Die Erika und Klaus Mann Story

Summary

Escape to Life - The Erika and Klaus Mann Story

Erika and Klaus Mann are one of the most famous pair of siblings of the last century. Raised in the shadow of their overpowering father, Thomas Mann, they break out to conquer the world - and are crushed between the great political forces of their time.

In a time of great uncertainty, their moral and political convictions were clear and unwavering - while their actions were riddled with contradictions. Klaus was a writer who saw his work banned from being published during his lifetime, and a pacifist who begged the American Army to let him join the fight against his former homeland. Erika was an actress who faced actual laws passed against her performing in Europe, and a lesbian who married twice: once to the actor Gustaf Gruendgens, and once to the poet W. H. Auden. However close, their relationship was strained by these pressures and by the demands of living in permanent exile.

Source: German films Service & Marketing GmbH