Ludwig II
Ludwig II: Glanz und Ende eines Königs
West Germany
1955
115 Min
Color
1.33:1
German
Synopsis
A decade before Luchino Visconti made The Damned, Käutner had similarly exposed connections between industry and (Nazi) ideology in Der Rest ist Schweigen, and his German Ludwig II (1955) predated the Italian’s by 17 years. Despite some restrictions imposed by the heirs, Käutner’s version is a dazzling meditation on myth and history as a requiem for German culture, and one of the most striking examples of his virtues being overshadowed by prejudices. The very notion of Trivialkino acting icons O. W. Fischer as the doomed Bavarian king and Ruth Leuwerik (no matter that she’s always fascinating in her many Käutner roles) as Austrian empress Elizabeth seems enough to shut many blinders. Yet neither Visconti nor Hans-Jürgen Syberberg could improve substantially upon the earlier film, outstanding as their Ludwig films may be.
Director
Helmut Käutner
Helmut Kaeutner was born in 1908 in Duesseldorf and died in 1980 in Italy. He studied German, Art History, Philosophy, Psychology and Theater Studies and was one of the founding members of the cabaret group “Die vier Nachrichter”, which was banned in 1935. Originally working in the theater as an actor and director, he began his film work as a scriptwriter. His directorial debut was with the film Kitty and the World Conference (Kitty und die Weltkonferenz, 1939), but the film was withdrawn by the Nazi government due to its “pro-English tendencies”. His other films include: Kleider machen Leute (1940), Auf Wiedersehen, Franziska! (1941), Anuschka (1942), Romance in a Minor Key (Romanze in Moll, 1943), Great Freedom No. 7 (Grosse Freiheit Nr. 7, 1944), Seven Journeys (In jenen Tagen, 1947), The Original Sin (Der Apfel ist ab, 1948), The Last Bridge (Die letzte Bruecke, 1953) – winner of a German Film Award in 1954, Sky Without Stars (Himmel ohne Sterne, 1955), The Devil’s General (Des… read more
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