Comedian Harmonists (English title: The Harmonists) is a 1997 German film by Joseph Vilsmaier. It is a biopic about the popular German vocal group Comedian Harmonists. The film stars Ben Becker, Heino Ferch, Ulrich Noethen, Heinrich Schafmeister, Max Tidof, Kai Wiesinger, Meret Becker, Dana Vávrová, and Otto Sander.
In 1927, unemployed German-Jewish actor Harry Frommermann is inspired by the American group The Revelers to create a German group of the same format. He holds auditions and signs on four additional singers and a pianist. Naming themselves the "Comedian Harmonists", they meet international fame and popularity. However, they eventually run into trouble when the Nazis come to power, as half the group is Jewish.
Though the film succeeded in Europe, and President Bill Clinton told Roger Ebert it was among his favorite films of the year, the movie did not get wide release in the U.S. The film, as well as the fantastically successful group it portrays, remain mostly unknown to most American audiences. This lack of success is notable in light of efforts by the American distributor to censor a small but very significant moment of the film that occurs when the Harmonists arrive in New York and perform in front of the U.S. Navy.
In the European version, the Harmonists sing to a stoic audience of mostly white sailors. However, the camera singles out one African American navy man who is visibly enjoying the music-- until he gets a stinging look of rebuke from a superior officer. This segment was cut from the American release.
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