Human Rights Watch International Film Festival - London

Escape to Life (London Premiere)
Andrea Weiss and Weiland Speck - Germany/UK - 2000 - 84m - 35mm - drama/documentary
In English and German with English subtitles

A gripping story of the adventures of Klaus and Erika Mann played out against the dramatic setting of the Roaring Twenties, the rise of Fascism and World War Two. Their intense sibling relationship, which took root through the imaginative, make-believe world they shared as children, is strained by the demands of life in exile, by Klaus' drug addiction and by Erika's gradual shift in loyalty from brother to father. Bringing together rare archival images and period music, revealing anecdotes of colleagues and friends, original screen performances by Erika Mann, an array of fiction scenes based on Klaus Mann's writings, as well as the nuanced performances of Corin and Vanessa Redgrave as the voices of Klaus and Erika respectively, ESCAPE TO LIFE is a fascinating tribute to an extraordinary couple. Produced by Greta Schiller (THE MAN WHO DROVE WITH MANDELA, PARIS WAS A WOMAN)

Co-presented by the London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival and the World University Service

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