Ku'damm 56 (2016)

 

 

Ku’damm 56 is a three-part historical drama set in Berlin (mostly in West Berlin) in 1956.

 

It premiered on German television (ZDF) in 2016.

 

Here is some basic information about it:

 

** Director: Sven Bohse

** Created and written by Annette Hess

** Producers: Benjamin Benedict and Nico Hofmann

** Language: German

** Released on DVD in 2016

** Run time: 3 x 90 minutes = 270 minutes

 

This drama is available via Amazon Prime Video, which offers six episodes of 45 minutes.

 

According to the website, there are English subtitles on Amazon Prime Video.

 

The cast includes the following:

 

The first group

** Claudia Michelsen as Caterina Schöllack (mother)

** Maria Erich as Helga Schöllack (daughter)

** Emilia Schüle as Eva Schöllack (daughter)

** Sonja Gerhardt as Monika Schöllack (daughter)

** Robert Schupp as Gerd Schöllack (father)

 

The second group

** Uwe Ochsenknecht as Fritz Assmann (Caterina’s assistant)

** Sabin Tambrea as Joachim Franck (a rich man’s son)

** Trysten Pütter as Freddie Donath (a musician)

** Heino Ferch as Professor Fassbender (a doctor of medicine)

 

The third group

** August Wittgenstein as Wolfgang von Boost (a lawyer)

** Steve Windolf as Rudi Hauer (a football player)

** Anne Werner as Christa Hauer (Rudi’s wife)

 

Ku’damm 56 is a historical drama. It is a fictional story placed in a historical context.

 

In this case, the historical context is Berlin (mostly West Berlin) in 1956.

 

In 1956, there is no Berlin Wall. Since 1945, the city has been divided into four zones: three in the west and one in the east, but it is relatively easy for all citizens to cross the line in both directions.

 

This drama does not focus much on the difference between east and west, although it is mentioned a couple of times.

 

Ku’damm - short for Kurfürstendamm – is the nickname of a famous street in West Berlin. The figure 56 has a double meaning:

 

# 1. It is the address, the number of the house where Caterina’s dancing school “Galant” is located.

# 2. It is also the year in which the story takes place.

 

I do not wish to spoil the viewing for anyone. I am not going to say much about what happens in this drama. I will only tell you how the story begins.

 

Caterina is the owner of the dancing school Galant, which is located on the prestigious address Ku’damm 56.

 

Caterina and her three daughters live in an apartment above the dancing school. For Caterina, two things are more important than anything else:

 

# 1. She wants to keep the dancing school running. She focuses on classical dances. She is totally against anything new.

 

# 2. She wants her three daughters to find and marry suitable men. The marriage must raise the social standing of the family.

 

** Helga seems to be on the right track. She is engaged to the lawyer Wolfgang, who works for the district attorney (the public prosecutor) in West Berlin. They are planning to get married soon.

 

** Eva works as a nurse at a mental hospital. She hopes to marry the man who is in charge of the hospital, Professor Fassbender. She is not yet engaged, but Caterina hopes it will happen soon.

 

** Monika is the black sheep of the family: she has no education and she has no fiancé with good prospects. Caterina is disappointed in her and she tells her just how disappointed she is as often as she can.

 

What about Caterina’s husband Gerd?

 

During the war he was a soldier on the eastern front. But when the war ended in 1945, he did not return to his family in Berlin.

 

What happened to him? Perhaps he was killed in the war? Perhaps he is a prisoner of war in the Soviet Union? Perhaps there is there another explanation?

 

What about the dancing school?

 

Caterina has told her daughters that it was founded by their grandfather in 1906, but is this really true?

 

One day Monika comes across an old photo which seems to indicate that the truth about the dancing school is rather different.

 

This is how the story begins, and this is where my presentation ends.

 

If you want to know what happens to Caterina, her three daughters and the people around them – including the father Gerd who is still alive - you will have to watch the drama all the way to the end.

 

At first, this looks like a historical drama about a dancing school in Berlin in 1956. And it is. But it is more than that. Much more.

 

Many other topics are covered here. It is a period piece about life in Berlin in 1956, with special focus on the members of the Schöllack family.

 

Some topics are highly controversial, for instance the use of electro-convulsive therapy (formerly known as electroshock) in the hospital where Eva works.

 

Here is another example:

 

If a German man is attracted to other men (and he acts on his impulses), he has a big problem. Not only because many people around him will be upset, but because it was illegal in Germany as well as in West Berlin in 1956. If a man is caught in the act, he may have to go to prison.

 

A final example:

 

1956 is the year when Rock & Roll explodes in the US and the western world in general, including West Berlin. Rock Around the Clock by Bill Haley and his Comets is an exponent of the new era.

