The award-winning German docudrama Stammheim is a reenactment of the provocative mid-1970s trials of the Baader-Meinhoff terrorist gang. The title refers to the prison wherein five of the Baader-Meinhoff defendants were held, charged with the murders of four US servicemen. Two of the defendants, Holger Meins and Ulrike Meinhoff, die (reportedly by their own hands) before their trial can begin. The remaining three--Andreas Baader, Gudrun Ensslin, Jan-Carl Raspe--turn the courtroom into their own personal podium, continually disrupting the proceedings and refusing to abide by the advice of their attorneys. The three terrorists are sentenced to life imprisonment--though none live long enough to begin serving their sentences. Based entirely upon courtroom transcripts, Stammheim avoids the left-wing party line that the five defendants were killed by the government while in prison; it also avoids judging the defendants, allowing the audience to draw its own conclusions. Not surprisingly, reaction to the film was extremely mixed, depending upon one's pre-set political persuasion.
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