''Children, Mother, and the General'' (german: Kinder, Mütter und ein General, and also released as ''Sons, Mothers, and a General'') is a 1955 West German war film directed by László Benedek and starring

Hilde Krahl Hilde Krahl (10 January 1917 – 28 June 1999) was an Austrian film actress. She appeared in 70 films between 1936 and 1994. She was born Hildegard Kolačný in Brod, Austria-Hungary (now Slavonski Brod, Croatia) in 1917, and she died in V ...

, Therese Giehse and Ewald Balser. The film was not a popular success, possibly because its anti-war perspective clashed with support for German rearmament and membership in

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two N ...

.Hake .105 The film's sets were designed by the art director

Erich Kettelhut Erich Karl Heinrich Kettelhut (1 November 1893 – 13 March 1979) was a German production designer, art director and set decorator. Kettelhut is considered one of the most important artists in the history of early German cinema, mainly for his s ...

and

Johannes Ott Johannes Ott (1919–1995) was a German art director known for his work in the country's film industry. In the early stages of his career he collaborated frequently with the veteran set designer Erich Kettelhut.Kalat p.129 Selected filmography * ...

. It was shot at the

Bavaria Studios Bavaria Studios are film production studios located in Munich, the capital of the region of Bavaria in Germany, and a subsidiary of Bavaria Film. History The studios were constructed in the suburb of Geiselgasteig in 1919 shortly after the F ...

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and ...

and the Wandsbek Studios in

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; nds, label=Hamburg German, Low Saxon, Hamborg ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg (german: Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg; nds, label=Low Saxon, Friee un Hansestadt Hamborg),. is the List of cities in Germany by popul ...

. Location filming took place on Lüneburg Heath.

Cast

as Helene Asmussen * Ewald Balser as General * Therese Giehse as Elfriede Bergmann * Ursula Herking as Dr. Behrens, Ärztin *

Alice Treff Alice Martha Treff (4 June 1906 – 8 February 2003) was a German film actress. She appeared in more than 120 films between 1932 and 2001. She was born and died in Berlin, Germany. Selected filmography * '' Peter Voss, Thief of Millions'' ...

as Pastorin *

Beate Koepnick Beata or Beate is a female given name that occurs in several cultures and languages, including Italian, German, Polish, and Swedish, and which is derived from the Latin ''beatus'', meaning " blessed".''Behind the Name''"Given Name Beate" Retr ...

as Inge *

Marianne Sinclair Marianne () has been the national personification of the French Republic since the French Revolution, as a personification of liberty, equality, fraternity and reason, as well as a portrayal of the Goddess of Liberty. Marianne is displayed in ...

as Näherin *

Adi Lödel Adi or ADI may refer to: Names and titles * Adi (mythology), an Asura in Hindu faith who appears in the Matsya Purāṇa * Adi (name), a given name in Hebrew and a nickname in other languages * Adi (title), a Fijian title used by females of chi ...

as Harald Asmussen *

Dieter Straub Dieter or dieter may refer to: * A person committed to dieting People Dieter is a German given name (), a short form of Dietrich, from ''theod+ric'' "people ruler", see Theodoric. Given name * Dieter Althaus (born 1958), German politician ...

as Leo Bergmann *

Holger Hildmann Holger may refer to: People * Holger (given name), includes name origin, plus people with the name * Hilde Holger, stage name of dancer, choreographer and dance teacher Hilde Boman-Behram (née Hilde Sofer, 1905–2001) Fictional characters * Holg ...

as Sohn der Ärztin * Karl-Michael Kuntz as Edmund, Sohn der Pastorin *

Walter Lehfeld Walter may refer to: People * Walter (name), both a surname and a given name * Little Walter, American blues harmonica player Marion Walter Jacobs (1930–1968) * Gunther (wrestler), Austrian professional wrestler and trainer Walter Hahn (born 19 ...

as Werner, Sohn der Näherin *

Peter Burger Peter Burger (born 23 October 1954) was a Swiss modern pentathlete. He competed at the 1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1988 ( ko, 서울 ...

as Robert, Inges Bruder * Bernhard Wicki as Hauptmann Dornberg *

Claus Biederstaedt Claus Biederstaedt (28 June 1928 – 18 June 2020) was a German actor. He studied in Hamburg and began his career working with Joseph Offenbach. Among the actors for whom he dubbed were Yves Montand, Peter Falk, Marlon Brando, Vittorio Gassman, a ...

as Verpflegungsgefreiter * Rudolf Fernau as Stabsarzt *

Hans Christian Blech Hans Christian Blech (20 February 19155 March 1993) was a German film, stage and television character actor who found success in both Germany and Hollywood. He made his English film debut in the 1951 picture ''Decision Before Dawn''. In this and ...

as Feldwebel mit den Orden * Klaus Kinski as Leutnant * Maximilian Schell as Deserteur *

Alfred Schieske Alfred Schieske (6 September 1908 – 14 July 1970) was a German actor. Career Schieske was born in Stuttgart, the son of a German father and a French mother. He studied acting with Willy Reichert made his stage debut at the Staatstheater Stutt ...

as Fahrer mit der Flasche

References

Bibliography

* Hake, Sabine. ''German National Cinema''. Routledge, 2013.

External links

* 1955 films 1955 war films 1950s German-language films German war films West German films Films directed by László Benedek Eastern Front of World War II films Films based on German novels German black-and-white films Films produced by Erich Pommer Films shot at Bavaria Studios Films shot at Wandsbek Studios German World War II films 1950s German films {{WWII-film-stub