The fall of the Berlin Wall and the reunification of Germany opened the door to the making of films that look back at the years of the communist dictatorship and the complex process of change that this country went through. Some of them were undeniable successes, well received by the audiences and appreciated by critics: ‘Das Leben der Anderen’, ‘Good Bye Lenin!’ or the television series ‘Deutschland 83/86/89’. The TV movie ‘Honecker und der Pastor‘ directed by Jan Josef Liefers, which premiered in 2022, covers the historical moment immediately after the collapse of the communist regime using the docu-drama genre and reconstructing an episode in the life of the former leaders of the GDR in the months after the political change, in early 1990. With all good intentions and despite the interesting theme, the film does not live up to the aforementioned productions.
The premise is interesting, especially since the story is based on real historical events and characters. A few months after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the former dictator of communist Germany and his wife are expelled from their luxurious homes and deprived of income and privileges. Trials are being prepared for Honecker for the deeds committed during the period in which he ruled East Germany. Left, literally, on the roads, they are hosted by the generous family of the evangelical pastor Uwe Holmer, mayor of Lobetal and founder of a shelter center for homeless and disabled people. What follows is a clash between two worlds guided by opposing ideologies and between two moral systems of reference, also antagonistic. The Honeckers fail to understand the political change and the sources of the popular revolt that had swept away their system from the stage of history. The Holmers give them shelter because of their belief that a Christian’s first duty is to help his fellow human being, but their principles are put to the test when public opinion fueled by the press and television, as well as the surrounding community, oppose the aid given to the former dictators and especially when they are frontally faced with the crimes and the victims of their crimes.
Several books have been written about the case, including the memoirs by pastor Holmer and his son who was an eyewitness to the events and who also narrates the film. The screenplay – written by Fred Breinersdorfer, a well-known German writer and screenwriter – tries to maintain a balance between documentary and socio-political commentary. The dialogues between Honecker and Holmer highlight the abyss between the two worlds that the two characters represent. Edgar Selge plays the former dictator with precision, reincarnating the character we knew from photographs and news reports. The role of the dictator’s wife, also politically active, a former minister of education in the DDR and the initiator of the ‘re-education’ programs, is played by Barbara Schnitzler and is perhaps the most interesting role in the film. The Holmers are played well by Hans-Uwe Bauer and Steffi Kühnert, their disadvantage being that they have to say ‘the right thing’ a bit too often in the film. Jan Josef Liefers is mostly known as an actor and is less experienced as a director, this being only his third film (all were made for TV).There are two elements in the script that, if developed a bit more carefully, I think would have added value and interest: the human contact between the two couples, especially between the two women, and – indeed! – the sitcom element. The (excellent) ending is a good example. The TV docu-drama format shouldn’t impose limits on boldness and creativity, as it did here.