“Jon Rabe” (2009) is a film shot by German director Florian Gallenberg based on real events taking place in 1937. The tape was released in 2009 and won the German national film award for Best Feature Film and Best Actor. The main roles in the film were played by the actors: Ulrich Tukur, Steve Buscemi, Dagmar Manzel and Daniel Bruhl.
Plot of the film
The film is based on the biography of a German businessman and humanist, employee, and later CEO of Siemens China Co, Jon Rabe. In 1937, the main character of the tape, together with his wife, lived in the capital of the Chinese Republic of Nanjing. Yon was planning to leave for Berlin, but on the last night of his stay in the capital, the Japanese army attacked the city.
The film describes the period of the Nanjing massacre, an episode of the second Sino-Japanese war. At that time, massacres and rape of the population were committed. The number of deaths was approaching 500,000. Jon Rabe cannot reconcile himself to the injustice and cruelty of the situation. He decides to form the Nanjing "security zone", where he shelters the population of the capital from violence and atrocities. Similar zones have already been created in other cities.
The hero managed to save a huge number of people. He was able to arrange the supply of food and necessary medicines. Rabe did not leave the zone, despite the constant threat to life, realizing that without his participation the rescued population would be massively destroyed. The protagonist decides to send his beloved wife Dora to Germany. After the ship with his wife, Yona sets sail, he is bombarded by Japanese aircraft. At the end of the film, the hero finds a friend in the person of Dr. Wilson, whose efforts, despite the lack of most medicines, helped save the lives of Nanking residents.
Cast
Brilliant cast is the decoration of a beautiful film. Starring Ulrich Tukur (Jon Rabe), Steve Buscemi (Dr. Robert Wilson), Dagmar Manzel (Dora Rabe), Daniel Bruhl (Georg Rosen). Ulrich Tukur was able to understand and convey the image of a wise, brave and decent hero. The character is revealed to the viewer during the film, causing sympathy and empathy.
The second hero of the tape is Dr. Robert Wilson, whose image was embodied by the magnificent actor Steve Buscemi. The charismatic Buscemi plays wit, truth-seeker, fascist hater Robert Wilson. The doctor’s forces saved a huge number of people. At first, the heroes of the film are almost rivals, by the end they find true friends in each other's faces .
About the film
The film "Yon Rabe" conveys the tragic atmosphere, the horror of that time. The director included a black and white chronicle in the tape, which shows the footage of the Nanking massacre. The film was based on the diary of the protagonist, who was seized from Rabe during his return to Germany. The notes were hidden and kept secret. Years later, the diary was found and made public. With its help, it was possible to find out the exact picture of what is happening in Nanjing in 1937.
Thanks to the preserved chronicle, the authors of the film were able to accurately recreate footage from the past. It is worth noting a perfectly selected musical accompaniment. Tragic melodies harmoniously complement the oppressive atmosphere of the frames. The film met with serious criticism from Japanese film companies. The director was given the conditions under which the film would be allowed to be shown. Some ultranationalists have stated that the events described in the film never happened. It was possible to show the film in Japan only in 2014 at the festival dedicated to Nanjing.
Film director
Thanks to the work of Florian Gallenberg, the film "John Rabe" (2009) was born. The German director, screenwriter, winner of the Oscar for the best short film in 2001, Gallenberg masterfully conveyed the atmosphere of Nanken in 1937. Due to the fact that the director looked through the chronicle of that time, studied Rabe's diary, he managed to tell the most reliable story of the tragedy that occurred in the Republic of China in 1937.
Real facts from the life of Jon Rabe.
Jon was born in 1882 in the city of Hamburg, was educated in the field of trade. He spent most of his life in China. He worked at Siemens, later becoming its CEO, and was also a member of the NSDAP. During the Second Sino-Japanese War, he founded the "Security Zone" in the capital of the Republic of China, Nanjing in 1937. Thanks to his efforts, a huge number of residents of the capital were saved. During his life he was twice arrested. First, the Soviet, and then the British authorities.
The last years of his life Rabe lived in poverty. He died in 1950 from a heart attack. Jon Rabe's diary was seized from him during his lifetime. His notes were kept secret. Only in 1996 did they receive publicity. Thanks to the diary, an accurate picture of what was happening during the Nanking massacre was revealed. A year later, a monument was erected in Nanjing in honor of the savior of the city. At the moment, in the house where Jon Rabe lived at that time, there is a memorial museum.