This 1970 Werner Herzog film is a dark comedy centering itself on a correctional facility exclusively inhabited by little people. It was filmed on the Canary Islands, Spain, but is (other than some names) entirely in German.
The first person we see is played by Helmut Döring, who only acted in one other film – the 1974 version of Kaspar Hauser, in which he played Little King. The majority of the cast never acted again, or at least they weren’t credited in doing so.
This film has one clear problem when considering the modern audience – the use of the term “dwarves.” That being said, it is important to note that the screenplay for this film listed this as the working title and the term “dwarf” was never meant to be there. In fact, the “problem” may make this one more interesting in an advanced course in discussing the societal norms and expectations faced by these characters. We see only little people – inmates and guards alike – and yet they are forced to cope with full sized objects on full sized furniture. Further in this line of consideration is the treatment of the two blind members of the group. Several scenes show the others teasing them in various ways.
The newspaper read in the scene during which the man attempts to get into bed includes a few nude images. This can be skipped by cutting this scene short, but these images do show up in the next scene as well, when they comment on the women’s appearance. The UK version of this film does not include the cockfight or the monkey crucifixion, but these scenes are generally tame otherwise and the latter may add to the educational conversation.