 

Young people all over the world are fascinated by Rock & Roll, while older people are horrified and shocked.

 

There is a lot of music in this drama, because Monika discovers Rock & Roll. 

 

This is a way for her to express herself, although this is not exactly what her mother wants.

 

There are some amazing scenes where Monika and her friend Freddie are dancing to the explosive music of the new era.

 

What do reviewers say about this drama?

 

On IMDb it has a rating of 76 per cent.

 

On Amazon Germany there are at the moment more than 1,000 ratings of this product, including more than 250 with reviews.

 

The average rating is 4.8 stars, which corresponds to a rating of 96 percent.

 

In my opinion, the former rating is too low, while the second rating is more appropriate.

 

Why?

 

I have three reasons:

 

# 1. The script is well-written and the actors play their roles well.

# 2. The story is captivating, dramatic, and often highly emotional.

# 3. While fictional, the story is placed in a historical context which is (not completely, but to some extent) realistic.

 

A word of warning:

 

Some scenes are not pleasant to watch, but perhaps they are not unrealistic. This is Berlin in the 1950s. And some things were different back then.

 

I am not going to offer any details regarding this issue, because I do not want to say too much. 

 

If you watch this drama, I am sure you will understand what I mean when I say some scenes are unpleasant to watch.

 

I want to go all the way to the top with this product. I think it deserves a rating of five stars (100 percent).

 

PS # 1. Some reviewers have pointed out that historical truth is violated on several occasions in this drama. Here are some examples:

(A) Not all songs used in the movie are from 1956 or before. Some are from 1957 or 1958. They do not belong in a drama whose story is set in 1956. 

 

(B) Several local bands can play and sing Rock & Roll very well. This is amazing! But we have to ask how the musicians could learn to play and sing this new music so fast.

(C) A guitar used by a guitarist in one scene was not yet available in 1956. This is an anachronism.

While such objections may be relevant, I am prepared to regard them as minor. This is, after all, a historical drama and not a documentary film.

 

PS # 2. The following item is available online:

 

Christian Buss,

A review of Ku’damm 56

Der Spiegel

17 March 2016

 

PS # 3. How many people watched the drama when it was shown on German television (ZDF)?

 

The market share was going up from one episode to the next. Here are the details:

 

** Part 1 = 15.3 per cent

** Part 2 = 17.3 per cent

** Part 3 = 19.6 per cent

 

The drama was so popular that ZDF decided to produce a sequel. The title of the sequel is Ku’damm 59. As the title says, it is set in 1959. The sequel premiered in 2018.

 

A third instalment Ku’damm 63 premiered in 2021. As the title says, it is set in 1963, two years after the construction of the Berlin Wall.

 

PS # 4. Annette Hess (born 1967) is the creator of the German television series Weissensee.

 

** Season 1 = 2010

** Season 2 = 2013

** Season 3 = 2015

** Season 4 = 2018

 

*****

Ku'damm 63

A three-part historical drama

which premiered on ZDF

in 2021 

*****

Ku'damm 59 (2018)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ku’damm 59 is a three-part historical drama which premiered on German television (ZDF) in 2018.

 

The story is set in Berlin in the 1950s. It is a sequel to Ku’damm 56, which premiered on German television (ZDF) in 2016.

 

Here is some basic information about this drama:

 

** Director: Sven Bohse

** Created and written by Annette Hess

** Language: German

** Subtitles: German – no English subtitles!

** Run time: 90 + 93 + 95 minutes = 278 minutes

 

The cast includes the following:

 

The first group

** Claudia Michelsen as Caterina Schöllack (mother)

** Maria Erich as Helga Schöllack (daughter)

** Emilia Schüle as Eva Schöllack (daughter)

** Sonja Gerhardt as Monika Schöllack (daughter)

 

The second group

** Sabin Tambrea as Joachim Franck (an author)

** Trysten Pütter as Freddie Donath (a musician)

** Heino Ferch as Professor Jürgen Fassbender (a doctor of medicine) (Eva’s husband)

 

The third group

** August Wittgenstein as Wolfgang von Boost (a lawyer) (Helga’s husband)

** Ulrich Noethen as Kurt Maier (a movie director)

** Laura de Boer as Ninette Rabe (Joachim’s assistant)

 

Ku’damm 59 is a historical drama. It is a fictional story placed in a historical context.

 

In this case, the historical context is Berlin in the 1950s. Apart from a brief opening scene set in 1958, the story is set in 1959. Hence the title of the drama.

 

In 1959, there is no Berlin Wall. Since 1945, the city has been divided into four zones: three in the west and one in the east, but it is relatively easy for all citizens to cross the line in both directions.

