Good bye Lenin on DVD
Film // Jim // 4th April 2004
For some reason I have been watching a lot of what we English patronisingly refer to as foreign films lately, not by design really, just that most films that seem interesting or worth seeing aren’t being made by English or American people at the moment.
Most American films that hit the mainstream are so derivative and dull that I have noticed more and more people browsing the “World Cinema” subsection of Blockbuster while trying not to appear like pretentious nonces. At the cinema there are also treats awaiting those unafraid of reading the odd subtitle, Battle Royale 2 and Zatoichi will be hitting British (well London at least) screens soon and will probably be two of the best films of the year. Next time you go down to the video library, resist the temptation to get the remake of Texas Chainsaw Massacre or Matrix Revolutions and grab one of the following. You’ll thank me for it:
Battle Royale: Brutal action flick with deeper undercurrents, more detail here.
City Of God: Epic and stylish tale of growing up in the drug dealing gangs that run the slums of Rio. Easily one of the best films you will ever see.
Amores Perros: Several interconnected stories all collapse together, like a superior version of Pulp Fiction, but with lots of dogs and better acting.
Intacto: Spooky thriller about people who play underground games to steal each others luck. Very clever indeed and looks absolutely stunning.
Dead or Alive: You’ll need a strong stomach, or a good sense of humour to get through this twisted Yakuza flick. Like John Woo but with more shit and spunk.
First of all though get Good bye Lenin, which is a comedy about East Germany and communism. I know, sounds about as interesting as knitting - but wait! This is a great film that deserves to be seen by an audience larger than the bunch of chin scratchers on Late Review (or whatever they are calling it these days).
After growing up in the slightly grim, Stasi patrolled DDR, Alex and his Sister have had a great time when the Berlin Wall falls. He gets a job installing satellite dishes and nips across the border to have a gander at some porn. She gets a job at Burger King and a brand new boyfriend with a sunbed and some “interesting” hobbies.
They have a problem though, their mother (married to the party since her husband absconded to the west) fell into a coma shortly before the political upheaval in Germany. Some months later when she wakes up they are warned that any shocking news could cause her to snuff it.
The upshot is that Alex has to pretend that nothing has changed, meaning a series of elaborate deceptions maintaining the facade of communist East Germany for his convalescing mother; old furniture is brought back, tatty old clothes are dug out, food labels swapped and even fake TV broadcasts staged. The escalating means to which Alex must stretch to cover up the truth provide most of the laughs. Coke adverts appearing on nearby buildings provide a stern test to his creativity.
Alex and his Mum: Suspicions, Shit Wallpaper
There is also underlying satire at work. In filtering and spinning what his mother sees and hears Alex is gradually replacing the oppressive regime that has departed. Although he is operating from what he believes to be the purest of motives he eventually becomes something of a control freak and certainly less likeable. Clever stuff indeed.
Although there are elements of romance and redemption along the way, Good bye Lenin never veers into slushy sentimentalism in the way that you just know that the hollywood remake is going to. Also top marks for the excellent and imposing title sequence, wish I’d seen it on the big screen.
Comments
nah. ace wallpaper. just too much of it.
steve : 05/04/2004 20:50:12
Add to the list the French action comedy Taxi; Bank robbers, car chases, foxy ladies and lots of jokes. Super.
Jim : 30/04/2004 00:35:46