This 1981 film (Teil I) is the story of a butcher and his navigation of his new – Nazi – surroundings. This post also covers Teil II, Österreich ist frei, which was released in 1996. There are two further pieces of this story, which I have not yet gotten my hands on. The first is marketed as a historical drama, but the second transitions into a drama-comedy, although the styling is nearly identical.
Most of the actors in this series are Austrian, which was especially important given the use of dialect throughout the film. But because of the 15 year separation between parts one and two, several of the actors were only available for the first one.
Hans Holt was part of the main cast. His list of roles throughout his lifetime shows his talent for diverse styles. From Baron von Trapp in the 1956 Die Trapp-Familie as well as its 1958 sequel to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in The Mozart Story, from Krampus to Unsterblicher Walzer, and many many more.
Dialect is not only used but explicitly discussed early in the film. We watch as the differing opinions regarding the annexation, the treatment of the Jews, and other day-to-day changes come against each other. Teil II reminds us that Austria, like Germany, was separated into two halves, and focuses on the issues that came from the Soviet occupation in the south.
While there is nothing inappropriate in these films, the first has some potentially disturbing images as we see how the Jewish people were treated as the Nazis gained power.