Der nackte König — 18 Fragmente über Revolution

What drives people to take to the streets and incite a revolution? How do they overcome their fears? 1979, revolution in Iran, the fall of the Shah, the king of kings. 1980, mass strikes and the formation of the independent union Solidarność in Poland, with its more than 10 million members. What was happening in the minds of the young women and men who campaigned for radical change in their own country? What moved them, as their uprising was quashed and martial law was imposed, or – in the case of Iran – as an authoritarian power system known as the Islamic Republic was established? Director Andreas Hoessli, at that time a young research fellow in Poland, experienced the Solidarność demonstrations up close. Through his friendship with Polish writer and reporter Ryszard Kapuściński – who at the time was in Iran – he got a firsthand account of the uprisings there. On some days there were millions of people on the streets in an attempt to sweep away the corrupt shah system. 40 years later, Hoessli sets out in search of clues, meeting with former protagonists and their descendants in both Poland and Iran. He speaks, for example, with surprisingly forthcoming employees of the Polish secret service and meets with the spokesperson for the student group that, during that time, occupied the US Embassy in Teheran, holding employees hostage for 400 days. Today, she is one of the Iranian vice presidents. With breathtaking archive material, DER NACKTE KÖNIG lets viewers relive the optimistic atmosphere of that turbulent time. Simultaneously, oscillating between yesterday and today, the film prompts a critical philosophical discourse about revolution as a state of emergency. Bruno Ganz as narrator leads the viewer through this exciting parallel story.… >>>