Original subtitles

THE NEW ERA

THE MARCH DEAD

Her daughter gave me this.

It has a very personal dedication in it.

'Principiis obsta': Resist the beginning.

Was that your present?

Maybe

And why did you write that?

Listen, Stine: I told you we liked each other a lot

but she was an extreme person and

we had to take care. I had to take care of her and of myself. I have nothing to hide.

Good.

Can I switch back on my recorder then?

Sure. Go ahead but only if you don't mind my next question.

Why are you telling me lies about your accident?

I know, that Carl beats the shit out of you

and you come here and accuse me of mistreating my students.

What do you want from me, Stine?

I already told you:

I want to hear what ever happened to the great idea of equality?

Equality.

Dörte! - Hello Dörte!

Hello.

What are the new students like? How's Johannes?

How are you?

Mummy, look!

Dorothea's here.

Dörte, how nice.

Mum.

Oh, you have a bob.

Yes.

Your father's waiting for you in the conservatory.

Of course.

Good evening.

What's that?

Nothing. It's just fashion.

It's ugly.

Thank you.

Bon appétit. - Bon appétit.

Don't you like it?

Dorothea, I received this letter from Weimar,

which states that you wish to continue studying at this Bauhaus.

Three years... How much longer is this meant to go on?

Can't we talk about something else on the first night?

Fine. Then tell us...

What made you crop your hair like a boy?

Nothing, it was just a whim.

Fancied something new? - Yes, exactly.

Why?

What do you mean? - Why something new?

What's wrong with the old?

Look at your sisters,

your beautiful mother,

what's wrong with their lovely hair?

Nothing, they look beautiful.

I just thought it might change me.

Change?

Into what?

Into something special?

A non-conformist...

Girls today don't give much thought to matters of fashion, Rudolf.

Yes, that's right.

It's exactly as Mum says.

So it was really just a whim?

Like your wanting to study?

I'm sorry, Father, I should have asked you.

What's the matter with you?

What makes a young woman crop her divine locks

until she resembles a boy?

Tell us what it is that disfigures you and tears you from us.

Tell us!

They did not let her go back to the Bauhaus.

Oh.

Once they found out about the Mazdaznan thing she was grounded.

You're cheating, I'm not playing.

Just deal again. - Stop arguing.

She returned to her old life.

At least they wanted her to.

Very nice.

Very nice, thank you.

Do you go to Paris often? - Occasionally.

How interesting.

Wouldn't you like to see Paris?

Her mother introduced her to potential fiancés.

Oh... I brought you a little gift.

That's very kind of you.

May I show you?

Guerlain has made this lipstick that's hidden inside this little tube.

It goes out... and back in.

Out... and back in.

That's remarkable.

Would you like to try?

She was a stranger in this world.

Then one day her father called her into his study.

You wanted to see me, Father?

Please, Dörte, have a seat.

I'd like to talk to you about Aristotle.

About...

We have more pressing issues.

No, I think Aristotle is very relevant.

Aristotle refers to the fine arts as "mimesis", or imitation.

For two millennia, imitation has formed the basis of our aesthetic concepts.

Each of these books - and I've read many of them -

tries to imitate real life,

making it accessible and comprehensible to us.

The same applies to music, to dance, all art forms.

But... - Art replicates the visible world.

It amuses us, it educates us, it enlightens us,

and forms an ideal image of man.

The question is, however,

what can we take from this image of man?

This is the dadaist Hugo Ball,

reciting his poem "Karawane".

I'd like to read it to you.

Please, hear me out.

And so on.

You want me to respond? - Please do.

You're saying art replicates the world.

Dada does the same.

These poems reflect the current soundscape,

the cacophony of the trenches,

the metropolis, the industrialised world.

They're incomprehensible.

The poets show how language is perverted.

Language is the most powerful weapon of the educated establishment.

But language has been destroyed,

rendered impossible by journalism,

misappropriated by the elite,

who use our language to stoke nationalism and glorify war.

What's wrong with being proud of your country?

What's wrong with just being a person?

Not German, not French.

