08/15 (film series)
West German film
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08/15 is a 1954â55 West German film trilogy directed by Paul May and based on the novel 08/15 by Hans Hellmut Kirst who also served as the film's screenwriter (published in English as "The Revolt of Gunner Asch"). The term 08/15 (nill-eight/fifteen, German: Null-Acht/Fünfzehn) refers to the German Army's standard machine gun, the 08/15 (or MG 08 model 15), by far, the most common German machine gun deployed in World War I. It was manufactured in such large quantities that it became the German Army slang for anything that was standard issue.[1]
- Paul May
- Hans Hellmut Kirst
- Claus Hardt
- Ernst von Salomon
by Hans Hellmut Kirst
| 08/15 | |
|---|---|
German Poster | |
| Directed by | Paul May |
| Written by |
|
| Based on | 08/15 by Hans Hellmut Kirst |
| Produced by | Ilse Kubaschewski |
| Cinematography | Heinz Hölscher |
| Edited by | |
| Music by | Rolf A. Wilhelm |
Production company | Divina-Film |
| Distributed by | Gloria Filmverleih AG |
| Country | West Germany |
| Language | German |
The film follows the story of Private Asch, a German soldier in World War II. The film title implies that Asch, and the soldiers under his command, were unostentatious (i.e. "run-of-the-mill") characters deployed on the Eastern Front.[1]
Premise
The last of the 08/15 film trilogy ends with Germany being occupied by American soldiers who are portrayed as bubble-gum chewing, slack-jawed, uncultured louts, inferior in every respect to the heroic German soldiers.[1] The only exception is the Jewish emigrant, now a US officer, who is shown as both intelligent and unscrupulous, the fact interpreted by Professor Omer Bartov as implying that the "real tragedy of World War II was that the Nazis did not get a chance to exterminate all Semites, who have now returned with Germany's defeat to once more exploit the German people".[1] "Although Asch is never identified with the Americans â indeed, in the final film of the trilogy, the Americans appear to be nearly as dangerous a foe as the SS."[2]
Parts
- Part 1: In der Kaserne (In the Barracks)
- Part 2: Im Krieg (In War)
- Part 3: In der Heimat (Back Home)
Cast
| Actor | 08/15 | 08/15: Zweiter Teil | 08/15 in der Heimat |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wilfried Seyferth | Luschke | ||
| Harry Hardt | Derna | ||
| Heinz-Peter Scholz | Dr. Sämig | ||
| Rainer Penkert | Wedelmann | Wedelmann | |
| Emmerich Schrenk | Fritz Schulz | Fritz Schulz | Fritz Schulz |
| Hans-Christian Blech | Platzek | Platzek | Platzek |
| Hans Elwenspoek | Werktreu | Werktreu | |
| Reinhard Glemnitz | Lindenberg | ||
| Rudolf Rhomberg | Rumpler | ||
| Wolfgang Wahl | Schwitzke | ||
| Dietrich Thoms | Wunderlich | Schirrmeister | |
| Joachim Fuchsberger | Herbert Asch | Herbert Asch | Herbert Asch |
| Peter Carsten | Kowalski | Kowalski | Kowalski |
| Paul Bösiger | Hannes Vierbein | Hannes Vierbein | Hannes Vierbein |
| Helen Vita | Lore Schulz | Lore Schulz | Lore Schulz |
| Eva-Ingeborg Scholz | Elisabeth Freitag | Elisabeth Asch | |
| Gundula Korte | Ingrid Asch | Ingrid Asch | |
| Herbert Kroll | Freitag | Freitag | |
| Walter Klock | Asch | Asch | Asch |
| Mario Adorf | Wagner | Wagner | Stamm |
| O. E. Hasse | von Plönnies | von Plönnies | |
| Rolf Kutschera | Witterer | ||
| Ellen Schwiers | Natascha | ||
| Gitta Lind | Charlotte | ||
| Erica Beer | Viola | ||
| Ulla Melchinger | Lisa | ||
| Armin Dahlen | Infanterie-Major | ||
| Manfred Schuster | Krause | ||
| Otto Bolesch | Unteroffizier der Abwehr | ||
| Klaus Pohl | Winziger | ||
| Hannes Schiel | Georg Hauk | ||
| Gustav Knuth | Hinrichsen | ||
| Michael Janisch | Greifer | ||
| Renate Ewert | Barbara Bruks | ||
| Edith Schultze-Westrum | Frau Brahm | ||
| Kurt Heintel | James | ||
| Howard Vernon | John | ||
| Arnulf Schröder | Volkssturmführer | ||
| Rudolf Rhomberg | NSDAP-Ortsgruppenleiter | ||
| Hans Friedrich | Horn |