The Crisis
Country
United States of AmericaCopyright
1939Production year
1938Runtime
68 minCategory
filmGenre
politicalTypology
foreign filmdocumentarytheatrical distributionlongOriginal title
The CrisisSecond title
A Film of „The Nazi Way“Czech title
KriseEnglish title
The CrisisEnglish second title
A Film of “The Nazi Way“Parallel title
KrizeWorking title
One Page from Mein KampfSummary
The Crisis was filmed under the guise of fascist propaganda, but it provides a close-up filmmaker's view of the political and social events of 1938 in Europe. The expansion of Hitler's state is presented in the form of a confrontation between footage of international political events and the lives of ordinary citizens. American documentary filmmaker Herbert Kline and Hanuš Bruger, a Prague Jew who was familiar with the situation, contributed to the film. Alexander Hackenschmied, a famous Czech documentary filmmaker and a representative of the Czech and American film avant-garde, was also a member of the crew. Reflecting on the filming process, Kline said: "In Hollywood, the director has studios at his disposal. For us, a whole country was a studio. In Hollywood, there's no need to hide a production manager in a car in fear that someone might recognize a Jew in him." The documentary was edited in Paris and premiered in New York shortly before the Nazi occupation of Bohemia and Moravia on March 13, 1939.
Photos
Commentary
Performed by
Crew and creators
Director
Screenstory
Screenplay
Commentary by
Vincent Sheean
Director of Photography
Alexander Hackenschmied, Jan Lukas, Jindřich Brichta, Karel Degl, Pavel Hrdlička, Bohumil Havránek
Film Editor
Producer
Production
Cooperation
Music
Music Composed by
Music Conducted by
Roger Desormière
Songs
David a Goliáš
Song Composer Jaroslav Ježek
Writer of Lyrics Jiří VoskovecJan Werich
Singer Jiří VoskovecJan Werich
Proti větru
Song Composer Jaroslav Ježek
Writer of Lyrics Jiří VoskovecJan Werich
Singer Jiří VoskovecJan Werich
Locations
Praha, Hradčany (Praha), Pražský hrad (Hradčany), Katedrála sv. Víta (Pražský hrad), Nové Město (Praha), Václavské náměstí (Nové Město), Vltava (Praha), Karlův most (Vltava), Cheb
Production info
Original Title
The Crisis
Czech Title
Krise
Second Title
A Film of „The Nazi Way“
English Title
The Crisis
English Second Title
A Film of “The Nazi Way“
Parallel Title
Krize
Working Title
One Page from Mein Kampf
Category
film
Typology
foreign filmdocumentarytheatrical distribution
Genre
political
Origin country
United States of America
Copyright
1939
Production Year
1938
Production specifications
start of filming 1 May 1938
end of filming 10/1938
Premiere
original premiere 13 March 1939 (New York, USA)
Production
Copyright Holders
The Museum of Modern Art New York
Distribution
Národní filmový archiv (obnovená 2018)
Technical info
Duration typology
feature film
Duration in minutes
68 min
Original length in metres
1 920 meters
Distribution carrier
16mm, 35mm
Aspect ratio
1:1,37
Colour
black & white
Sound
sound
Versions
English
Dialogue languages
Czech, commentary, English, German
Subtitles languages
English
Opening/End credits languages
English
