Comedian Harmonists

Even though I have been addicted to the Comedian Harmonists ever since I nicked one of their records from my grandma's collection when I was an innocent little kid (which consequently caused me a great deal of social suffering, because my peers were into Kiss or Van Halen at a time when I was humming "Mein kleiner grüner Kaktus"), I found it hard to sit through this movie. Vilsmaier is very adept at spotting interesting movie material (such as Stalingrad or Marlene Dietrich), at financing and marketing his productions, and signing up A - list actors; but his directing is wooden and painting - by - numbers, the movies themselves are tripe. If you are interested in the Comedian Harmonists I recommend you watch the 1976 documentary instead.

It has had a long run in San Francisco, despite lack of much publicity by the distributor, and can still be seen there at the Four Star Theater on Clement Street (415-666-3488). I will see it again for many reasons - humor, historical relevance, fine musical score, and excellent acting/cinematography. The plot shows accurately how many Germans stood up to the Nazi terror as well as they could, and the ending was somber but heart-warming. I'm not surprised that the word-of-mouth recommendations from viewers carried this film to such a long run.

Comedian Harmonists

The Comedian Harmonists was a wonderful film that I would recommend to anyone who doesn't mind watching a foreign film. This is a true story about a German musical group of six men. They are a comical group that based their style on a popular American group, the Revelers. The Comedian Harmonists gained their fame and popularity during the time when Hitler came into power. These men were loved by all even the Nazi soldiers, but ironically three of the six men happened to be Jewish. And just like the rest of the Jewish of people during Hitler's rule, they were not able to continue to lead their normal lives, celebrities or not. You see spectacular scenes in this film were the group performs and you get good examples of the harsh treatment of the Jews by the Nazi. There is a love triangle with in the group that brings out a steady stream of character development. This with the racial segregation makes all of the character come to term with their futures. There was a wonderful performance by the entire cast; I could not imagine any other actors or actress for the roles. The lighting and sound of the movie was good, with great shots to go with them. Overall this is a wonderful film.

The story of the group "Comedian Harmonists" must take its place among the best films of the 1990's, no matter from what country. The story is told in a loving and respectful way and generates genuine interest in the characters and their music- the true brotherhood of men who love to sing. I'm sure the filmmakers forgot that until 1948 the U.S. military was segregated - and also about the American flag having only 48 stars. But, who cares? Some things from the 1930s no longer exist (especially the USS Saratoga - lost in the Bikini A-bomb tests of 1946) and are impossible to recreate; but this does not detract from the period realism of the film or the wondrous performances of the entire cast. A true 10 out of 10!

Comedian Harmonists is truly a masterpiece! It shows that many Germans suffered under Hitler and the nazi regime too! But I can't understand why this great movie is rated R in US? The German rating is 6(!)! In my opinion especially young children should watch "Comedian Harmonists" to learn more about humanity and the hard life in hard times.