In Process Record

In August 1914, many young German men euphorically volunteer to join the army. But in Munich Hans Gastl, the son of a militaristic state prosecutor, makes a decision: he won't become a soldier or fight this war. What Hans wants is to change his life, to abandon his class status, his family; but he is not sure where to start. The film tells the story of Hans' upbringing in flashbacks: his tender love for the housemaid, which is brutally repressed by his father; his time at a boarding school for difficult youth; his friendship with a Jew and a worker's son. East German officials criticized this film's cinematic style and withdraw it from wider release after its premiere

Title from title frames

Originally produced by DEFA Film Library in 1968

Mode of access: World Wide Web

In German