Trace of Stones (, ) is a 1966 East German film by Frank Beyer. It was based on the eponymous novel by Erik Neutsch and starred Manfred Krug in the main role. After its release, the film was shown only for a few days, before being shelved due to conflicts with the Socialist Unity Party, the ruling communist party in the German Democratic Republic. Only after 23 years was the film shown again, in November 1989.
Plot synopsis
The film takes place at a fictional petrochemical plant. There were very disorganized working conditions caused by incompetent officials, faulty plans, material deficits and delinquent behavior. One of the main characters, Hannes Balla (Manfred Krug), works on the plant and is seen as the masculine head of his crew, the Ballas. He and his crew are delinquent and often steal materials from other groups of workers to finish their own projects. Balla is seen as an uncooperative, but talented carpenter. In one of the films' famous scenes, the Ballas skinny dip in the duck pond in a nearby town and a police officer instructs them to get out. The Ballas instead pull the officer into the pond with them. This blatant disregard for authority was one of the main problems at the plant.
The Socialist Party (SED) sends a married secretary Werner Horrath to oversee the plant and tame Balla's delinquent actions. Around the same time, Kati Klee (Krystyna Stypułkowska) arrives at the plant as an engineer who is first discouraged from working in an all-male environment. Balla doesn't like the Party control and in one important scene, Balla and Horrath play an aggressive clapping game, which eventually results in Horrath being pushed to the ground. Klee sees this and ultimately chooses Horrath to have a relationship with, though Balla has also been pursuing her. The three characters develop a love triangle against the backdrop of Socialist Party politics and the pressure of completing the construction of the plant on time.
One of the main themes of the film is the problems that face the plant under socialist rule and how each character is affected by the Party's morals. The romance between Klee and Horrath, which flies in the face of Party dictates, whose turning point occurs when Klee becomes pregnant by Horrath. The pregnancy causes turmoil in the Party and results in the Party trying to clean its ranks of the "morally defective." An executive meeting is held to review Horrath. They discuss his contributions to the plant as well as his promiscuous personal life. In the end, Klee and Horrath end their relationship and Horrath loses his rank in the Party and his job. Klee leaves the plant, realizing the negative effect that its environment had on her. Balla, who has matured greatly since the beginning of the film, has become a much more disciplined socialist citizen. Socialism is both criticized and praised in the end of the film.
Cast
Manfred Krug as Hannes Balla
Krystyna Stypułkowska as Kati Klee (voiced by Jutta Hoffmann) Eberhard Esche as Werner Horrath Johannes Wieke as Hermann Jansen Walter Richter-Reinick as Richard Trutmann Hans-Peter Minetti as Heinz Bleibtreu Walter Jupé as Kurt Hesselbart Ingeborg Schumacher as Marianne Horrath Brigitte Herwig as Horrath's daughter Gertrud Brendler as Mrs. Schicketanz Helga Göring as Elli Erich Mirek as Oswald Ziemer Fred Ludwig as Gerhard Bolbig Helmut Schreiber as Martin Elbers Erik Veldre as Dieter Jochmann Karl Brenk as Franz Büchner Hans-Peter Reinecke as Eberhard Galonski Detlev Eisner as Nick Günter Meier as Bast Albert Zahn as steel fixer Gerhard Hänsel as bricklayer Jochen Zimmermann as dump truck driver Johannes Maus as policeman in the pool Roman Silberstein as police lieutenant
Production
The film version of Trace of Stones was based on the novel of the same name by writer Erik Neutsch. The novel was celebrated by the Socialist Unity Party (SED) of East Germany, and production of the film was expected to be free of the normal interference normally subjected to DEFA by the SED. Since the novel was 900 pages, some major alterations would need to be made to the story in order to make a film of reasonable length.
Initial screenings of the working print were attacked by high-ranking officials of the SED, much to the surprise of director Frank Beyer. They took issue with the portrayal of "The Party" in the film. While socialism is celebrated by the film, the party's role in it was viewed as neutral. The SED wanted their portrayal in the film to be one of a proactive agent of socialism. The SED, in an effort to create the illusion of studio autonomy, gave the film over to DEFA's internal approval process. It was approved, and the SED reluctantly allowed for distribution of the film.