Nazis walk into an insane asylum. No, this isn't the setup to a joke—it's Estonian cinema at its most unhinged.
Before the end of the Second World War, a special commando marches into a mental hospital located in a beautiful manor house to eliminate the patients. But the Gestapo has received an anonymous letter saying that an enemy agent is hiding among the madmen. Officer Windisch is tasked with finding a simulant among several hundred mental patients in a matter of days.
Acting
Jüri Järvet's unraveling composure as Windisch drowns in paranoia
Production
Manor house location becomes a labyrinth of dread
Direction
Kiisk balances grotesque comedy with genuine tension
Director
Kaljo Kiisk
Jüri Järvet
Windisch
Vaclovas Blėdis
Human Nr. 1
Valeriy Nosik
Editor
Bronius Babkauskas
Willy
Viktor Plyut
Krohn
Mare Garšnek
Sophie
Voldemar Panso
Chief Doctor
Elvyra Žebertavičiūtė
Nurse Lucia
Harijs Liepiņš
Lieutenant
Lembit Anton
Laughing Man
Ants Jõgi
Chess Player
Karl Kalkun
Two Faced Man
Enn Klooren
Glass Man
Hugo Laur
I've seen you somewhere…
Oskar Liigand
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Made during the Prague Spring's brief thaw, this Estonian-Soviet co-production smuggled anti-fascist critique past censors who missed its deeper anti-totalitarian bite.
Director Kaljo Kiisk filmed actual mental hospital patients as extras, blurring documentary and fiction until crew couldn't distinguish performer from patient.
SU
