The rejoicing over the quadruple Oscar success for the anti-war film “Nothing New in the West” is huge – in Germany, but in a very special way in Lower Saxony. Because Erich Maria Remarque, the author of the world-famous novel, was born in Osnabrück in 1898. The director Edward Berger, born in 1970, comes from Wolfsburg.
The joy is great, especially in Osnabrück, Remarque’s hometown. The small city on the Hase plays an important role, at least in the novel. “Four Oscars! Great! What a recognition for the film by director Edward Berger, which hits the nerve of the times like no other film,” said Osnabrück Mayor Katharina Pötter (CDU) on Monday, according to a statement. In view of the Russian war against Ukraine, Erich Maria Remarque’s novel is still relevant, explained Pötter.
“Nothing New in the West” was nominated a total of nine times and ultimately won in four categories. However, he missed the award for best film – for the first time a German film was nominated in this category.
Author Remarque processed his own war experiences and those of other soldiers in the literary world success “Nothing New in the West”, published in 1929. The first film adaptation of the novel was made in the USA in 1930. The later Nazi propaganda minister Josef Goebbels managed to have the film banned at the time. Nationalists and National Socialists tried to portray Remarque as a liar, claiming that the author never took part in the First World War. In 1933 his books were finally burned in Germany.
Remarque, whose real name was Erich Paul Remark, completed an elementary school teacher training course in Osnabrück, but worked only briefly as a teacher after the First World War. In the 1920s he worked as a journalist in Osnabrück and then became, among other things, an editor for the company newspaper of the tire manufacturer Continental in Hanover.
Erich Maria Remarque Peace Center
