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German Film Awards honor Nazi hunter biopic

May 28, 2016

The annual event draws the biggest names in the German film industry to Berlin. One movie performed particularly well at this year's awards ceremony: "The People vs. Fritz Bauer."

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Film Der Staat gegen Fritz Bauer
Actor Burghart Klaussner plays the role of Fritz BauerImage: Martin Valentin Menke/Alamode Film/dpa

"The People vs. Fritz Bauer" (German title: "Der Staat gegen Fritz Bauer") came out on top at the German Film Awards ceremony, raking in six awards. In addition to getting the most coveted award of the event, Best Film, German filmmaker Lars Kraume's movie also won in the categories of Best Script, Best Costume, Best Directing, Best Production and Best Supporting Actor (Ronald Zehrfeld).

The movie, which is based on real events, deals with the challenges faced by German state prosecutor Fritz Bauer, who in the early 1960s fought tirelessly to bring Nazi war criminals like Adolf Eichmann to justice. Many regard the success of the biopic as a posthumous recognition of Bauer's efforts.

German actor Peter Kurth meanwhile received the award for Best Actor for his challenging role in the boxing drama "Herbert," while actress Laura Tonke even managed to win two awards - one for Best Actress for her part in "Hedi Schneider is Stuck" ("Hedi Schneider steckt fest") and one for Best Supporting Actress for her role in "Mängelexemplar" ("Damaged Goods").

The new production of the classic "Heidi" meanwhile won an award in the category Best Children's Film.

Surprises and disappointments

Director Tom Tykwer's "A Hologram for a King" ("Ein Hologramm für den König") staring Hollywood superstar Tom Hanks only won awards for best editing and sound design, despite high expectations in advance for the US-German co-production to feature more prominently among the prize-winners.

Meanwhile a Hitler satire titled "Look Who's Back" ("Er is wieder da"), highly praised by moviegoers and critics alike and touted to win major awards, failed to rack up even a single win.

Even more surprisingly, Maren Ade's comedy "Toni Erdmann," which had been nominated for the Palme d'Or in Cannes and managed to win the International Film Critics' Prize, failed to garner a nomination for the German Film Awards.

Conceived in 1951, the German Film Awards, also known as the Lola Awards, are the most highly endowed cultural awards in Germany, awarding prize monies of 3 million euros ($3.3 million).

ss/gsw (AFP, dpa)