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Wings of Desire (1987)
Der Himmel über Berlin (original title)

PG_13 128 min  -  Fantasy | Drama | Romance  -   6 May 1988 (USA)
8.0
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Ratings: 8.0/10 from 26,730 users   Metascore: 79/100 
Reviews: 175 user | 75 critic | 9 from Metacritic.com

An angel tires of overseeing human activity and wishes to become human when he falls in love with a mortal.

Director:

Wim Wenders
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Nominated for BAFTA Film Award. Another 16 wins & 6 nominations See more awards »

Related Videos

Wings of Desire -- Interview: Wim Wenders "The Angels Among Us"
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Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bruno Ganz ...
Solveig Dommartin ...
Otto Sander Otto Sander ...
Curt Bois Curt Bois ...
Homer, the aged poet
Peter Falk ...
Der Filmstar
Hans Martin Stier Hans Martin Stier ...
In weiteren Rollen - Der Sterbende
Elmar Wilms Elmar Wilms ...
In weiteren Rollen - Ein trauriger Mann
Sigurd Rachman Sigurd Rachman ...
In weiteren Rollen - Der Selbstmörder
Beatrice Manowski Beatrice Manowski ...
In weiteren Rollen - Das Strichmädchen
Lajos Kovács ...
Im Zirkus - Marion's Trainer
Bruno Rosaz Bruno Rosaz ...
Im Zirkus - Der Clown
Laurent Petitgand Laurent Petitgand ...
Im Zirkus - Der Kapellmeister
Chick Ortega Chick Ortega ...
Im Zirkus - Der Schlagzeuger (as Chico Rojo Ortega)
Otto Kuhnle Otto Kuhnle ...
Im Zirkus - Die Jongleure
Christoph Merg Christoph Merg ...
Im Zirkus - Der Jongleure
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Storyline

This Wim Wenders film centers around the story of two angels wandering in a mixture of post-war and modern Berlin. Invisible to humans, they nevertheless give their help and comfort to all the lonely and depressed souls they meet. Finally, after many centuries, one of the angels becomes unhappy with his immortal state and wishes to become human in order to experience the joys of everyday life. He meets a circus acrobat and finds in her the fufillment of all his mortal desires. He also discovers that he is not alone in making this cross over, and that a purely spiritual experience is not enough to satisfy anyone. Written by Nell Rehn <NRehn@aol.com>  

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Plot Keywords:

Angel | Circus | Desire | Love | Flashback  | See more »

Taglines:

There are angels on the streets of Berlin.

Genres:

Fantasy | Drama | Romance

Parents Guide:

View content advisory »
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Details

Country:

West Germany | France

Language:

German | English | French | Turkish (some dialogue) | Hebrew | Spanish | Japanese (a few lines)

Release Date:

(USA) See more »

Also Known As:

Las alas del deseo See more »

Filming Locations:

Berlin, Germany See more »

Box Office

Gross:

$3,806,540 (USA) (20 September 1998) (re-issue)
See more »

Company Credits

Show detailed company contact information on IMDbPro »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor) | Black and White (partly)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1
See full technical specs »
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Did You Know?

Trivia

During the scene in the Berlin Library, Damiel leans over a young man who reads: "Ha'Aretz haita tohu-va-vohu". This is the second verse of the book of Genesis in Biblical Hebrew, and basically means "the land was in chaos". See more »

Goofs

Revealing mistakes: When Cassiel is crossing the street, there is a bus coming. You can hear the bus driver let off the accelerator to allow the actor to pass, and then accelerate when he is clear. But the character is an angel, which adults cannot see, yet by the sound of the bus, it is clear that the bus driver sees him. See more »

Quotes

[first lines]
[in German, using English subtitles]
Damiel: [voiceover] When the child was a child, it walked with its arms swinging. It wanted the stream to be a river, the river a torrent, and this puddle to be the sea. When the child was a child, it didn't know it was a child. Everything was full of life, and all life was one. When the child was a child, it had no opinion about anything, no habits. It often sat cross-legged, took off running, had a cowlick in its hair, and didn't make faces when photographed.
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Crazy Credits

Dedicated to all the former angels, but especially to Yasujiro, François and Andrej.
See more »

Connections

Referenced in Wings of Desire: The Angels Among Us (2003) See more »

Soundtracks

"The Carny"
by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds (as Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds) See more »