I know you're a humanist, Father,

but can't you see how nationalism leads to imperialism, racism and anti-Semitism,

which makes your Empire a radical denial of your own humanism.

Are you calling me an anti-Semite? - No.

No, or you wouldn't have married Mum.

We can argue about art

but not about politics.

Nationalism is wrong.

And Bolshevism is right, is it?

Those uneducated yokels,

who have the audacity to think they could rule the world.

If you want to talk about Aristotle...

For him, citizenship wasn't defined by someone's heritage,

but by their political contribution.

Yes, that's correct.

But Aristotle also says it's better for women to be dominated by men,

as men possess superior powers of judgement.

He obviously didn't know you.

I'm glad this ridiculous school hasn't completely ruined your faculty of thought.

I'm sorry, but I don't understand.

What exactly do you mean?

Art doesn't replicate the visible world, it makes it visible.

But why would art function differently today

than it has throughout the history of mankind?

The world has changed.

She prevailed against the old man.

Sorry.

Christ,

don't die on me.

To let you print your lies? Forget it Stine.

It's late anyway.

You see,

Dörte did not only find the strength to overcome her patronizing father.

At the end of the first semester Itten asked the students to criticize themselves.

Yes, you heard right.

Some of you won't be able to continue your studies.

It's up to you to tell me who.

Breuer doesn't deserve it.

Are you mad? You can't even hold a brush.

No... Stop it, stop...

This can't be right, Master Itten.

Gropius promised us a community,

a secret society, intended to preserve a core of beliefs.

That's how he put it.

This is wrong.

Thank you, Miss Helm.

Thank you, you're right.

And that's the final lesson of your preliminary course:

Never forget we're a community.

At my school under my education

Dörte Helm became an independent artist

and a liberated woman

and that is the truth.

Write that, Stine.

Sure.

Just one more thing: Why was Dörte exmatriculated?

I have to admit you're well prepared.

Thank you, Walter.

So why did you kick her out?

Desperate times take desperate measures.

Gunta, can you hear that?

Yes, what...

Volunteer corps soldiers.

What's going on?

Gunta, soldiers? - Yes, I think so.

Julia, come on!

What is this? - Volunteer soldiers?

Are they Kapp's men?

Out of the way.

Go back inside.

Where are they going?

Shall we have a look? - Better not.

What a hero.

You, get lost.

Let's go have a look.

I'll get Feininger's camera.

Get off the street!

Stand back... Door is open!

Right, men. Move it!

Move it!

You can't go...

Minister for Education Greil?

Who's asking?

Jacobsen, Captain of the Naumburg Light Infantry.

I've come to arrest you and transfer you to the garrison prison.

Arrest me? - Yes.

Over in Berlin, the Ehrhardt Marine Corps under General von Lüttwitz

has occupied the government quarter.

President Ebert and the government have fled.

Wolfgang Kapp is the new Chancellor.

Kapp has waged a coup?

You must come with us, please.

Citizens of Weimar,

the government has abdicated.

The government has abdicated.

What?

Come on, faster. - Move, hurry.

Keep walking.

Get out of here. Move it.

Get lost.

A little urgency.

Alma. - Yes?

Where's Manon? - At the neighbour's. Why?

A military coup. - What?

"Government has abdicated.

"The new authority's directives must be adhered to.

"Commander-in-chief Major General Hagenberg will relentlessly quash any attempts

to disturb public order or instigate strikes."

You must take action to protect your school.

But what can I do?

Listen, once the communists among your students take action,

- if they haven't already - the military will shut you down.

This is where your statement at the citizens committee comes in:

"The Bauhaus is apolitical."

What if something happens to me?

Then something good will have come from the coup after all.

Marcel, I'll go check the back.

Long live the republic!

Come on. - Quickly.

Johannes? - Gunta.

Dörte! Marcel!

Come quick! - Why?

We need to leave. Auerbach and the communists...

There he is.

Down with Kapp!

To the People's House.

To the People's House!

To the People's House!

Get out! Move it!

In there!

Hurry! Faster! Let's go!

Minister Greil.

