Mephisto (1981 film)
| Mephisto | |
|---|---|
 DVD cover | |
| Directed by | István Szabó |
| Written by |
Péter Dobai Klaus Mann (novel) István Szabó |
| Starring |
Klaus Maria Brandauer Krystyna Janda Ildikó Bánsági |
Release dates |
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Running time | 144 minutes |
| Country | Hungary |
| Language |
English Hungarian German Esperanto |
Mephisto is the title of a 1981 film adaptation of Klaus Mann's novel Mephisto, directed by István Szabó, and starring Klaus Maria Brandauer as Hendrik Höfgen. The film was a co-production between companies in West Germany, Hungary and Austria.
It became the first Hungarian film to win the award for Best Foreign Language Film, at the 54th Academy Awards.
Story, Morale & Backgrounder
The film adapts the story of Mephistopheles and Doctor Faustus by having the main character Hendrik Höfgen abandon his conscience and continue to act and ingratiate himself with the Nazi Party and so keep and improve his job and social position.
The plot's bitter irony is that the protagonist's fondest dream is to play Mephisto - but in order to achieve this dream he in effect sells his soul, and realises too late that in reality he is Faustus; it is the Nazi leader having a major role in the film (modeled on Hermann Göring) who is the true Mephisto.
Both the film and Mann's 1936 novel mirror the career of Mann's brother-in-law, Gustaf Gründgens, who is considered by many to have supported the Nazi Party and abandoned his previous political views for personal gain rather than conscience. (Playing Mephisto was indeed the peak of Gründgens' career, though in reality this was long after the fall of the Nazis.) However, Mann's book is satirical, making Höfgen more a lampoon than a character in his own right, while the film offers a more realistic exploration of a flawed but recognisably human character.
Cast
- Klaus Maria Brandauer as Hendrik Hoefgen
- Krystyna Janda as Barbara Bruckner
- Ildikó Bánsági as Nicoletta von Niebuhr
- Rolf Hoppe as Tábornagy
- György Cserhalmi as Hans Miklas
- Péter Andorai as Otto Ulrichs
- Karin Boyd as Juliette Martens
- Christine Harbort as Lotte Lindenthal
- Tamás Major as Oskar Kroge, szÃnigazgató
- Ildikó Kishonti as Dora Martin, primadonna
- Mária Bisztrai as Motzné, tragika
- Sándor Lukács as Rolf Bonetti, bonviván
- Martin Hellberg as Professor Reinhardt
- Ãgnes Bánfalvy
- Judit Hernádi as Rachel Mohrenwitz, drámai szende
- Vilmos Kun as Ügyelõ
Awards
Mephisto was awarded the 1981 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film; the film was submitted to the Academy by Hungary.[1] It was the first Hungarian film to win the Foreign Language Oscar, and the only one until Son of Saul won in 2016.
At the 1981 Cannes Film Festival the film won the Best Screenplay Award and the FIPRESCI Prize.[2]
See also
- List of submissions to the 54th Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film
- List of Hungarian submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
References
- ↑ "The 54th Academy Awards (1982) Nominees and Winners". oscars.org. Retrieved 2013-06-15.
- ↑ "Festival de Cannes: Mephisto". festival-cannes.com. Retrieved 2009-05-31.
External links
- Mephisto at the Internet Movie Database
- Mephisto at AllMovie
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