Hilmar Thate, Katharina Thalbach, Ulrich Wesselmann, Karin Baal, Hanns Zischler.
Bruno the Black—One Day a Hunter Blew His Horn (Germany, 1969/70)
Bruno der Schwarze, es blies ein Jäger wohl in sein Horn
Lutz Eisholz’s first feature film was produced at West Berlin’s German Film and TV Academy. In an experimental documentary he portrays the working class outcast Bruno S., who prowls the city as a street musician, performing his own songs. The film unfolds Bruno’s story: abandoned by his mother as a child, he was maltreated in correctional institutions in Nazi Germany. On release after WWII he found work but started performing at the same time as a self-taught musician and poet. Although incapable of “normal” human bonding, he was still able to rejoice in life. When Werner Herzog saw this film he recognized Bruno’s potential and hired him to play starring roles in The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser (1974), Heart of Glass (1976) and Stroszek (1977).
DCP, color, 81 min. Director: Lutz Eisholz. Screenwriter: Lutz Eisholz. Cinematographer: Joseph Dayan. Cast: Bruno S.
