Warheads

Romuald Karmakar, France / Germany, 1992

International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam

Synopsis

WARHEADS links the life-stories of the former soldier from the Foreign Legion Günther Aschenbrenner (53) and the British mercenary Karl (40). In a pub Mr. Aschenbrenner drinks a beer and calmly tells about his youth. He was born in Eichstätt in 1939. Four years later his father died near Stalingrad. Since his mother had to raise six children, he was sent to a catholic boarding school. When he heard that people wanted him to become a priest he ran amok and was dismissed. In 1958 he joined the French Foreign Legion, which he would serve for twenty years in Algeria, Chad, Djibouti and Zaire, to name a few. After World War II the Legion had a predominantly German character, because many prisoners of war preferred to be in the Legion instead of in a prison camp. After his leave-taking he escorted transports of nuclear waste for the OTRAG firm; later he started his own transport company. In 1991, he enters a Legion barracks again for the first time in twelve years in French Guyana, where he drinks once more to the good old days with a few old pals. Set against this history is the story of Karl, who is fighting in Croatia. By now his body and spirit are almost broken by the conduct of war. Only by taking drugs he can arm himself against the insanity of the war. In WARHEADS, mercenaries talk about their personal logic and morals confidently and candidly.

Director
Romuald Karmakar
Cinematography
Bruno Affret
Michael Teutsch
Klaus Merkel
Reiner Lauter
Screenplay
Romuald Karmakar
Editing
Katja Dringenberg
Sound
Eckhard Kuchenbecher
Istvan Kerenyi
Klaus-Peter Kaiser
Norbert Werner
Production
Wolfgang Pfeiffer
Anne-Marie Autissier

Selected for

IDFA 1993

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Country of Production: Germany
Country of Production: France

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Date:
December 1, 1992
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Karl Penta
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