A young woman's life is scrutinized by police and tabloid press after she spends the night with a suspected terrorist.A young woman's life is scrutinized by police and tabloid press after she spends the night with a suspected terrorist.A young woman's life is scrutinized by police and tabloid press after she spends the night with a suspected terrorist.
- Awards
- 3 wins & 1 nomination
- Prosecutor Dr. Korten
- (as Horatius Haeberle)
- Directors
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAt the end of The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum (1975), there is the following DISCLAIMER/EPILOGUE: "Personen und Handlung sind frei erfunden. Ähnlichkeiten mit gewissen journalistischen sind weder beabsichtigt, noch zufällig, sondern unvermeidlich." This means: "Characters and events are fictitious. Description of certain journalistic practices is neither intentional nor accidental, but unavoidable."
- GoofsBefore any shots are fired, the back of the reporter's white sweater has red stains visible from previous takes.
- Quotes
Lüding, Verleger: The shots that killed Werner Tötges didn't hit him alone. They were aimed at Freedom of the Press, one of the most precious values of our young Democracy. And these shots - for us who stand here in grief and horror - they strike us. Just as they struck him. Who doesn't feel the wound? Who doesn't feel the sorrow above and beyond one's personal concerns? Who doesn't feel the breath of terror, the savage of anarchy, the violence which is undermining the foundations of our liberal-democratic order which we are so devoted to. Here, allegedly private motives have led to a political assassination, and we can say once more: stop it before it grows! Look out, for Freedom of the Press is the core of everything: well-being, social progress, democracy, pluralism, diversity of opinions. And whoever attacks The Paper attacks us all.
- Crazy creditsThe legal disclaimer reads as follows: 'Personen und Handlung sind frei erfunden. Sollten sich bei der Schilderung gewisser journalistischer Praktiken Aehnlichkeiten mit den Praktiken der BILD-Zeitung ergeben haben, so sind diese Aehnlichkeiten weder beabsichtigt noch zufaellig, sondern unvermeidlich.' (Characters and plot are purely fictitious. Similarities with journalistic practices of the newspaper "BILD" are neither intended nor coincidental, but inevitable.) This is a direct quote from the introduction to the original novel by Heinrich Böll.
- ConnectionsEdited into A Grin Without A Cat (1977)
The story begins with Katherina Blum attending a party where she meets and is strongly attracted to a young man. She invites him to her apartment and they spend the night making love. The next morning, the young man has gone and the police are storming her door seeking to arrest the overnight guest as a terrorist. Instead, Katherina is arrested and taken to the police station for interrogation as his accomplice. The young terrorist has been killed and Katherina is unable to prove that she had no knowledge of his activities. A tabloid reporter becomes obsessed by the case hounds Katherina, mercilessly destroying her reputation and any semblance of a normal life. The emotional tension continues to build, finally reaching a violent climax.
This is a very powerful and well made film. Böll's message regarding sensational and irresponsible journalism is very clear. After suffering along with the innocent Katharina through the insult, pain and dishonor of her ordeal, I came away from the film with an altered point of view toward tabloid journalism and commercial news reporting in general. In a world where reporters are being found guilty of manufacturing news stories, media agencies are providing dramatic reenactments of sensational news events, and names like O.J. Simpson and Monica Lewinsky are used as teasers to improve the ratings of news programs, this film is a must see.
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Details
- Release date
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- Also known as
- The Lost Honour of Katharina Blum
- Filming locations
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- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- DEM 1,700,000 (estimated)