 

Ku’damm - short for Kurfürstendamm – is the nickname of a famous street in West Berlin.

 

Caterina’s dancing school “Galant” is located on number 56 of this street.

 

I do not wish to spoil the viewing for anyone. I am not going to say much about what happens in this drama.

 

If you want to know what happens to Caterina, her three daughters and the people around them, you will have to watch the drama all the way to the end.

 

At first, it looks like a historical drama about a dancing school in Berlin in the 1950s. And it is. But it is more than that. Much more.

 

Many other topics are covered here. It is a period piece about life in Berlin in the 1950s, with special focus on the members of the Schöllack family.

 

There is a lot of music in this drama, because Monika and Freddie are dancers, and Monika is a singer. 

 

They love rock & roll.

 

Dancing and singing is a way for them to express themselves, although the older generation is horrified and shocked.

 

There are some amazing scenes where Monika and her friend Freddie are dancing to the explosive music of the new era.

 

What do reviewers say about this drama?

 

On IMDb it has a rating of 77 percent.

 

On Amazon Germany there are more than 1,000 ratings of this product, including more than 180 with reviews.

 

The average rating is 4.8 stars, which corresponds to a rating of 96 percent.

 

In my opinion, the former rating is too low, while the latter rating is more appropriate.

 

Why?

 

I have three reasons:

 

# 1. The script is well-written and the actors play their roles well.

# 2. The story is captivating, dramatic, and often highly emotional.

# 3. While fictional, the story is placed in a historical context which is (maybe not completely, but to a large extent) realistic.

 

Ku’damm 59 is a great sequel to Ku’damm 56.

 

I want to go all the way to the top with this product. I think it deserves a rating of five stars (100 percent).

 

PS # 1. For background information, see my review of Ku’damm 56.

 

PS # 2. A third instalment Ku’damm 63 premiered on German television (ZDF) in 2021.

 

PS # 3. Annette Hess (born 1967) is the creator of the German television series Weissensee.

 

** Season 1 = 2010

** Season 2 = 2013

** Season 3 = 2015

** Season 4 = 2018

 

*****

Ku'damm 63

A three-part historical drama

which premiered on ZDF 

in 2021

 

*****

 

 

Nacht über Berlin: Der Reichstagsbrand (2013)

 

 

 

 

 

Nacht über Berlin: Der Reichstagsbrand - a historical drama about Germany in 1932 and 1933 – premiered on German television (ARD) in February 2013.

 

February 2013 was chosen in order to mark the 80-year anniversary of the Reichstagsbrand - the burning of the famous building which housed the German parliament - in the night of 27 February 1933.

 

Here is some basic information about this drama:

 

** Produced by Norbert Sauer, Julia Teich, and Cornelia Wecker

** Directed by Friedemann Fromm

** Screenplay written by Rainer Berg and Friedemann Fromm

** Language: German – no English subtitles!

** Released on DVD in 2013

** Run time: 108 minutes

 

The cast includes the following:

 

** Anna Loos as Henny Dallgow – a singer in a dance hall: “Ballhaus”

** Jan Josef Liefers as Albert Goldmann – a doctor and a member of parliament for the Social Democratic Party

** Jürgen Tarrach as Matze Belzig – the owner of the “Ballhaus”

** Marie Gruber as Gunda – a bartender in “Ballhaus”

** Johannes Klaussner as Marinus van der Lubbe (1909-1934) – a Dutch communist

 

Nacht über Berlin is a historical drama. It is a fictional story placed in a historical context.

 

In this case, the historical context is Germany in 1932 and 1933. A love story between Henny and Albert takes place while Germany is being swallowed up by Hitler and the Nazi Party.

 

The culmination of the story is the Reichstagsbrand - the burning of the famous building which housed the German Parliament - in the night of 27 February 1933.

 

Henny and Albert are an odd couple. It is hard to see what they have in common. The characters are played by Anna Loos and Jan Josef Liefers, who are married to each other in real life.

 

Henny and Albert are fictional characters, and so are most other people around them. Towards the end of the drama, a real historical person appears: 

The Dutch communist Marinus van der Lubbe

 

First, he shows up for treatment in Albert’s clinic. 

Later, we see him while the Reichstag is burning.

 

This case is still controversial. Nobody knows exactly what happened when this building was set on fire.

 

Who did it? 

Did Marinus van der Lubbe act alone? 

Or was he working with other people? 

Was the Nazi Party responsible for the fire? 

And was the Dutch communist merely a scapegoat?

 

He was found at the scene. Perhaps he was involved, but it is hard to see how one man could set such a large building on fire.

 

Whatever the truth, he was arrested and later found guilty in a court of law (which was controlled by the Nazis). He was executed in 1934.

