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Christiane F.

Original title: Christiane F. - Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo
  • 19811981
  • RR
  • 2h 18m
IMDb RATING
7.5/10
25K
YOUR RATING
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • IMDbPro
Christiane F. - Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo (1981)
  • Biography
  • Drama
A teen girl in 1970's Berlin becomes addicted to heroin. Everything in her life slowly begins to distort and disappear as she befriends a small crew of junkies and falls in love with a drug-... Read allA teen girl in 1970's Berlin becomes addicted to heroin. Everything in her life slowly begins to distort and disappear as she befriends a small crew of junkies and falls in love with a drug-abusing male prostitute.A teen girl in 1970's Berlin becomes addicted to heroin. Everything in her life slowly begins to distort and disappear as she befriends a small crew of junkies and falls in love with a drug-abusing male prostitute.
IMDb RATING
7.5/10
25K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Uli Edel
  • Writers
    • Herman Weigel
    • Kai Hermann(book)
    • Horst Rieck(book)
  • Stars
    • Natja Brunckhorst
    • Eberhard Auriga
    • Peggy Bussieck
Top credits
  • Director
    • Uli Edel
  • Writers
    • Herman Weigel
    • Kai Hermann(book)
    • Horst Rieck(book)
  • Stars
    • Natja Brunckhorst
    • Eberhard Auriga
    • Peggy Bussieck
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 89User reviews
    • 56Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 2 wins

    Videos2

    Trailer [OV]
    Trailer 1:24
    Trailer [OV]
    Sneak Previews Season 4 Episode 30
    Video 29:51
    Sneak Previews Season 4 Episode 30

    Photos34

    Christiane F. - Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo (1981)
    Christiane F. - Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo (1981)
    Natja Brunckhorst in Christiane F. - Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo (1981)
    Natja Brunckhorst in Christiane F. - Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo (1981)
    Natja Brunckhorst in Christiane F. - Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo (1981)
    Natja Brunckhorst in Christiane F. - Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo (1981)
    David Bowie and Natja Brunckhorst in Christiane F. - Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo (1981)
    David Bowie and Natja Brunckhorst in Christiane F. - Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo (1981)
    Natja Brunckhorst in Christiane F. - Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo (1981)
    Natja Brunckhorst in Christiane F. - Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo (1981)
    David Bowie and Natja Brunckhorst in Christiane F. - Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo (1981)
    Natja Brunckhorst in Christiane F. - Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo (1981)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Natja Brunckhorst
    Natja Brunckhorst
    • Christianeas Christiane
    Eberhard Auriga
    • Alter Fixeras Alter Fixer
    Peggy Bussieck
    • Puppias Puppi
    Lothar Chamski
    • Rolfas Rolf
    Rainer Woelk
    • Leicheas Leiche
    • (as Rainer Wölk)
    Uwe Diderich
    • Klausas Klaus
    Jan Georg Effler
    • Berndas Bernd
    Ellen Esser
    • Kessis Mutteras Kessis Mutter
    Andreas Fuhrmann
    • Atzeas Atze
    Thomas Haustein
    • Detlevas Detlev
    Lutz Hemmerling
    • Bienenstichas Bienenstich
    Daniela Jaeger
    • Kessias Kessi
    Bernhard Janson
    • Milanas Milan
    Jens Kuphal
    • Axelas Axel
    Christiane Lechle
    • Christianes Mutteras Christianes Mutter
    Kerstin Malessa
    • Tinaas Tina
    Christiane Reichelt
    • Babsias Babsi
    Kerstin Richter
    • Stellaas Stella
    • Director
      • Uli Edel
    • Writers
      • Herman Weigel
      • Kai Hermann(book)
      • Horst Rieck(book)
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
    • All cast & crew

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    Storyline

    Edit
    This movie portrays the drug scene in Berlin in the 1970s, following tape recordings of Christiane F. 14-year-old Christiane lives with her mother and little sister in a typical multi-story apartment building in Berlin. She's fascinated by 'The Sound', a new disco with the most modern equipment. Although legally she's too young, she asks a friend to take her. There, she meets Detlef, who's in a clique where everybody's on drugs. Step by step she gets drawn deeper into the scene. —Tom Zoerner <Tom.Zoerner@informatik.uni-erlangen.de>
    • west berlin west germany
    • death by overdose
    • reference to david bowie
    • drugs
    • heroin
    • 141 more
    • Plot summary
    • Add synopsis
    • Taglines
      • At 12 it was Angel Dust. At 13 it was heroin. Then she took to the streets.
    • Genres
      • Biography
      • Drama
    • Certificate
      • R
    • Parents guide

