Die Todeself

original title:
Die Todeself
country / year of production:
original length:
45 min. , color
premiere:
9 March 2005, ARD
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plot synopsis:
This film tells the story of a brutal soccer game during World War II, that decided over life and death. On August 9th in 1942 the Ucrainian team "FC Start" and the German team "Adler" met in the stadium in Kiew. The oppressed and the oppressors had to compete. Despite of the SS marshals in uniform the stadium was full of people. One year before the German troops entered Kiew on September 19th in 1941. In only two days they killed 34.000 Jews and took 630.000 Sowjet soldiers as war prisoners. The deportation of Jews and workers followed. Hunger was one of the biggest problems for the people in Kiew and nobody thought about playing soccer. But despite the war, the game was played and the oppressed won against the oppressors with 5:3. One week after the game eight of eleven winners were arrested by the Gestapo and deported to the camp Siretz. Four of them died. The game of the Ucrainian eleven became a ledgend.
literature:
Gerhard Fischer/Ulrich Lindner. Stürmer für Hitler. Vom Zusammenspiel zwischen Fußball und Nationalsozialismus. Göttingen: Die Werkstatt, 1999.

Andy Dougan. Dynamo. Defending The Honour Of Kiev, London: Harper Collins Publishers, 2001.
remarks:
Three sculptures in front of the stadium of Dynamo Kiew and in the city remember the four players, who had to pay the success with their lifes.

Homepage: http://www.ukrainiansoccer.net/news/news_article.asp?ID=12157&offset=300
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