Die Blechtrommel (1979)

Overview
User Rating:
7.6/10 6,557 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 1% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Volker Schlöndorff
Writers:
Jean-Claude Carrière (writer)
Günter Grass (additional dialogue)
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Contact:
View company contact information for The Tin Drum on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
11 April 1980 (USA) more
Genre:
Drama | History | War more
Tagline:
A savage, sweeping epic of society in chaos. [Video Australia] more
Plot:
Danzig in the 1920s/1930s. Oskar Matzerath, son of a local dealer, is a most unusual boy. Equipped with... more | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Nazi | Drum | Germany | Sex With Minor | Teenage Sex
more
Awards:
Won Oscar. Another 12 wins & 1 nomination more
NewsDesk:
(4 articles)
Movie Reviews: Palmetto
(From Studio Briefing. 20 February 1998)
Lyne Blasts U.S. Distribs For Snubbing Lolita
(From Studio Briefing. 23 September 1997)
User Comments:
Strangely Beautiful more
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only)
Mario Adorf ... Alfred Matzerath
Angela Winkler ... Agnes Matzerath
David Bennent ... Oskar Matzerath
Katharina Thalbach ... Maria Matzerath
Daniel Olbrychski ... Jan Bronski
Tina Engel ... Anna Koljaiczek (jung)
Berta Drews ... Anna Koljaiczek
Roland Teubner ... Joseph Koljaiczek
Tadeusz Kunikowski ... Onkel Vinzenz
Andréa Ferréol ... Lina Greff (as Andréa Ferreol)
Heinz Bennent ... Greff
Ilse Pagé ... Gretchen Scheffler
Werner Rehm ... Scheffler
Käte Jaenicke ... Mutter Truczinski
Helmut Brasch ... Der Alte Heilandt (as Helmuth Brasch)
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Additional Details
Also Known As:
Blaszany bebenek (Poland)
Limeni dobos (Yugoslavia: Serbian title)
Tambour, Le (France)
The Tin Drum (USA)
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Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parents
Runtime:
142 min
Country:
West Germany | France | Poland | Yugoslavia
Language:
Hebrew | Italian | German | Polish | Russian
Color:
Black and White | Color (Eastmancolor)
Aspect Ratio:
1.66 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono
Certification:
Singapore:R21 | Australia:MA (re-rating) (2007) | Australia:R (original rating) | Argentina:X (original rating) | Argentina:18 (re-rating) | Chile:18 | Finland:K-16 | France:-12 | Hong Kong:III | New Zealand:R18 | Norway:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 (re-rating) (1994) (cut) | UK:15 (re-rating) (2003) (uncut) | UK:X (original rating) (cut) | USA:R | West Germany:16 (bw)
Filming Locations:
Calvados, France more
Company:
Argos Films more
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Acclaimed Polish-British actress Beata Pozniak made her movie debut as an extra when scenes were shot right outside her home. more
Goofs:
Continuity: In one scene at the table Agnes is holding a fork with her left hand. On the next shot, she's holding the fork with her right hand. more
Quotes:
Agnes Matzerath: Don't expect me to touch your eels.
Alfred Matzerath: Don't put on airs.
Agnes Matzerath: I'll never eat fish again. Certainly not eels.
Alfred Matzerath: You've always eaten them, and you knew where they came from!
more
Movie Connections:
Featured in "Zomergasten: (#10.3)" (1997) more
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User Comments
(Comment on this title)
22 out of 24 people found the following comment useful:-
Strangely Beautiful, 23 September 2003
10/10
Author: Ymir4 from WA

"That day, thinking about the grown-up world and my own future, I decided to call a halt. To stop growing then and there and remain a three-year-old, a gnome, once and for all"

Goodness, what a marvel this film is! It is certainly the greatest film from Germany that I have seen yet. Winner of the 1979 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, "The Tin Drum" follows the life of a boy named Oskar. After seeing how ludicrous adults act, Oskar decides to stop his growth, and stay three years old forever by falling down the stairs. He succeeds, and the fall has stopped his growth. Aside from the hault of growth, the fall eqips him with two special powers that he regularly manifests. The lesser of these two powers, is repeatedly pounding his tin drum, which he absolutely refuses to let go of. Oskar's undeniable power is to let out a high pitched shriek that will shatter any glass he directs it at. Does it sound strange? Well, the film is much stranger, but also much more beautiful than my description.

The film follows our little Oscar over a period of around two decades, through World War II in Germany. We follow Oskar through his many sexual, emotional, tragic, funny, and beautiful exploits. An absolutely important credit must be given to actor David Bennett, who plays young Oskar. He portrays Oskar as an infant, as a three year-old, as a six year-old, as a twelve year-old, as a 16 year-old, as a 21 year-old...well, you get the picture. Bennett was only 11 at the time, and his performance is very impressive.

I haven't seen very many German films from the last thirty years, but most of the ones I have seen (the excellent "Vanishing," and the immensely mediocre "White Rose") haven't had very good scores. "The Tin Drum" has a very slight, but very servicable, score by the famous Maurice Jarre. The score has an emotional theme played in only a few scenes (notably, the ending), it also has an innocent little music box theme, and surprisingly a cool waltz for scenes involving members of the circus (a big part of the second-half of the film). A very good score. To my knowledge, it was released on LP when the film was released, and on a CD pressed in Japan sometime in the 90's. I read that the (sadly out of print) Kino DVD includes the isolated score as an extra.

It's an excellent film that I strongly connected with, but I can see many people not liking it, it is VERY strange, but I am somebody who has always found VERY strange things extremely beautiful, and "The Tin Drum" is no exception. Over-all, I consider this film a classic, and I'll once again state that it is certainly the greatest film from Germany that I have seen yet.