The Adlon: A
Family Saga is the English title of a historical drama which premiered on German
television in 2013. It is based on a true story: the story of the family that
founded and ran the Adlon Hotel in Berlin for almost a century (1904-1997). Here
is some basic information about this drama:
** Original
German title: Das Adlon: Eine Familiensaga
** Executive
producer: Oliver Berben
** Directed by
Uli Edel
** Written by
Uli Edel and Rodica Döhnert
** Language:
German – no English subtitles!
** Released on
DVD in 2013
** Number of
episodes: 3
** Run time: each
episode runs for ca. 1 hour and 33 minutes
** Total running
time: ca. 4 hours and 40 minutes
It is a huge television
production with a large number of actors. The man in charge of the project is
Oliver Berben, the son of Iris Berben, who is one of the most famous German
actors.
As stated above,
the time frame is almost a century, from 1904 to 1997. The hotel was founded in
1904 and officially opened in 1907. The aim was to be the best hotel in Germany
and one of the best hotels in the world. For a while it really was. In 1997 it
re-opened with a double name: Das Adlon Kempinski Hotel. Today it is still the
Adlon Hotel, but now it is a member of the Kempinski chain.
In 1945, when
World War Two ended, Germany was divided into four zones, three western zones and
one zone for the USSR. The three western zones later became West Germany, while
the Soviet zone later became East Germany.
Berlin, the old
capital, was divided into four sectors, three western and one for the USSR. The
three western sectors became West Berlin, while the Soviet sector became East
Berlin, the capital of East Germany.
Das Adlon was
(and still is) located next to the famous city gate, the Brandenburger Tor. When
the lines between east and west were drawn, the hotel ended up in East Berlin.
It was very close to the line between east and west, but it was in the east.
During the time
of East Germany, Das Adlon was only a shadow of its former self, until it was
finally closed down. After the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the unification
of the two German states in 1990, the old building was demolished and a new
building was constructed on the same spot. The new hotel opened for business in
1997.
As stated above, there are three
episodes in the mini-series:
# 1. 1904-1918
# 2. 1918-1933
# 3. 1933-1997
While the
mini-series is based on a true story, it is not a documentary film. It is a dramatized
version of events: a combination of fact and fiction.
In the mini-series we
follow the lives of two families: the Adlon family and the Schadt family. The
former is real, while the latter is fictional. The Schadt family was invented for
dramatic purposes. In the mini-series, the lives of the two families and the
life of the hotel are closely connected with each other.
1904 is not only
the year in which the hotel is founded, it is also the year in which (the
fictional character) Sonja Schadt is born. She lives and works at the hotel for
many years until she leaves Germany and settles in the US.
In 1997, when
the hotel re-opens, she returns to the old place. While waiting for her family
to arrive, she tells the story of her life and the history of the hotel to one
of the young porters. At that time she is 93 years old; she is almost as old as
the century.
A word of
warning: this is a German production, so the dialogue is in German.
Unfortunately, there are no English subtitles. If you do not understand any
German, this product is not for you.
However, if you
do understand German, and if you are interested in the history of the modern
world, then this mini-series is something for you. As for the language, I will
say this: the German that is spoken here is clear and easy to understand. There
are no strange dialects and no strange accents.
Therefore this
mini-series is not only the history of a hotel, it is the history of a country,
the history of Germany in the 20th century, seen from the perspective of a
five-star hotel in the capital.
In this drama,
we get to see some of the best and some of the worst aspects of German history.
The script is well-written and the actors play their roles very well.
What do
reviewers say about this drama? On IMDb, it has a rating of 74 per cent, which
corresponds to almost four stars on Amazon. I understand the positive reviews.
I cannot understand the negative reviews.
If you ask me, 74
per cent is good, but not good enough. This drama is excellent. And therefore I
think it deserves a rating of five stars.
*****
Hotel Adlon Kempinski, Berlin
*****
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