„Good-bye Lenin!“ (Engl. „Good Bye, Lenin!“)
Another movie about the GDR, but this time from an earlier (2003) and
tragicomedical point of view (the other much acclaimed one is "The Lives of Others"). It lead to the uprising of lead actor
Daniel Brühl who later was featured in Quentin Tarantino's
„Inglorios Basterds“ as the German sniper.
The topics of the GDR's system and its oppression are just mentioned
in the background, in general it's more a coming-of-age movie of a
young man and a display of the hypocrisy and theatrical behaviour the
SED (GDR's Party) had all through the years of their reign.
And finally it's an „Ostalgie“ film (nostalgia for the times in
Eastern Germany), reviving times when people had to live on now cult
products and improvise to get through their days in command economy.
The main character's mother falls into a coma short before the fall
of Berlin wall and when she awakes, he tries to avoid any health
disturbance and thus keep alive the socialist system she seemed so
fond of before. At least in their four walls and with the help of
their neighbours and friends.
It would be wrong to mistake this movie not only for a pure nostalgia
work or for a try to erase the negativity of the actual dictatorship
in GDR, since also scenes of the main character getting beaten up at
an anti-system manifestation and the actual theatrical recreation of
the GDR scenery unmasks its artificiality.
What is also shown in parallel storylines, are some minor humorous
events and mainly the problems people from the former GDR had to
adapting to the „New World Order“ and all family and political
problems that could arise from that.
But as no real-existing socialism is possible without any flaws, even
the authonome one, a way of history is created that leads to a
pacifist reunion of East and West in the mother's flat that makes it
possible for her to die in peace.
This film actually sums up the typical German thing for historical
movies and the light-hearted comedy, mixes it through and
we got a fantastic cocktail of ups and downs and future and past.
„Der Himmel über Berlin“ (Engl. „Wings of desire“)
The poetically titled film (1987) is one of the most-acclaimed ones
from German „New Cinema“ director Wim Wenders. He'd already made
movies with fellow „New Hollywood“ directors and actors and his
movies are quite known all over the world, although his base is still
Germany.
Based around an actual poem, the movie itself is a combination of art
and cinema, telling the story of two angels in present Berlin and
their incapacity to feel or experience real things. Their world is
shot in a monochrome black&white whilst their surroundings, the
real world, is always depicted in bright and lively colours.
In its core, the motion picture can be seen as a meditation on lives
and events the angels pass on their way and the city of Berlin (then
still parted), and finally the nature and feeling of love, as one of
the angels resigns to his angelic nature to become a human being and
finally be together with the woman he's been in love with for a long
time.
Concerning the above listed, it's also an advice to enjoy the little
things, as many poetical films are.
The actors range from the later Hitler Bruno Ganz (cf. Downfall) to
Peter Falk from Columbo as himself and support the main actress, the
city of Berlin in her beauty and atrocity.
"Christiane
F. - Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo" (Engl. "Christiane F. - We Children
from Bahnhof Zoo")
Based
on the memoir of former child prostitute and drug addict, the movie
is about the downfall and following recovery of a young girl living
in (Western) Berlin in the 1970s.
The
movie premiered in 1981, and was once again produced by Bernd
Eichinger. Making it such a huge success with audience and critics
was the involvement of David Bowie in movie and soundtrack, whose
music inspired young Christiane to get involved with the party scene
that finally led her to heroine.
Mainly
acclaimed is the realistic approach of the movie to the drug scene,
depicting all the atrocities like people shooting heroine and then
emptying the syringes filled with blood on their shaddered apartments
floors, or the withdrawal Christiane and her boyfriend (who's also
working as a prostitute) undergo when they decide to get clean.
What
maybe isn't shown which would be relevant in our times, is the risk
of AIDS and all the other STDs possible for the sex workers.
Originally from a loving mother, Christiane gets back to her, when
she finally realizes her way is the road to death, seeing many
friends dying ODing or from illnesses their weakened bodies couldn't
fight no more.
Today,
the movie is still used in schools to tell pupils about the dangers
of drugs (flawing on the above listed!), but nevertheless is an
interesting document on these wild times.
Bahnhof
Zoo is a train station in Berlin, that was a central point for the
Western Berlin drug and prostitution scene, today addicts and dealers
are mostly located at Herrmannplatz, Kottbusser Tor, and Hasenheide
in Kreuzberg, just in case you'r interested.
„Keinohrhasen“ (Engl. „Rabbits without ears“)
A totally light-hearted comedy from Germany, who'd believe that? In
2007 man of all talents Til Schweiger premiered his film about a
reckless yellow press reporter who realizes his wrongs and finds true
love in a wallflower kindergarden teacher.
The controversy of this movie was mainly, that it was the first
comedy in Germany including very free sex talk and even depicting it
(although it should not be confused with porn, there is no scene
where REAL sex is shown) by still including the romcom message that
all's well that end's well and a bad boy has a good heart, too.
Til Schweiger, who did not only play the lead character but also
directed, wrote the script and produced made a sequel some years
later, but couldn't reach the original movies success. By all not
appreciating the commercial and rather simple mentality of this
movie, still we must confess that the jokes are quite well placed and
even some critics on society is included, like showing a child show
business actor do cocaine or the hypocrisy and lies of a „Schlager“
couple. So it's definitely not as plain as many Hollywood RomComs
might be.
Also the movie benefits from involvement of a lot of German stars and
entertainment actors being included as cameos or real characters in
the cast.
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