This German film is unique and succeeds in its quirky portrayal of tragic and momentous events, some which define a young mans life, others define the 20th Century. The story is quite far- fetched, but yet it is not outrageous. The comedic aspect of the film relieves the cynicism one might have for the strange plot; a mother, and a devout communist, has a heart attack when she sees her son protesting for easy crossing into the enemy state on the other side of the Berlin Wall. This puts her in a coma, sleeping through the swift deformation of all that she believes in. To prevent his mother having another heart-attack from the shock of seeing the effects, the loss of her socialist fatherland, the son Alex recreates the oppressive regime in the secret, and safety of a bedroom.


Alex's eyes are opened when he meets Lara, a young nurse, who introduces him to West Berlin club culture. A riot of clashing techno sounds and men on basses in mechanical costumes emerge. The knowledge that families deserted Berlin apartments when they escaped to the West opens up a massive opportunity to young adults to commandeer the houses. Next, ensues a life of spontaneous fun, living off the explosive culture, unfamiliar to East Berliners.
It is hard to really understand the elation or disappointment when two halves of a city merge after only 40 Years of being apart. Families would be reunited and risk of escaping for freedom would dissolve. The influx of something they had been indoctrinated to believe was dangerous (capitalism and a crazed consumerist society) is hard for some to comprehend. It was a strange time only to be fully appreciated if you were a Berliner in the 1990s only 20 years ago.
Very good if your studying the cold war for GCSE like me ;) so ****
No comments:
Post a Comment