The endless night
West Berlin Tempelhof Airport, 1962: Air traffic is suspended due to fog. A dozen stranded passengers are forced to spend the night on the ground. In loosely connected episodes, the film paints a multifaceted picture of encounters and conversations – for example between a penniless starlet and two questionable cavaliers, a farmer from Africa and an airport employee who wants to get married. Furthermore, the nocturnal dance is populated by a wife with an Italian lover, a fraudulent businessman and a Polish jazz band… Will Tremper succeeds in creating a documentary story. Shot without a finished script in 45 nights after closing time in the Tempelhof terminal hall with original sound, THE ENDLESS NIGHT condenses into a realistic picture of society. It is cast with believable characters whose often improvised dialogues have their finger on the pulse of the present. And with the businessman looking for money, the director could have portrayed himself: In order to be able to make the film without funding, Tremper took out a mortgage on his home.
Federal Republic of Germany 1963 / Director: Will Tremper / 85 min / Karin Hübner, Harald Leipnitz, Hannelore Elsner, Louise Martini, Paul Esser, Wolfgang Spier, Werner Peters, Bruce Low, Mario Adorf, Wolfgang Neuss / German original version / FSK: 16.
