Das Leben der Anderen

This film is © by Sony Picture Classics, 2006
This film is being distributed in the US as "The Lives of Others"

Starring:

Sebastian Koch as Georg Dreyman
Ulrich Muehe as Captain Gerd Wiesler
Martina Gedeck as Christa-Maria Sieland
Ulrich Tukur as Lt-Col Anton Grubitz
Thomas Thieme as Minister Bruno Hempf

Directed by: Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck

RATING:

German with English subtitles.
It is 1984 in East-Berlin, where the communist government stronghold on culture and information has its people completely imprisoned. Constant surveillance of anyone who appears to be a threat is the order of the day; and in East-Berlin just about anything will cause reason for suspicion. Enter Captain Gerd Wiesler, a cold and ruthless government official who interrogates and investigates citizens with an eagle eye. He is appointed to collect evidence on Georg Dreyman, a plawright whose association with blacklisted artists has brought him negative attention. A key to Wiesler's investigation will involve Dreyman's girlfriend, Christa-Maria. She is being manipulated by high officers of the communist party and cause Wiesler to think twice about what the government is doing to its people.

A unique human tale develops as Wiesler begins to sympathize with his subjects the longer he goes on listening to their everyday lives. This film provides a great story that has quite an unpredictable ending. This story works due to the actors and how they shape their roles. Ulrich Muehe is central as Captain Wiesler and his evolution from a cold bureaucrat to a sympathetic human being slowly and subtlety comes to fruition through Muehe's performance. Sebastian Koch and Martina Gedeck do a wonderful job with their own roles, particularly in the dynamics of the relationship between Dreyman and Christa-Maria. Their relationship symbolizes the suffering of a people as they are torn apart from each other by manipulation and blackmail. While this is rather sad, it really shows the real results of a tough and oppressive government.

The plot is set up well and the stage is set for a story that will twist and turn along the way. It is not clear whether tragedy or triumph will fall upon the characters that are part of the government as well as the people who try to just get by in this environment. At one point I felt the movie needed to pick up the pace and right there and there it did so I was pleased in how the movie flowed. While the ending could have been a bit more concise it was still pretty good. Using the passing of time to create perspective is good, but when overdone it can lose its effect. While this film did not make this mistake, it came close to doing so. Nevertheless, the ending is rather simple and really brings the experiences of all its players together to make its statement.

While dealing with such a story it is very easy to create a good vs. bad juxtaposition of characters. This movie does not do so, it presents individual people with a great deal of complexity and everything is not as easy as us vs. them. This is often seen in European films which I feel is really lacking in American movies. The message presented here is a universal one and is really not a film with a strong political agenda. I think most people would enjoy it, especially if you remember the time of the USSR and the Berlin Wall. The plot is good, so is the acting and the ending will make the viewer feel good as well. This is a really enjoyable picture.