 

This case is still being discussed by historical scholars. In 2008, Marinus received a posthumous pardon by a German court.

 

Hitler blamed the communists for the fire and used it as a pretext to outlaw the communist party and to introduce additional restrictions against the remaining opposition.

 

From Hitler’s point of view, the fire was a blessing. He had no need for a parliament with many different political parties.

 

Now he had an excellent excuse to outlaw the opposition and to introduce a ruthless one-party system dominated by the Nazi Party.

 

What do reviewers say about this drama?

 

On IMDb it has a rating of 62 per cent.

 

On Amazon Germany there are at the moment 112 ratings of this product, including 34 with reviews.

 

The average rating is 4.3 stars, which corresponds to a rating of 86 percent.

 

In my opinion, both ratings are too high.

 

The drama was nominated for a prestigious award, the Jupiter Award, in the category Best German Television Film. It did not win. I am not surprised.

 

In the German press, there were positive as well as negative reviews.

 

There is a positive review by Sven Goldmann in Der Tagesspiegel. There is a negative review by Wolfgang Bittner in the online magazine Hintergrund.de

 

Bittner, who is a well-known German author, says the drama was praised in the media before the premiere, but what we have here is:

 

“a problematic TV-event, made with good intentions, but nevertheless failed, and sometimes embarrassing.”

 

He adds:

 

“Part of the problem seems to be that nowadays directors like to write their own screenplay, even though they do not know how to do it.”

 

He concludes his review with the following words:

 

“Everything [in this drama] seems wrong, superficial and fake.”

 

These are harsh words, but I think they are true.

 

This drama did not capture my attention. The performances by the actors are not convincing, even though the leading actors have a lot of experience.

 

The beginning of the plot does not make any sense. The story begins in Denmark in 1932 where we see Henny riding her motorbike.

 

Albert is also in Denmark. He is there to visit his sick brother who is a communist. 

Henny and Albert take the ferry from Denmark to Germany and this is where they meet each other.

 

What is Henny doing in Denmark?

 

This is never explained.

 

We see her motorbike as it is lifted onto the ferry. When the ferry arrives in Germany, Henny and Albert board a train for Berlin. Why does Henny take the train? Why does she not take her motorbike?

 

Later, she has the motorbike in Berlin. We have to ask: how did the motorbike get from the ferry to Berlin?

 

This is never explained.

 

Perhaps it was on the train as cargo, but if that was the case, she would still have to make sure it was moved from the ferry to the train, and this never happens: she walks straight from the ferry to the train.

 

While in Denmark, Henny rides the motorbike on a deserted road. Suddenly, she makes a daring gesture: she lets go of the handlebars and stretches out both arms. Then she closes her eyes and it feels as if she is flying.

 

This works very well, until a black cat crosses the road in front of her and she has to stop. She almost crashes on her bike. Perhaps the black cat is a bad omen?

 

While in Germany, Henny and Albert ride the motorbike on a deserted road in a forest and the daring gesture is performed once more.

 

With Henny in front and Albert behind her, with their arms stretched out, they look almost like the famous scene with Rose and Jack in the movie Titanic.

 

The resemblance is so close that I am quite sure the gesture was borrowed from this movie.

 

What a silly idea!

 

This is a historical drama, but apparently the director is not very interested in real historical events. He is more concerned with Henny and Albert and their fictional relationship.

 

Henny’s family is not happy to have Albert over for dinner, because he is Jewish. For Henny, the big problem is not Hitler and the escalating Nazi terror, but the fact that her family does not like her new boyfriend.

 

It could have been a great drama. Unfortunately, it is not. I am sure the director has good intentions, but good intentions do not guarantee a good result.

 

When we are dealing with a drama, a book, or any other work of art, the only thing that really matters is the result, and in this case the result is simply not good enough.

 

I agree with Wolfgang Bittner when he says everything in this drama seems “wrong, superficial and fake.”

 

This drama is neither great nor good. It is not even average. It is fatally flawed and this is why it cannot get more than two stars (40 percent).

 

PS # 1. Nacht über Deutschland – Hitler: Die ersten 100 Tage is a documentary film by Jürgen Ast and Kerstin Mauersberger which was shown on German television (ARD) in February 2013, as a companion to the historical drama. 

 

This film, which runs for 30 minutes, is no longer available on the ARD website.

 

PS # 2. For more information, check out the following documentary films:

 

** Der Reichstag (2017)

** Alls der Reichstag brannte (2023)

 

*****

Der Reichstag 

August 1932

Six months before the fire

*****

Der Reichstag

The building is on fire

February 1933

 

*****

Der Reichstag

In the twenty-first century

Restored

With a new dome

*****