DAMNING KRUGER DEFECT
And so it’s auf Wiedersehen to the quintessential German soldier of wartime-set adventure romps. Hardy Kruger was the first of Germany’s postwar film scene to successfully transfer into both Hollywood and British cinema, with stances he took at a young age a crucial reason why in an era where most German actors were met with leery eyes: Indoctrinated into Nazism in his youth (his film debut was in propaganda), he had a change of heart during WWII after refusing to kill American soldiers. Kruger himself was almost killed by his superiors, and he remained an ardent voice against extremism for life.
A postwar regular in German films but weary of the limited roles the environment offered, Kruger turned to the English-speaking world. His breakthrough lead role as Luftwaffe ace and POW camp escapee Franz von Werra in true story The One That Got Away established his acting chops – he left you rooting for the protagonist to escape despite the side he fought on. He parlayed this into further success throughout the 60s and 70s in films such as The Flight of the Phoenix, A Bridge Too Far, and Barry Lyndon. A non-militaristic role in safari flick Hatari! was what introduced him to American audiences, and he was so taken aback by its savannah landscape that he later purchased the filming location as his own residency!
He spent his later years globetrotting and making documentaries about his travels. With his death at 93, a German theme team and debutant Ben-Hur and Messala Were Lovers poach the points.
Hardy Kruger
12 April 1928 – 19 January 2022, aged 93
2 TEAMS (💀💀💀💀💀 5 POINTS)