Good to see you're unscathed. - Unscathed, yes...

Thank you.

Apart from my belief in the superiority of social democracy.

Comrades, it's time to proclaim the Republic of Councils.

In the Vogtland, the anarchist Max Hölzl is already rallying his supporters

to rise up against the military coup.

Comrades, the time has come

to put into practice the radical societal change...

that failed during the half-hearted revolution of 1918/19.

This means nationalising important sectors of the economy!

Abolishing the Reichswehr armed forces!

Comrades,

this is the moment when we fight for the revolution!

To arms!

To arms, comrades!

To arms!

To arms!

This is it.

Get your arms.

Marcel!

This is it. - I'm not fighting.

Why? - Johannes, you think this is a game?

Did you see those soldiers' eyes?

They're desperate to fight for Germany.

I'm sure your Dad would agree.

I just meant they'll show no mercy.

I don't want to watch you die.

Dörte...

There's a time to study and a time to fight.

I'm here to study.

You coming? - Yep. I'm just sorting the pamphlets.

Guys,

if the coup succeeds, they'll shut down our school.

Dörte, can you at least print some pamphlets?

The unions want to call a general strike.

We have printers, but we need someone who's good at it.

Are you insane?

Dörte! Don't do it, Dörte.

Gunta's right.

Gropius will expel you.

Because of a few pamphlets? I just won't get caught.

Dörte, you're crazy.

Dörte... It's way too dangerous.

It's quiet, they're all in the lecture hall, we can carry on.

Johannes, the Masters Council must now speak with one voice.

For that we'd need to share an opinion.

I look forward to your speech.

We need a revolution.

Director...

Quiet... Quiet!

Please, I don't need to explain the situation,

it's perfectly obvious to all of us.

Once again, Germany's political future is at stake,

and with it, our future here at the Bauhaus.

The rule I decreed some time ago is valid now more than ever.

Any political activity at this school is forbidden.

We won't accept your ban on political agitation.

We don't fight against the left or the right,

we shape the future by other means,

through the medium of art.

We can't say how this coup will end, but end it will,

and our actions will be judged.

We're being watched, so let me remind you,

no political activities, please.

We must take action or...

Anyone who takes a political side will be expelled.

What?

You're an opportunist!

You're welcome to study at a different school.

How do you think right-wing nationalists will respond to socialist street fighters?

With violence, with soldiers,

forcing a war they're familiar with and can win.

Germans like bowing to authority,

they believe in the language of force.

But I see something in you

that really scares the ageing, bourgeois conservatives:

They're scared of inquisitive free spirits.

They're scared of cosmopolitan Jews and confident women.

They're scared because you think differently,

because you are different.

Trust me.

I'll make sure you are this country's future.

Bravo. - Bravo.

Come.

Quiet.

GENERAL STRIKE

In here. Let's go.

You're doing more? - Yes, a crate for the People's House.

Good. - Be careful.

Go.

What's this?

GENERAL STRIKE AGAINST THE KAPP COUP

Out, now!

How many did they print?

No idea, but I know what school's responsible.

Hurry, Gropius caught me. - What?

Go before he sees you too.

Or else all this will have been in vain. Hurry.

Keep still now.

Press this against it. Press hard.

You'll be all right.

Johannes, what happened? - Dörte...

Herfurth shot me.

The bastard.

Did you get them printed? - Yes.

The others are taking them all over town.

Dörte, it looks amazing. - Gropius caught me.

Why stay at a school that won't take a stand?

Here... We're in telegraphic contact with all major cities.

This is a list of Kapp supporters in Rostock.

You chose the right side.

I caught a student printing posters earlier today.

Will you take action? - I have to.

Who was it? - You don't know her.

Breakfast.

General strike.

A general strike. - What?

Kapp has ordered a tough crackdown on any strike.

This will escalate. There'll be bloodshed.

Comrades.

The general strike is proving powerful.

All over Germany, public order has been disrupted.

We brought this about.

Kapp and his supporters realise they can't rule from the top down.

We must fight on!

I hear your calls for a revolt.