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Many extras and background artists appearing in the Sound Club and Railway Station scenes were real life youth, drug addicts, and prostitutes who were found by the production for the sequences involving crowds.
    • Goofs
      Christiane F. plays the David Bowie album, "ChangesOneBowie," in her room. But the song that is heard - the German version of "Heroes" ("Helden") - is not on that particular record.
    • Crazy credits
      Dedicated to: Andreas W. "Atze" (1960 - 77), Axel W. (1960 - 77), Babette D. "Babsi" (1963 - 77) and all others who didn't have the luck and strength to survive.
    • Alternate versions
      For its UK theatrical release the film was cut by 12 secs by the BBFC, though video versions were much heavier cut by over 5 minutes with all of the edits made to scenes showing the preparation and injection of heroin. The cuts were fully waived in 2000 for all video and DVD releases.
    • Connections
      Featured in Sneak Previews: Conan the Barbarian/Christiane F./Partners/The Sword and The Sorcerer (1982)
    • Soundtracks
      V2 Schneider
      Written by David Bowie

      RCA Records

      Courtesy Rolf-Budde-Verlag, Berlin

    User reviews89

    Review
    Top review
    The Image of Generation
    I've seen many films portraying drug addiction but none with such terrifying authenitcity as this film. It's funny. I haven't really thought about this film in years and what made me suddenly think of it now was I was thinking about movies on my DVD wish list. CHRISTIANE F was on that list. So for s***s and giggles I ran a routine search in the Internet Movie Database (this site is GOD!!!) and low and behold, it was out!!! Naturally, I placed my order for it. As much as I wished it was the subtitled version (which is only available in PAL), I have the German version as well as the dubbed so that's not that bad. To those who have seen REQUIEM FOR A DREAM and thought that it was the most disturbing film they've seen about drug addiction, I have news for ya: you haven't seen anything yet! CHRISTIANE F., makes REQUIEM look like a Disney film in comparison. Although the English dubbing is really cheesy and bad, still it doesn't detract from Ulrich Edel's images of the dark, seedy, and depressing world of heroin addicts.

    Subtitled, "Image of a Generation", CHRISTIANE F is the true story of a lonely, bored teenager in the '70's who gets into the drug scene at 12, hooked on heroin at 13 and becomes a prostitute at 14 to support her habit. There are a couple of things about this that struck me. First, was that Edel used all unknowns for the main parts, especially the kids. They acted so naturally, that even Edel makes the comment that "it's a wonder they haven't been actors or junkies their whole lives." Also the kids who played the main characters, were as close to the age as the real people they were portraying. Nadja Brunckhorst, who plays Christiane, was fourteen at the time and does a remarkable job. In fact, this movie pretty much made her a star in Germany and to this day has had a prolific acting career, mainly on German TV as well as some film work. The second was the use of David Bowie's music in the soundtrack. Now, I'm biased. I'm a huge fan of Bowie but even if I wasn't, his music was used to staggering effect. Truly memorable was the scene toward the end of the film as Bowie's song 'Sense of Doubt' is played in the background as Edel's camera pans across the sad, ghostly faces of people at the subway platform. The music captures the despair of the scene very well, almost too well for comfort. The music serves, as any great film music should, as another character in the film, helping to portray the despair, loneliness, bravado, confusion of adolescence. I feel I can identify with Christiane and her life when I was her age. I was lonely, alienated, and sad. Where as she escaped her pain with drugs, I escaped mine through my writing. I can sympathize completely. You want to fit in with a group so badly that you'll do things that you know you shouldn't just to "be cool". Well, I really wish more teenagers would be shown this film. Would it change a life? Maybe. I do know one thing for me: after reading her book, from which this film is based, I've found a kindred soul. From what I know, she is clean and has been since the film's original release. I hope she continues to have the strength to remain so. Because once a junkie, always a junkie. "We can be heroes, just for one day."-David Bowie, 'Heroes' This song becomes a very understated theme for this film, a song about hope in a film where there's very little hope to be found.
    helpful•107
    10
    • goblingoddess
    • Jul 29, 2001

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • April 2, 1981 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • West Germany
    • Language
      • German
    • Also known as
      • We Children from Bahnhof Zoo
    • Filming locations
      • Europa-Center, Charlottenburg, Berlin, Germany
    • Production companies
      • Solaris Film
      • Maran Film
      • Popular Filmproduktion
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • DEM 4,000,000 (estimated)
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      2 hours 18 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.66 : 1

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