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DER SCHUH DES MANITU
Karl May and Winnetou Cinema Satire
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This German Western is a take-off
on the old “Winnetou” Westerns
that were so popular in the 1960s.
Der Schuh des Manitu
Who could have known? Suddenly a 2001 German Western called “Der Schuh des Manitu” was a huge hit in Germany. A German TV star by the name of Michael “Bully” Herbig produced, directed and starred in a parody of the Italo-German “Spaghetti” Westerns that starred Lex Barker (who also played Tarzan), Pierre Brice, Stewart Granger and Terence Hill (real name: Mario Girotti) as the Karl May characters Old Surehand and Winnetou. Herbig expanded on the amusing skits he did on his ProSieben “Bullyparade” TV show and produced something of a rarity in Germany: a German film that's big at the box office. Here is an excerpt from one critic’s comments on “Der Schuh des Manitu”:
Die (natürlich völlig belanglose) Story des Films ist mehr oder weniger eine Eins-zu-eins-Kopie des „Schatzes im Silbersee”, der damals das Grundkonstrukt für praktisch alle folgenden Karl-May-Filme lieferte. Gute Weiße werden von bösen Weißen übers Ohr gehauen, und eigentlich gute Indianer halten die Guten für böse und graben das Kriegsbeil aus, in diesem Fall in Ermangelung einer solchen Waffe auch mal zur Abwechselung einen Klappstuhl. Irgendwo in einer tiefen Höhle liegt auch noch ein Schatz herum, um den es eine Menge Keilerei gibt. - Johannes Pietsch, filmfacts.de
The German film poster.
Constantin Film
Herbig has created an amusing take-off on the so-called “Black Forest Westerns” of the 1960s. Along with another German film, the love story “Wie Feuer und Flamme,” the gently satiric “Der Schuh des Manitu” has become a big summer hit. Both films were in the German top ten for all movies. Only “Jurassic Park III” was able to keep “Der Schuh des Manitu” out of the number one spot in Germany in early August.
Order “Der Schuh des Manitu” on DVD
from Amazon.de (Region 2, German)
So, what does all this mean for German-learners? If German cinema continues to increase in popularity—both in Germany and abroad—then it is more likely that some of these German-language films will make it to the US and other English-speaking countries on DVD and video. That means, as long as the trend goes on, we have something to look forward to in the near future.
Although an English-dubbed version has screened in the US, this is a film that really doesn't translate well from German. Despite masterful dubbing work, I found this movie much funnier in German than in English. Half the humor of the original comes from the dialect and other factors that are totally lost on a non-German audience. The official German Web site for “Der Schuh des Manitu” has streaming-video film clips and trailers, some suitable for those without a broadband connection. Below, we have also listed a number of other interesting German cinema links.
NEXT > Filmtitel-Lexikon, an A-to-Z glossary of film titles
MORE > Karl May Books in English
Also see: Top German DVDs and Videos
Before You Buy German DVDs/Videos
> 1: Kino auf DVD
> 2: A Funny German Western?
> 3: Filmtitel-Lexikon
> 4: Film Title Quiz 2
> Sources of DVD/Video
Also see: German Movie Guide
Cinema Links
www.schuhdesmanitu.de
This official site offers a glimpse of the film - with sight and sound.
Film.de - Der Schuh des Manitu
Another look at the film from film.de, a German cinema site.
www.wiefeuerundflamme.de
The film's official site offers a look at this Liebesfilm.
The Princess and the Warrior
A review of the film by Salon.com.
Michael 'Bully' Herbig - Bullyparade
From the ProSieben site, Michael Herbig and his satirical “Bullyparade” show.
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