The Red Baron: Film Breaks German War Hero Taboos

[Heimdallr]

In a country where patriotism is looked down upon, a new film about a World War I pilot -- one of most expensive movies ever made in Germany -- takes a new twist: It paints the Red Baron as a national hero.

According to historical accounts, Manfred von Richthofen -- dubbed the Red Baron due to the color of his aircraft -- shot down 80 Allied planes as a fighter pilot during World War I and became not only the most successful German pilot but also an icon of his era.

Ninety-years after his death, an 18-million-euro ($28-million) film which opens in Germany on April 10, recounts the war adventures of the Prussian nobleman whose life ended at the age of 25. The English-language German production is based on a biography of von Richthofen by historian Joachim Castan, which came out last fall.

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The Red Baron: Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen (2 May 1892 –
21 April 1918) wears the Pour le Mérite (the 'Blue Max') Prussia's highest
military order (until the end of World War I) in this official portrait, c.1917.