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70% Critic Match
Jolly Roger
“Jolly Roger - A chapter in Swiss media history”
7.0 / 10• 2003• 1h 20m•NR• German
DocumentaryMusic
Storyline
"Jolly Roger" could mean Roger Schawinski. But by definition, a "Jolly Roger" is the classic black pirate flag with skull and crossbones. This documentary tells the unvarnished story of the Swiss radio pirates who emerged in the 1970s. The focus is on Radio 24 in its wild years, when Schawinski's team broadcast from Italy, with the strongest FM station in the world at the time, straight down from Pizzo Groppera, 130 kilometers all the way to the Zurich area. Supported by numerous original documents from private filmmakers and from the SRG archives, the viewer relives the absurd radio war between David and Goliath that lasted almost four years, 24 years after this war between the radio pirates and the state power began on November 13, 1979. The many known and unknown fighters, who rallied behind their Radio Winkelried Schawinski in 1979 to help usher Switzerland into a new media age, remember the good and bad times, the demonstrations and the numerous threatened and actual closures.
Cast & Crew
Roger Schawinski
himself
LeadFB
Frank Baumann
himself
US
Ursi Spaltenstein
herself
RK
Röbi Koller
himself
DW
Dani Wyler
himself
MG
Markus Gilli
himself
CH
Christian Heeb
himself
What People Are Saying
4.0
“A staggering achievement of craft and ambition. Beat Hirt's vision lands with breathtaking precision.”
4.0
“Every frame feels alive. Jolly Roger is the rare release that takes its audience seriously.”