But people are also asking why we're settling for a blockade,

rather than joining our comrades-in-arms in fighting the right.

Like those in the Ruhr area,

or here in the Vogtland, under Max Hölzl.

I'll tell you why, comrades.

There's no need for bloodshed.

We can defeat our enemy through silent resistance.

Why suffer further casualties

when we can end this bad dream with just our solidarity?

This meeting is terminated.

Everyone present will be searched.

These are union premises, you will leave immediately!

They killed nine people that day.

I understood: Dörte was fighting,

but she didn't know when to stop.

She never stopped.

The coup is over!

The coup is over.

The volunteer corps have stood down.

The coup is over.

The general strike brought the whole country to a standstill.

The ministries in Berlin refused to follow Kapp.

You can't govern by yourself.

I need to check the negotiations in parliament.

There are no negotiations.

Kapp has fled, Ebert's returning to Berlin. The nightmare's over.

What, without any bloodshed? - No, dozens of casualties.

Nine were killed at the People's House, it sounded horrible.

Have you heard anything? - Not yet.

Do you have anything more to say?

All right, you can leave.

Please ask Miss Helm to come in.

Dörte, you're next.

Please sit down.

You know why you're here, don't you?

Contrary to school regulations,

you printed political propaganda.

You're faced with expulsion.

May I?

What even is this?

Is it supposed to be a flash?

It's an abstraction.

A flash, or a force that erupts,

like a cry of anguish against the injustice of repression.

That kind of thing.

And you designed it?

Will that make it worse?

Who knows, I can't do any more than throw you out.

Yes, it's my design.

But I only had that night to do it.

Do you like it?

You'll hear from me, Miss Helm.

Would you send in Auerbach?

Johannes? You're next.

Aesthetically, she did everything right. - Politically too.

There you are. Come, have a seat.

Please sit down, I don't want a fight.

But I don't want martyrs either, you understand?

I'll concede an amnesty for political statements during the coup.

But from now on I want quiet.

I watched my comrades dying in front of my eyes.

And you want quiet?

Yes, Auerbach, I do.

If you don't like that, you should consider leaving this school.

Gropius is a total conformist.

I'm fed up with his double standards.

To me, it seemed he wasn't taking it seriously.

They'll all be at the funeral tomorrow, including Gropius.

Faking sorrow for the dead, but they're our dead.

Let me tell you something, Dörte.

We could have different lives.

We should have different lives.

Like at Monte Verità.

Life as part of a true community.

As a commune.

This here is all just fake.

But what will he do about us? Did he say anything?

Johannes, we're ready.

Come.

And we have more of them.

Very good.

What are you planning?

A protest. At the funeral procession.

Then you leave him no choice but to throw you out.

He will anyway. - Did he say that?

Yes.

And me too?

Yes, you too.

There are better places, Dörte.

Much better ones.

Gunta, let's look for the others.

Come.

Gunta.

Soldiers are murderers,

whether they're in uniform or not.

We see you, Dr Herfurth. We see you.

We see you, Dr Herfurth.

The Bauhaus sure is apolitical.

The Council has unanimously decided...

Not unanimously.

The Council has decided...

The students who defied the ban on political agitation

will be expelled from the school.

They will be deregistered with immediate effect.

That's all. Let's go.

You did the right thing.

You were consistent.

Here...

My reply to Werfel.

May I ask what you wrote to him?

Nothing you wouldn't also wish for.

I hope you'll be happy with him.

Manon will visit you as often as possible.

That would be nice.

Dörte...

If you had a choice,

would you still move to a commune with Auerbach?

Talk to Gropius one last time.

I'll never talk to him again.

This is the start of something new, Dörte.

Dörte...

Dörte.

Thoughts are but free

No one can guess them

They are flying by

Like nocturnal shadows

No person can know them

No hunter can shoot them

With powder and lead

Thoughts are but free

Wait! - Hilde!

Wait for me.

Wait! - Hilde.

I'm coming after all.

But always quietly

As is deemed becoming

My wish, my desire

No one can deny me

So it will always be

Thoughts are but free