Product Details

• Actors: Simon Schwarz, Sophie Rois, Lars Rudolph, Tilo Prückner, Ulrich Wildgruber
• Directors: Stefan Ruzowitzky
• Writers: Stefan Ruzowitzky
• Producers: Danny Krausz, Kurt Stocker
• Format: Color, NTSC
• Subtitles: English
• Rated: R (Restricted)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Sony Pictures
• VHS Release Date: April 11, 2000
• Run Time: 95 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 0767832426
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #412,555 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

From The New Yorker

An Austrian film, set in the nineteen-thirties, that with humor and not too much heavy-handedness explores the notion of justice from various angles. When their misanthropic landlord is murdered, some meek peasants inherit the earth-at least the patch of it they'd previously toiled on for his profit. Their initial stupefaction soon turns into a taste for the complex flavors of freedom, as they squabble and then unite against the malevolent schemes of neighboring landowners to take their farm away. The murder plot and the winningly played characters keep the focus on the foreground, and the untalky script belies the fact that this is director Stefan Ruzowitzky's second feature. In German. -Jeff Gustavson
Copyright © 2006 The New Yorker

From the Back Cover

When a cruel and merciless farmer is murdered, his last will and testament discloses an ironic gift: to everyone's astonishment, the old man leaves his land to the peasant workers he constantly humiliated. Rather than sell the land to a tyrannical rival farmer, the strong-willed laborers decide to keep the land for themselves. Their bold decision threatens to disrupt the rigid social order of their town, but not before secrets are revealed and lives changed forever. A compelling tale of love, defiance and tragedy set in a small Austrian village during the turn of the 20th century, The Inheritors is an internationally acclaimed, award-winning drama.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I liked It, March 14, 2002

By 

"valeska_" (The Pacific Northwest) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Inheritors [VHS] (VHS Tape)

I'm sorry to see this film derided so much, although not superb....it isn't THAT bad.

The plot---A mean farmer who delights in humiliating the people who work his farm, is murdered...(the murderer, later is revealed) They are amazed when the farm is willed to them, and they undertake it. Although they aren't perfect, and they have and develop problems with each other. Lukas and Emmy are involved with each other, and Severin is a very quiet young man, who always looks in a state of disarray, especially his hair.
The question of why the farm is left to them, is puzzling, but that is also revealed... Their biggest problem is the cruel villagers, who don't like the fact that the land was left to them, and that they refuse to sell it....it ends tragically, for everyone, but I felt a little hopeful with the last scene of Severin and Emmy.

I think it should also be cautioned, that it does contain a rape near the end...

Over all...not bad....I've seen it twice, I've bought it, and will watch it again..

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Worthy of a viewing., January 9, 2000

By 

sauerkraut - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Inheritors (DVD)

The Inheritors was a fairly decent movie. I do have to admit that it's not very upbeat most of the time though. The film's plot deals with a farmer that is murdered, and a will is found in his house that surprisingly states that his land be left to the peasants that work on the farm for him. Instead of selling the land to a neighboring farmer that's greedy, the peasants decide to keep it and become farmers themselves to the dismay of certain people. The plot gets much deeper from there. I had to watch The Inheritors more than once to completely understand what I had missed during my inital viewing of it. The story, acting, music, and cinematography are pretty good. Lars Rudolph (one of the peasants named Severin who becomes a farmer) does a good job in his role and can be seen in Run Lola Run too. This film is Austrian with German dialogue. The Inheritors isn't one of my favorite movies, but I still think that it's pretty good and worth a watch.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The film brought to life the hard life of peasants, January 25, 2004

By 

Linda Linguvic (New York City) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Inheritors (DVD)

This film is set in rural Austria and tells the story of what happens when a cruel farmer is murdered and it is discovered that he has bequeathed his farm to his workers. Of course there's conflict, lots of conflict. The other farmers in the area hate them and force them to pay high taxes to keep the land. There are conflicts between the seven peasants themselves who have never owned anything in their lives. And there's a mysterious woman with a secret who's going to be executed for murdering the farmer.

This film brought to light how hard the life of a peasant was. They worked seven days a week at backbreaking labor and were virtual slaves to the farmer. It was a horrible life compared to that of the farmers around them. In German, with English subtitles, the film is in color but it may as well been in black and white because the story is such a dark and dismal one. There's a bit of humor but it does nothing but underscore the horrible lives that these people led. Of course there's a ray of hope when they inherit the land, but they are naive to think that their culture would let them live in peace.

The tale is centered around a young man named Lukas who romances the three young women peasant women on the farm, most notably Emily, who is a fiery and outspoken advocate of their land ownership. There's also another young man, an older woman and a stable boy on the farm and each is well developed with distinctive personalities. There's a lot of violence and some very sad moments. I was depressed throughout. This has nothing to do with the quality of the film which dealt with some important themes.