On 23 October 1918, Karl Liebknecht is released after having spent a number of years in jail. The First World War is fast approaching its end and Liebknecht knows full well that the German people are on the verge of revolution. Friedrich Ebert suspects this, too, and urges the Kaiser to abdicate to placate the masses. At first, Wilhelm declines. Liebknecht hears about the sailor's revolt in Kiel and calls for a nationwide uprising; the workers of Berlin, however, don't think they're ready for revolution. Liebknecht's sparring with Ebert and Scheidemann is making the masses even more wary, and so is hesitant to call the lower classes to arms. The Schreiner family is divided as well: the father sides with the imperial troops, while Milda, Kathe and Kulle are on Liebknecht's side. When the uprising of Kiel's sailors spills over into the rest of Germany, Liebknecht appoints himself its head and proclaims the "Free Socialist Republic of Germany" n 09 November 1918. The mutineers and their supporters occupy the Berliner Schloss and the emperor flees to Holland. The victory of the revolutionaries doesn't last long, however. With Ebert's knowledge and approval, preparations are made to attack the rebels. On 24 December, as most of the militant workers are home for the holidays with their families, the Berliner Schloss is taken by imperial troops. Voices openly call for Liebknecht's murder and the leftist provocateur hides. Communists are hunted down shot openly in the streets. In the middle of January 1919, Die Rote Fahne the Spartacists' newspaper, proclaims the murder of Liebknecht and Rose Luxemburg. A mourners' parade assembles in Berlin and pays tribute to the duo, despite threats of violence from the military. Twenty-six years later, the mourners left alive after the next world war will get to ponder whether Soviet occupation and forced implementation of Communism were worth their sacrifices. 

DVD-R is in German with hard-encoded English subtitles. Approx. 124 mins. See film sample for audio and video quality!