Wiretap Storm: Opman's Interrogation and Chris' Death

Francisca 2022-04-22 07:01:03



As a senior member of the security bureau, Oppman is seasoned and capable. In the class at the beginning of the film, he teaches various techniques of interrogation, which is chilling: recording the whole process, putting his hands under his legs, deprivation of sleep (up to forty sessions). Hours of continuous interrogation), observe expressions, compare confessions before and after, collect the smell under the suspect's chair, intimidate and seduce...
No wonder a young man present couldn't help but say: "Why do you have to question for so long? I think, this way It's inhumane." Opman's answer was the most logical inference of guilt: "An innocent suspect has been questioned for so long for something he didn't do, and his response should be to yell or die. The guilty suspect is usually silent or crying because he knows why he is sitting here."
He concluded: "If you are going to decide whether a person is guilty, the best way is to keep questioning him until he pleads guilty."
Long Yingtai said that his eyes are as cold as glass, and his expression is as calm as a display screen. He can be extremely devoted to his work (completely intoxicated during the eavesdropping), but at the same time he clearly knows how late the deputy who came to take over was late. minute. It only takes a moment to return from the working state to the resting state. This is exactly the result of vocational training, a job that dispenses with any emotion.
However, the paradox of work is also here - if he wants to record the passionate life of the other party with a completely non-emotional rigor, he must record it accurately and ensure that he is not infected. In fact, from the beginning, Oppman has been infected by Chris' performance, so that the subsequent music (Sonata of Passion) and poetry (Brecht's "Remembering Maria"), there is also the possibility of invasion .
Dreiman's article "Investigation on Suicide Situation in the GDR" was successfully published in Der Spiegel, which had a huge impact. The general secretary was outraged and called Kurwitz, the head of the security bureau. Agents raid the Draymans' house in search of the all-important incriminating typewriter, but find nothing. Kurwitz called in the listening agent, Oppman. Blame him for poor monitoring and give him one last chance to interrogate Dreyman's wife, actor Chris. The whole process took only three or four minutes, but it was intriguing and dangerous. The following is Opman's interrogation:

(Chris: Are you an executive officer? Then you execute me!)
Opman turned around and started said:
"There are still ten hours, nine and a half hours to be exact. Do you want to temporarily announce that the heroine will be replaced because of an accident? This will be the last time the audience will hear your name. Do you want this? As long as you cooperate with us to say What we want to know.
(Chris: No articles. No typewriter. I made it all up.)
I hope not. If it's really prosecuted, the perjury will be at least two years in prison.
Dreiman will be arrested anyway . , even without your testimony, because the evidence found now is enough to convict.
Now you better think about yourself. You will not believe how many people stay here until they are insane. Do you Believe in public opinion?
Please think about what the state has done for you. Your whole life has been given by the state, and now you should repay it, and the state will not treat you badly.
Tell me, where is the typewriter hidden?
Dre Mann won't be arrested for this. I'll let you go right away. We'll keep you safe. You can go home if you have time. Going on stage tonight as planned. Stage, lights, and the audience who love you.
Tell I, where is he hiding? Tell me
." (Holding a pencil for a note)
(Chris: Right in our apartment, where the bedroom and hallway connect...)

I read this passage over and over and found that De Lehman's seemingly rigorous questioning was actually very inconsistent. He said at one point, "Drehman will be arrested no matter what", and then said, "Drehman will not be arrested for this." , how many people stay here until they become insane", and then promise "I will let you go immediately"...
Chris was resolute at first, she decided to fight to the death to defend her husband, but in the end she betrayed her most beloved husband and herself. I pondered Chris's thoughts and wondered whether her surrender was due to intimidation, or was she defeated by temptation? Which sentence did Dreiman say that finally defeated Chris' defense? Maybe it was the moment when Opman turned to look at each other before Opman spoke, that Chris was already defeated? ——Because she was horrified to discover that the person who interrogated her was the drama fan who comforted her in the bar that night. Does this mean that the other party has already seen everything in her life?
Now that she has made an account, she should have considered the consequences. Seeing that the floor was pried up (everyone present thought the typewriter was below), what she couldn't bear was not the discovery of evidence, but the utter despair in her husband's eyes, so she Rush out and crash into a car to commit suicide.
It's just that I still don't understand what she said to Opman, who trembled as she approached, before she died: "I won't forget what you've done!" Resentment, or gratitude?

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Extended Reading

The Lives of Others quotes

  • [last lines]

    Buchverkäufer: 29.80. Would you like it gift wrapped?

    Hauptmann Gerd Wiesler: No. It's for me.

  • Hauptmann Gerd Wiesler: An innocent prisoner will become more angry by the hour due to the injustice suffered. He will shout and rage. A guilty prisoner becomes more calm and quiet. Or he cries. He knows he's there for a reason. The best way to establish guilt or innocence is non-stop interrogation.