Letter from the German Motion Picture Rating Agency to CCC-Filmkunst LLC, Wiesbaden. Dated May 8, 1990 Regarding the Rating of the Movie “Der Rosengarten” [“The Rose Garden”]

Source Description

This official rating certificate for the film “The Rose Garden” issued by the German Motion Picture Rating Agency  Deutsche Filmbewertungsstelle in Wiesbaden is in the collection of the German Film Institute’s  Deutsches Filminstitut, or Dif e.V. Artur Brauner Archives in Frankfurt a.M. It was issued upon request on April 24, 1990. In addition to the film’s technical data such as its length (3080 m), running time (113 mins), aspect ratio (35 mm) or language (German), the document also names the company CCC-Filmkunst LLC as its production company. It is to them that this letter is addressed. According to the certificate, the feature film was given a permanent rating of “highly recommended” based on an internal vote of 4:1. The film is described as a “social issues drama” and tagged with keywords such as “coming to terms with the past,” “guilt and atonement,” “persecution of Jews,” “German justice system,” “politically engaged,” and “social criticism.” The section explaining the committee’s rating includes a brief plot summary and mainly highlights the acting, character development, and the film’s detailed observation, which the reviewers also saw reflected in the combination of image and sound. The production date, which coincided with Germany’s reunification, is seen as adding to the film’s significance because it prompted a new period of thinking in historical terms about one’s home country. First, this document can be read as a source shedding light on the trends in the culture of remembrance in Germany; moreover, the plot of this film shot in locations in Hamburg and Frankfurt also tells the story of the historic events that occurred at the school on Bullenhuser Damm in Hamburg.
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Recommended Citation

Letter from the German Motion Picture Rating Agency to CCC-Filmkunst LLC, Wiesbaden. Dated May 8, 1990 Regarding the Rating of the Movie “Der Rosengarten” [“The Rose Garden”] (translated by Insa Kummer), edited in: Key Documents of German-Jewish History, <https://dx.doi.org/10.23691/jgo:source-142.en.v1> [October 06, 2024].