German films/TV Recommendation Time
okay Leute, here are some quality German things I can personally recommend:
1. Goodbye, Lenin! (2003). dir. Wolfgang Becker. This film is a classic. I have never met anyone who disliked this film. Basically, a lady falls into a coma before the Berlin Wall falls, and wakes up afterwards in a reunified Germany. Her kids think she won’t live very long, so they try to pretend nothing has happened- and it quickly spirals out of control. There are so many themes touched on in this movie–serious themes–but explored in a fun, comical, interesting way. Also features young Daniel Brühl, 10/10.
2. Das Leben der Anderen (2006). dir. von Donnersmarck. This is honestly one of my favorite films of all time, but as a warning, it’s quite serious. The ending is nice, at least, but this is not a “oh east germany can be kinda funny!” movie, like the previous one. Essentially, a STASI officer starts to develop empathy and see the world differently while listening in on the conversations of a subversive playwright. Visually this film is beautiful and the character development is fascinating – it really illustrates the terror and the distrust that existed at that time, a theme I feel like many people outside of Germany are unaware of.
3. Lola Rennt (1998). dir. Tykwer. This is a cult classic, and if you watch a trailer online, it doesn’t really do it justice. This movie basically explores various “what-ifs” and how small things (like tripping down the stairs) can completely change the outcome of a story. It’s very fast-paced and fun–this is a good movie to watch with friends. There’s less Existential Angst™ than in the majority of German cinema.
4. Der Himmel über Berlin (1987). dir. Wenders. Okay, this is 100% what comes to mind when I think of “pretentious European art film.” However, it is also incredibly beautiful and well-written, and if you like poetry and/or the Cold War and/or are interested in film composition, please watch this movie. Essentially, two angels watch normal people in their day-to-day life, and reflect on some Big Thoughts™.
5. Die Welle (2008). dir. Gansel. This is a movie that unfortunately will never stop being relevant. In fact, I wish this was part of the curriculum in high schools. This film is loosely based on real-life events, where a high-school teacher conducts an experiment to see just how quickly people can, essentially, turn towards fascism, violence, and an extremely “tribal” (or “group” ?)-based way of thinking. The experiment spirals out of control, to a tragic end.
6. Der Staat gegen Fritz Bauer (2015). dir. Kraume. I loved this movie. This is about a lawyer who wants to track down Eichmann (the Nazi war criminal) and bring him to Germany for trial. This is an excellent film because it deals with so many issues– the problem of former Nazis and Nazi sympathizers in government jobs (as well as the corporate world) who obstruct justice; it deals with homophobia and gender identity issues; as well as issues regarding bravery, and “staying alive” vs. “standing up for what’s right.” Having a gay Jewish protagonist in a German film that takes place in the 1950s/60s is really quite amazing, I recommend this heartily.
7. Sophie Scholl: die letzten Tage (2005). dir. Rothemund. This is maybe the only real “WW2 film” I think I’m going to recommend. Frankly everyone should know the story of the Scholls and their heroic actions.
8. Barbara (2012). dir. Petzold. This is a very dramatic and romantic movie with a strong female lead. This also takes place in East Germany, where a doctor is banished to the countryside and is forced to see things in a different light. This is more of a date night movie in my opinion.
9. Gegen die Wand (2004) & Auf der anderen Seite (2007). dir. Fatih Akīn. These are both movies that deal specifically with the German-Turkish experience. To me, these movies felt very Turkish, and are quite good - so if you are interested in learning about what is probably Germany’s biggest minority group, I would start with these.
10. Jenseits der Stille (1996). dir. Link. This is a very cute and touching movie about a (hearing) girl who has two deaf parents. She eventually decides to pursue a career in music, which her parents don’t understand. This deals a lot with identity issues (i.e., there being a distinct “deaf culture”), growing up, and family.
11. Freier Fall (2013). dir. Lacant. WELL, this was (to me, anyway) not exactly a masterpiece but it was a very enjoyable gay film. If you want to see Max Riemelt tenderly kissing another man, and/or fantasize about getting it on with one of your “Straight™” friends, then this is the movie for you. And frankly, who doesn’t want that, from time to time.
12. Romeos (2011). dir. Bernardi. I love this movie because there’s literally nothing else like it. There is an incredible dearth of media that features transsexual men, and this film found a way to do it that wasn’t offensive or patronizing. And to specifically address that you can be trans and gay–that gender identity and sexual orientation are not the same–wow! I’ve never seen that discussion anywhere else (except maybe in sense8, but I digress). The only thing I could criticize this movie for is that it’s a very “transition-oriented” film–the main character does not have much of a personality outside of transitioning. However, for what it shows and for what it is trying to do, it does it very well–the scenes are heartfelt and relatable, and the protagonist is very believable.
**These next few are television series.
1. Deutschland 83 (2015). If you haven’t seen this series yet, what are you doing. This is the most popular and interesting German television series that’s happened in a while. Essentially, a guy from East Germany gets recruited as a spy to live in the West… and a lot of espionage and great ‘80s music occur. It deals with some serious themes, but at the same time, it’s attractive because it has light-hearted moments and a lot of heart.
2. Der gleiche Himmel (2017). This has a very similar premise to Deutschland 83–another “east german spy” series. However, I think selling it as a Deutschland 83 rip-off for Netflix would be unfair–the series has merits of its own, and is much more serious in tone. While Deutschland 83 at times runs into “Goodbye-Lenin-joke-territory,” Der gleiche Himmel does not let you forget the dark side of reality. I enjoyed that this series let you see several different people’s lives, instead of focusing on just the spy–among them, a girl with Olympic aspirations who was given steroids by her coach (and suffered side effects re: male puberty), and a gay physics teacher whose lover was on the other side of the border, and was cut off from.
3. Dark (2017). If you like Stranger Things (or Xfiles)–you need to watch this right now. Personally I liked it better than Stranger Things (though I might be biased). It has a similar starting premise–the mysterious vanishing of a young boy. However, this series is so… German. We start off with a quotation from Albert Einstein, and rapidly get into an intricate, time-traveling mess. You could watch this several times and notice something new each time.
Alright, that’s all I can think of for right now– feel free to add your own! viel Glück!
