Essentials

Directed by Hans Steinhoff
Germany 1933, 35mm, b/w, 87 min.
With Heinrich George, Berta Drews, Jürgen Ohlsen

Synopsis

Heini, a saintly blonde boy, is small and not very strong- He is the young son of a poor couple living in a run down area of Berlin- Heini's mother is shown as a good woman, but his father is portrayed as a bitter, unemployed man with socialist ideas. Heini is sent on a weekend hike with a group of young communists- During the weekend Heini meets a section of the Hitler Youth- He is immediately impressed by the members of the Hitler Youth and yearns to join them. Heini' s brutal father treats him roughly when he finds out Heini has switched his loyalty to the National Socialists but, at the same time, the Hitler Youth reject him because they suspect he is a spy for the communists. In her despair, Heini's mother tries to gas herself and her son- His mother dies, but Heini survives- A delegation from the Hitler Youth visit Heini and present him with a uniform to show that they now accept him as a true National Socialist Heini, nicknamed 'Quex' [Mercury] by his new friends, volunteers for the most difficult and hazardous missions for the Hitler Youth- The S.A- leader who commands the Hitler Youth believes Heini is too young for such tasks, but he allows him to distribute Nazi election leaflets in a Berlin slum area held by the communists. Wandering alone in the dark back streets with his Nazi election pamphlets, Heini is attacked by communist thugs close to death- Heini dies with the words of the Nazi marching song on his lips: "We march for Hitler, through night and dread - the flag means more than being dead."

Poster from the film

Stills and Art from the Film

The History Learning Site has a reference to HJQ in a very clear page dedicated to propaganda in Nazi Germany. I like this no-nonsense site for its good clear explanations. Obviously written by a History teacher!

Although meant for university rather than IGCSE students, there should be nothing putting you off having a go at reading Emotional Engineering: Hitler Youth Quex - by Eric Rentschler (Professor of Film Studies at the University of California, Irvine) It seems to be one of the few serious articles about HJQ on the internet and you will find links to it from many other sites on the web.