Good Bye Lenin! (2003)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Wolfgang Becker

Writers:

Bernd Lichtenberg (written by) and
Wolfgang Becker (co-author)

Release Date:

13 February 2003 (Germany)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

Die DDR lebt weiter -- auf 79 qm!

Plot:

In 1990, to protect his fragile mother from a fatal shock after a long coma; a young man must keep her from learning that her beloved nation of East Germany as she knew it has disappeared.

Plot Keywords:

Coma | Germany | Heart Attack | East Germany | Nurse

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 31 wins & 14 nominations

Cast

Daniel Brühl	...	Alexander 'Alex' Kerner
Katrin Saß	...	Christiane Kerner (as Kathrin Sass)
Chulpan Khamatova	...	Lara
Maria Simon	...	Ariane Kerner
Florian Lukas	...	Denis
Alexander Beyer	...	Rainer
Burghart Klaußner	...	Robert Kerner
Michael Gwisdek	...	Klapprath
Christine Schorn	...	Frau Schäfer
Jürgen Holtz	...	Herr Ganske
Jochen Stern	...	Herr Mehlert
Stefan Walz	...	Sigmund Jähn
Eberhard Kirchberg	...	Dr. Wagner
Hans-Uwe Bauer	...	Dr. Mewes
Nico Ledermueller	...	Alex - 11 Jahre (as Nico Ledermüller)

Also Known As:

79 qm DDR (Germany) (working title)
Goodbye Lenin! (International: English title)

MPAA:

Rated R for brief language and sexuality.

Runtime:

121 min | Argentina:112 min

Country:

Germany

Language:

German

Color:

Black and White (archive footage) | Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:L | Ireland:15 (IFCO) | South Korea:12 | New Zealand:M (DVD rating) | Argentina:Atp | Australia:M | Canada:14A | Canada:G (Québec) | Chile:TE | Denmark:7 | Finland:K-11 | France:U | Germany:6 (w) | Hong Kong:IIB | Netherlands:12 | Singapore:M18 (re-rating) | Singapore:R(A) (original rating) | Spain:13 | Sweden:7 | UK:15 | USA:R | Peru:PT | Switzerland:12 (canton of Zurich) | Portugal:M/12

Filming Locations:

Alexanderplatz, Mitte, Berlin, Germany

Company:

X-Filme Creative Pool

Trivia:

CGI was used extensively to "de-Westernize" Berlin. Even though it's mostly shot in the former East Berlin and much of the film takes place after the fall of the wall, it's been Westernized since at a furious rate. Many ads for Western products had to be removed, and many colors had to be lightened or grayed significantly.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: As Alex is being driven away from his mother in the truck at night, you can see faint blue sky in the background.

Quotes:

Alexander Kerner: On the evening of October 7, 1989 several hundred people got together for some evening exercise and marched for the right to go for walks without the Berlin Wall getting in their way.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Der Schmerz geht, der Film bleibt (2004) (V)

Soundtrack:

Comptine d'Un Autre Été: L'après Midi

Very good

There's not many movies which show a sympathetic view of the former East Germany.

In late 1980s East Germany a young man's socialist mother falls into a coma only to reawaken after reunification.

One of these movies that you need to concentrate on to follow the plot. It uses a clever editing style coupled with voiceovers. Many great scenes including the Coca-Cola banner, the father's party, the statue of Lenin hanging from a helicopter (a Fellini ripoff), the sped-up rearranging of the bedroom with the William Tell overture on the soundtrack (a Kubrick rip-off), the final scenes of former East Germany and the son's sexy nurse/girlfriend. "Good bye, Lenin" makes interesting points about how not everyone desires a consumerist culture. Good piano motif on the soundtrack.

When I bought a cinema ticket for "Good bye, Lenin" I was warned that the movie contained subtitles. I replied "all the better" and of course I wasn't disappointed with this fine movie.