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The Captain From Köpenick

Play trailer Poster for The Captain From Köpenick Released Jul 25, 1958 1h 33m Comedy Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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In the Prussia of Kaiser Wilhelm II, cobbler Wilhelm Voigt (Heinz Ruehmann) discovers he has lost his identity card, which is required to get work. Because he has served time in prison, Wilhelm's appeals at city hall are ignored and dismissed by snobbish officials. Out of frustration, Wilhelm devises a plan wherein, after stealing a secondhand officer's uniform and using his familiarity with command from prison, he plays upon the public fascination for rank and the military to get his card.

Audience Reviews

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Audience Member A slow film to start off with that has some directional problems but when Voigt becomes the Captain of Köpenick, the film becomes livens up and becomes a lot funnier. I had no idea what this film was about when I saw it was free to watch on YouTube. Therefore, I didn't know where the film was going when it was showing these captains receiving their uniforms and Voigt going to prison. However, when he bought an old captain's uniform I understood the direction the film was going and everyone's reactions to this unknown captain were very funny. The film was nominated for the Best Foreign Language Picture Oscar but lost to La Strada. I can't say if it did or did not deserve the Oscar as I have not seen the other nominees. Overall, The Captain from Köpenick was pretty slow and directionless for the first half but becomes very entertaining and funny by the second half of the film. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/11/23 Full Review Read all reviews
The Captain From Köpenick

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The Captain From Köpenick

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Movie Info

Synopsis In the Prussia of Kaiser Wilhelm II, cobbler Wilhelm Voigt (Heinz Ruehmann) discovers he has lost his identity card, which is required to get work. Because he has served time in prison, Wilhelm's appeals at city hall are ignored and dismissed by snobbish officials. Out of frustration, Wilhelm devises a plan wherein, after stealing a secondhand officer's uniform and using his familiarity with command from prison, he plays upon the public fascination for rank and the military to get his card.
Director
Helmut Kautner
Screenwriter
Helmut Kautner, Carl Zuckmayer
Production Co
Real-Film GmbH
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Original Language
German
Release Date (Theaters)
Jul 25, 1958, Limited
Runtime
1h 33m