Heinrich Breloer directs "Die Manns - Ein Jahrhundertroman"
(The Manns – A Novel of the Century)
Against the background of the political and social upheaval of the 20th century, Heinrich Breloer and co-author Horst Königstein tell in the three-part series “Die Manns – Ein Jahrhundertroman” the story of Thomas Mann’s family, the most important German artists’ clan of this period.
As in their last joint project “Todespiel“ (Game of Death), Breloer and Königstein again use the style of documentary drama they developed themselves – a mixture of interviews, archive material, and acted scenes. The cast is excellent down to the supporting roles. The main parts are played by Armin Mueller-Stahl (Thomas Mann), Jürgen Hentsch (Heinrich Mann), Monica Bleibtreu (Katia Mann), Veronica Ferres (Heinrich’s second wife Nelly Kröger), Sophie Rois (Erika Mann), Sebastian Koch (Klaus Mann) and Gerd David (Gustaf Gründgens).
The project was realized by ARD under the aegis of the WDR along with BR, the NDR, ORF and ARTE. The series was produced by Bavaria Film GmbH.
Scheduled to be shown in December 2001 on ARD.