Klaus Maria Brandauer
That's how he thinks of the chain-smoking defense attorney
Defense lawyer Biegler (Klaus Maria Brandauer, r.) Wants an acquittal for Kelz (Franz Hartwig).
© ARD Degeto / Moovie GmbH / Stephan Rabold
Klaus Maria Brandauer plays defender Konrad Biegler in the TV event "Ferdinand von Schirach: Enemies". This is how the movie star thinks of the character.
Actor Klaus Maria Brandauer (77, "Out of Africa", "James Bond 007 – Never Say Never") plays defense lawyer Konrad Biegler in a fatal kidnapping case in the TV experiment "Ferdinand von Schirach: Feinde" on January 3rd stands by the suspect. Two feature films ("Gegen die Zeit", "Das Geständnis") and a documentary on the same topic will be shown – from 8:15 pm simultaneously in the first and all third programs. One film shows the perspective of the investigating police officer, Inspector Nadler (Bjarne Mädel, 52), while the other shows that of the lawyer.
In an interview with spot on news, the international film star tells how he thinks about law and justice. He also reveals, among other things, whether he would like to be friends with defense lawyer Biegler and what he thinks about health issues – Biegler does not take it too seriously.
When you first read the script, were you torn as to which page you were on? How did your attitude change during the preparation and shooting?
Klaus Maria Brandauer: I found the script good the first time I read it and wanted to be part of it. That doesn't happen to me that often. The question of which side I'm on personally doesn't really arise. My job is to get Biegler in front of the camera as plausible and understandable as possible, as a good criminal defense lawyer, because that's the only way the story can work. Despite all the explosiveness of the topic, we are still in the field of fiction and of course it is also important to entertain the audience and keep them attentive. Even more so because there are two complete films that you should stick to.
What do you think of the criminal defense attorney you play? Would you like to be friends with him?
Brandauer: Friends would be the wrong expression, I understand it quite well. If it weren't for that, I wouldn't have been able to play it. I have to find one or, ideally, several personal starting points for each figure in order to be able to represent it in a comprehensible manner. I can't just pretend to someone. And I believe that too great a similarity in character and personality is not always conducive to friendship, but the differences are more interesting because they challenge us.
Defense attorney Biegler is quite eloquent. Is that what they say about you? Would law have been a professional alternative to acting for you?
Brandauer: No, I never considered that, although my father would certainly have liked to see me studying law. Then it turned out differently. After all, in every role that I play, I am the advocate for my character and also its accuser. Best friend and worst enemy, I have to be able to take these liberties, otherwise it will be one-dimensional and boring.
In the documentary, the viewer learns that the films were shown to a test audience – police officers, lawyers and parents. Then they should say what you think of the verdict in the films. What do you think of this experiment?
Brandauer: That is certainly an exciting opportunity to see how everything is redeemed that you have previously imagined. When acting in a theater, you adapt to every performance, taking in the form of the day of yourself and the audience. This is very intuitive, without effort. When it comes to film, you have to invest all of this in advance, you can't correct anything after shooting, that's what makes the two fields so different.
A person affected who has lost his child emphasizes this question in the documentary: "Do I act according to my conscience or do I look in a thick paragraph book?" What do you make of it?
Brandauer: In the end, that is always the question of the rule of law. I find it very important that he exists, even if he cannot always satisfy everyone. That would also contradict its basic principle. The rule of law cannot ensure justice in all cases. In all controversy, however, it remains important: You must not play off both law and justice against each other.
Do you share Konrad Biegler's skepticism about health issues?
Brandauer: I can at least understand it quite well, but personally I am a bit stricter than Biegler. So I make sure that I eat healthy and I also try to be in the fresh air as often as possible. I quit smoking more than twenty years ago. But I think it's good that Biegler is a chain smoker, that makes him almost an exception.
He doesn't want to cycle in Berlin. Are you cycling in Vienna, Berlin or New York?
Brandauer: Rarely, I walk whenever I can. And at home in Styria, I like to be out in the woods.