Until the End of the World (1991)

In 1999, Claire's life is forever changed after she survives a car crash. She rescues Sam and starts traveling around the world with him. Writer Eugene follows them and writes their story, as a way of recording dreams is being invented.

Director:

Wim Wenders

Writers:

Peter Carey (screenplay), Wim Wenders (screenplay)

Stars:

William Hurt, Solveig Dommartin, Pietro Falcone

3 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Solveig Dommartin	...	Claire Tourneur
Pietro Falcone	...	Mario
Enzo Turrin	...	Arzt
Chick Ortega	...	Chico Rémy
Eddy Mitchell	...	Raymond Monnet
William Hurt	...	Sam Farber, alias Trevor McPhee
Adelle Lutz	...	Makiko
Ernie Dingo	...	Burt
Jean-Charles Dumay	...	Automechaniker (as Jean Charles Dumay)
Sam Neill	...	Eugene Fitzpatrick
Ernest Berk	...	Anton Farber
Christine Oesterlein	...	Irina Farber (as Christine Österlein)
Rüdiger Vogler	...	Phillip Winter
Diogo Dória	...	Hotelportier (as Diogo Doria)
Amália Rodrigues	...	Frau in Strassenbahn (as Amalia Rodrigues)

Storyline

Set in 1999, a woman (Dommartin) has a car accident with some bank robbers, who enlist her help to take the bank money to a drop in Paris. On the way she runs into another fugitive from the law (Hurt), an American who is being chased by the CIA. The charges are false, he claims. They want to confiscate a device his father invented which allows anyone to record their dreams and vision. On the run from both the bank robbers and the CIA, the couple span the globe, ending up in Australia at his father's (von Sydow) research facility, where they hope to play back the recordings Hurt captured for his blind mother. Set in the futuristic year of 1999, a subplot about a damaged Indian nuclear satellite crashing and causing the end of civilization is a puzzling addition to the film.

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Plot Keywords:

movie flop | voice over narration | voiceover | voiceover narration | venice italy | 

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Taglines:

It's 1999. The government will kill for his invention. One woman will do anything for his love. Together they share an adventure that circles the globe - And invades the mind.

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Genres:

Action | Drama | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and sensuality

Did You Know?

Trivia

Willem Dafoe was originally pursued for the William Hurt part.

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Goofs

When Bert is shown as the guitarist in Chico's impromptu band for the first time, he hands the guitar to the green-shirted man on the bridge while the rest of the band keeps playing. But when the scene cuts to a different angle, Bert is still playing the guitar.

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Quotes

Eugene Fitzpatrick: [voice over] I believed in words. And I believed in the magic and healing powers of storytelling.

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Alternate Versions

A fourth version, running 287 minutes, premiered on March 7, 2015 at the Museum of Modern Art as part of a Wim Wenders retrospective, with Wenders in attendance. It is a 4K restoration (by Arri Film & TV Services Berlin, supported by the French National Centre for Cinema (CNC)), but is different from the 'trilogy' version mentioned above, in that it is presented in one part (albeit with an intermission 131 minutes in), and with a single opening credit sequence. This is the version released by The Criterion Collection on Blu-Ray and DVD in December 2019, which was also the film's first physical release in the US since 1992.

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Connections

Referenced in Cinemania (2002)

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Soundtracks

Calling All Angels
Written by Jane Siberry
Performed by Jane Siberry with k.d. lang
Courtesy of Reprise Records and Sire Records Company

User Reviews

An grand and inspiring adventure

I have only seen the full-length 280-minute "trilogy" version of this film (at the 2001 USA Film Festival in Dallas), and I honestly cannot identify any sequences that could be cut without seriously compromising the flow of the story.

This film works so well on so many different levels -- an adventure, a love story, a question of ethics and technology, life and death, love and family, but mostly it explores the question, "how far must we travel (or how long must we sit in the theater) to find that which we seek, and what exactly is it we're seeking anyway"?

Yes, 4-1/2 hours is a long time to sit still (although, with two intermissions it's not all that bad), but for those of us who enjoy a good film that's not made from a pat formula of committee-designed ingredients in strictly regulated proportions, it's worth every minute.

Details

Country:

Germany France Australia

Language:

English French Italian Japanese German

Release Date:

25 December 1991 (USA)

Also Known As:

Until the End of the World

Filming Locations:

Germany

Box Office

Budget:

$23,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$38,553, 29 December 1991

Gross USA:

$829,625

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$829,625

Company Credits

Production Co:

Argos Films, Road Movies Filmproduktion, Village Roadshow Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

158 min 179 min (1991 European cut) 287 min (2014 Director's Cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo LC-Concept Digital Sound (France)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1