Ditte, Child of Man

Ditte Menneskebarn
Front cover of the Danish DVD for Ditte Menneskebarn
Directed by	Bjarne Henning-Jensen Jon Iversen
Produced by	Erik Balling
Written by	Bjarne Henning-Jensen Martin Andersen Nexø (novel)
Starring	Tove Maës
Music by	Herman D. Koppel Poul Schierbeck
Cinematography	Verner Jensen
Edited by	Edla Hansen
Distributed by	Nordisk Film
Release date	20 December 1946
Running time	104 min.
Country	Denmark
Language	Danish

Ditte, Child of Man, (Danish: Ditte Menneskebarn), is a 1946 socio-realistic Danish drama directed by Bjarne Henning-Jensen based on the novel by Martin Andersen Nexø. The film stars Tove Maës in the tragic story of an impoverished young girl who becomes the victim of harsh social conditions. The film has been noted as the first example of the more realistic and serious Danish film in the post-World War II era.Ditte, Child of Man is one of the ten films listed in Denmark's cultural canon by the Danish Ministry of Culture.

Ditte (Tove Maës), born illegitimately, is deserted as a young girl by her alcoholic mother Sørine (Karen Lykkehus). She moves in with her grandparents Maren (Karen Poulsen) and Søren Mand (Rasmus Ottesen). But after Søren dies, it is Ditte who becomes the old woman's only support. It is the small girl's deepest sorrow that she has no father, so she is pleased when she hears that Lars Peter (Edwin Tiemroth) will marry her mother and they will all live together. However, it is Ditte who becomes like a mother to Lars Peter's three small children. Their poverty is so oppressive, it drives Ditte's mother to kill Maren, and Sørine is sent away to prison. Ditte, despite her young age, must assume all of the household's responsibilities. As time passes, a warm relationship develops between Ditte and Lars Peter. One day, Lars Peter's brother Johannes (Ebbe Rode) appears. Johannes is a poor knife and scissors sharpener who informs them of his big business schemes, however, his schemes bring nothing but disappointment. Lars moves away and Ditte must find herself a job. Ditte takes a job as a servant on a rural farm. The farm owner's weak-willed son Karl (Preben Neergard), who is completely controlled by his mother (Maria Garland), falls in love with Ditte and they develop a happy romance. However, when Ditte becomes pregnant, Karl does nothing while his mother forces Ditte to leave the farm. Deeply distraught, Ditte searches after Lars Peter, the only parental figure who ever showed her kindness and understanding. Ditte discovers her mother has been paroled from prison and Ditte begins a new life—forgiving and caring for her mother—at the same time that she becomes the mother of her own illegitimate child.