Manchester University Press
14 Die Flucht (The Flight), Roland Gräf, 1977
Abstract
Die Flucht is an unusual film, made at an unusual time, in an unusual place, under unusual circumstances. An unusual film in that it is about a successful doctor who is looking to flee the German Democratic Republic (GDR) to begin a new life in West Germany, and made at an unusual time because in the late 1970s, Warsaw Pact countries tended not to make films about the potential failings of their own political systems. From a contemporary perspective, this made East Germany possibly the last place one would expect such a film to be made. The 1970s in the GDR were rather different to the late 1980s when the country was sliding towards extinction. In fact, the 1970s were different across Central and Eastern Europe in a manner that is rarely considered in retrospect. It was a period when Eric Honecker was viewed as a liberal, moderate voice by the West, having replaced Walther Ulbricht as General Secretary of the Sozialistische Einheitspartei Deutschlands (SED, Socialist Unity Party of Germany) in May 1971. His Romanian counterpart, Nicolae Ceaușescu, was similarly viewed; successive US Presidents Nixon and Ford had been to visit Romania, each hoping it could be turned into an ally against the Soviet Union were a third global conflict to break out.
Abstract
Die Flucht is an unusual film, made at an unusual time, in an unusual place, under unusual circumstances. An unusual film in that it is about a successful doctor who is looking to flee the German Democratic Republic (GDR) to begin a new life in West Germany, and made at an unusual time because in the late 1970s, Warsaw Pact countries tended not to make films about the potential failings of their own political systems. From a contemporary perspective, this made East Germany possibly the last place one would expect such a film to be made. The 1970s in the GDR were rather different to the late 1980s when the country was sliding towards extinction. In fact, the 1970s were different across Central and Eastern Europe in a manner that is rarely considered in retrospect. It was a period when Eric Honecker was viewed as a liberal, moderate voice by the West, having replaced Walther Ulbricht as General Secretary of the Sozialistische Einheitspartei Deutschlands (SED, Socialist Unity Party of Germany) in May 1971. His Romanian counterpart, Nicolae Ceaușescu, was similarly viewed; successive US Presidents Nixon and Ford had been to visit Romania, each hoping it could be turned into an ally against the Soviet Union were a third global conflict to break out.
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents v
- List of figures vii
- Notes on contributors viii
- Acknowledgements xi
- Introduction 1
- 1 Creating a major film season at HOME 4
- 2 France, May ’68 and the development of the political thriller 19
- 3 Costa- Gavras, Jorge Semprún and Yves Montand 30
- 4 State of Siege (État de siège), Costa-Gavras, 1973 39
- 5 L’Attentat (Plot), Yves Boisset, 1972 49
- 6 Special Section (Section spéciale), Costa-Gavras, 1975 59
- 7 The political thriller in the context of Italian cinema 71
- 8 Investigation of a Citizen above Suspicion (Indagine su un cittadino al di sopra di ogni sospetto), Elio Petri, 1970 83
- 9 Killer Cop (La polizia ha le mani legate), Luciano Ercoli, 1975 92
- 10 West Germany 100
- 11 Neither intentional nor accidental, but unavoidable 109
- 12 Where the political thriller was less prevalent 118
- 13 Operación Ogro (Ogro), Gillo Pontecorvo, 1979 127
- 14 Die Flucht (The Flight), Roland Gräf, 1977 136
- 15 Days of ’36 (Meres tou ’36), Theo Angelopoulos, 1972 148
- 16 Who is the man on the roof? 157
- 17 The legacy of the 1970s European political thriller 167
- 18 The season 178
- Index 190
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents v
- List of figures vii
- Notes on contributors viii
- Acknowledgements xi
- Introduction 1
- 1 Creating a major film season at HOME 4
- 2 France, May ’68 and the development of the political thriller 19
- 3 Costa- Gavras, Jorge Semprún and Yves Montand 30
- 4 State of Siege (État de siège), Costa-Gavras, 1973 39
- 5 L’Attentat (Plot), Yves Boisset, 1972 49
- 6 Special Section (Section spéciale), Costa-Gavras, 1975 59
- 7 The political thriller in the context of Italian cinema 71
- 8 Investigation of a Citizen above Suspicion (Indagine su un cittadino al di sopra di ogni sospetto), Elio Petri, 1970 83
- 9 Killer Cop (La polizia ha le mani legate), Luciano Ercoli, 1975 92
- 10 West Germany 100
- 11 Neither intentional nor accidental, but unavoidable 109
- 12 Where the political thriller was less prevalent 118
- 13 Operación Ogro (Ogro), Gillo Pontecorvo, 1979 127
- 14 Die Flucht (The Flight), Roland Gräf, 1977 136
- 15 Days of ’36 (Meres tou ’36), Theo Angelopoulos, 1972 148
- 16 Who is the man on the roof? 157
- 17 The legacy of the 1970s European political thriller 167
- 18 The season 178
- Index 190
