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Thursday, Nov 3, 2005
19:30
Program One: Out of the Ruins
Introduced by Sandra Schulberg and Ed Carter
Postwar misery plagued all of Europe, and in Hunger (1948, 7 mins), Germany is blamed. German audiences rejected the film, so it was pulled from theaters by the U.S. military government. Another controversial film, It's Up to You! (1948, 20 mins), focused on de-Nazification and reorientation. Divided Berlin quickly became a locus for propaganda battles, as seen in Between East and West (1949, 22 mins). The Bridge (1949, 15 mins) documents the dramatic rescue of West Berlin by the airlift. Me and Mr. Marshall (1949, 13 mins), the first Marshall Plan film, celebrates the rebuilding of Germany. Italy, like Germany, had succumbed to the lure of fascism, and had to be reintegrated into Europe. In Life and Death of a Cave City (1949, 11 mins), Italian families live in underground warrens until Marshall aid builds them new houses above ground. Rotterdam had been bombed to rubble by the Nazis; Houen Zo! (1952, 21 mins), a symphony of sounds and music, shows the city coming back to life. It won a special prize at the Cannes Film Festival.
• (Total running time: 102 mins)
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