Top-rated
Fri, Oct 11, 1996
Mathilde, daughter of the wealthy Alsatian industrial baron Kempff, marries the handsome captain in the French cavalry, count de la Tour. But as the Franco-Prussian war breaks out, the count is killed in action. Mathilde is left to raise their child, Louis, alone with her father. She never forgives the Germans the loss of her mother country, France, and of her husband. As Louis grows up and sets out to marry Friederike of a Prussian family, Mathilde categorically refuses to talk to her in-laws.
Sat, Oct 12, 1996
After 30 years of German rule in Alsace, the province finally is given full rights of representation in the Berlin Reichstag and local self-government. Louis serves as a minister for economy. His and Friederike's sons choose their paths in different contries: Charles studies law in Heidelberg, while Eugène attends École Polytechnique in Paris. As the clouds of war draw in, Louis resigns from provincial goverment. His factory is disappropriated for military production. Eugène serves in the French, Charles in the German army. In fear of losing them, Mathilde finally reconciles with her Prussian daughter-in-law. The war demands many victims, and its end together with Alsace's return to France is joyful only in parts. The revenge of the victors tears the family apart, and drives Louis and Friederike into exile.