The Axe of Wandsbek
Original title: (Das Beil von Wandsbek)
GDR,
1951,
111 min,
b&wIn German; English subtitles
Hamburg, Germany 1934: An executioner is needed. Teetjen (Erwin Geschonneck) makes the biggest mistake of his life. Because his butcher shop is facing bankruptcy, he agrees to execute a group of political prisoners for the Nazis. Once this becomes known, Teetjen’s life falls apart.
Special features: - Biographies & Filmographies
- Falk Harnack: A Stubborn German Conscience, filmed interview with Anne Nelson, 2009
- “Käthe Braun on Falk Harnack,” interview by Ralf Schenk
- “The Axe Affair,” essay by Deborah Vietor-Englände
- "Postscript: A Letter to Author Arnold Zweig"