SKU 164
Availability

HEIMKEHR (1941) * improved picture quality *

Paula Wessely, Peter Petersen and Attila Hörbiger, Gustav Ucicky
(7)
$10.99

Old Print Sample (Prior to 20 May 2016):

New Print Sample (As of 20 May 2016):

Old Print Sample (Prior to 20 May 2016):

New Print Sample (As of 20 May 2016):

It is 1939 and in the Wolyn Voivodeship in eastern Poland, where a German minority has settled for hundreds of years, the Volksdeutsche find themselves more and more alienated from an increasingly scared Polish population, who react to Hitler's threats with an amplified and hysterical nationalism.   Dr. Thomas, a physician, is not allowed by the Poles to have his own practice and his daughter Marie, who herself becomes more radicalized by Polish abuse, watches in horror as the local German school is vandalized and desecrated by the town's Poles.   Incensed, Marie protests the destruction of the school to the town's mayor, who flippantly suggests she either learn to become a good Pole or to leave the country altogether with her Landsmanner.   Dismayed that nothing will be done to protect her people, Marie goes with her father and a friend to the region capital, Luck, to protest to higher authorities, who decline to hear their complaints as well. Deciding to stay in the capital in order to call on the court the next day, that evening they go to the cinema.  They are accompanied there by her friend Karl Michalek, who was conscripted into the Polish army.  At one point in the theatre, the Polish national anthem is played, which the Germans refuse to sing.  For this, they are attacked and Marie's fiancee, Fritz, is badly injured.  Rushing him to a local hospital, they are refused entry by the Poles and he dies outside in the streets. The acts of violence against the German minority continue to increase;  Marie's father becomes the victim of an attack by Polish children, who shoot him in the face, and is blinded as a result.  When the Germans meet secretly in a barn, in order to hear Hitler's speech of 1 September before the Reichstag, they are discovered, arrested and imprisoned. They are abused by the prison guards and are set to be executed the next morning.  Will the Germans arrive in time to save them?  Regardless of your point of view, this film is very moving and disturbing to watch.

DVD-R is in German with no subtitles.  Approx. 90 mins.  See film samples for quality.

Old Film Sample (Prior to 20 May 2016):

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New Film Sample (As of 20 May 2016):

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You Couldn't Find a Better Example, 8/1/2017 6:43 PM
From: Guest
An interesting look at racist ideology of the time period in question. If you want an idea as to why different minorities were at each other's throat, this film will give you an insight into the mindsets, even if the view is quite skewed.
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A Lesson for us All, 8/9/2017 7:27 PM
From: Guest
Given the politics of the day, this film could provide us with a valuable lesson as to what we might expect if we don't stop worrying about political correctness and forcing people to accept others they don't want to accept.  Heimkehr clearly shows what happens when you stop trying to show respect for others different from yourself and go to extremes in how you deal with them.
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Interesting, 8/22/2017 12:29 PM
From: Guest
Quality issues, but still worth the purchase.
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Heimkehr, 8/24/2017 12:36 AM
From: Guest
Interesting
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I wish the picture quality was better, 9/1/2017 2:01 PM
From: Guest
See title
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Now I know why it's banned, 9/1/2017 2:32 PM
From: Guest
Not in the slightest unbiased or subtle anti-Polish propaganda. Highly recommended for anyone who doesn't understand just how bad propaganda against the Poles was prior to 1939.
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Research on the film, 10/22/2017 6:07 PM
From: Guest
All existing post-war prints of this film most unfortunately have one scene missing, which takes place at the start of the film. The scene is described in contemporary film reviews. It is one where the German school teacher, played by Paula Wessely, is attacked by Poles, which is followed by the school being looted and burned. Keeping this missing scene in mind, the start of the existing film makes a lot more sense.
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