Good Bye Lenin! (2003)

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.

Director:

Wolfgang Becker

Writers:

Bernd Lichtenberg, Achim von Borries (collaborator on screenplay)

Stars:

Daniel Brühl, Katrin Saß, Chulpan Khamatova

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 36 wins & 21 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Daniel Brühl	...	Alex
Katrin Saß	...	Mutter
Chulpan Khamatova	...	Lara
Maria Simon	...	Ariane
Florian Lukas	...	Denis
Alexander Beyer	...	Rainer
Burghart Klaußner	...	Alex' Vater
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)

Storyline

East Germany, the year 1989: A young man protests against the regime. His mother watches the police arresting him and suffers a heart attack and falls into a coma. Some months later, the DDR does not exist anymore and the mother awakes. Since she has to avoid every excitement, the son tries to set up the DDR again for her in their flat. But the world has changed a lot.

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Plot Keywords:

coma | german democratic republic | capitalism | political activism | german reunification | 

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Taglines:

The German Democratic Republic lives on -- in 79 square meters!

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for brief language and sexuality

Did You Know?

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.

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Goofs

Alex puts the contents of a pack of Jacobs coffee into GDR packaging, but the logo on the Western coffee package is the one that was launched in the late '90s.

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Quotes

Alexander Kerner: All this stuff has to go. Are the old curtains in the cellar?
Ariane Kerner: You can't be serious.

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Crazy Credits

A CPR instructional diagram is included in the end credits.

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Connections

References La Dolce Vita (1960)

User Reviews

Socially conscious black comedy

'Good Bye, Lenin!' is a fascinating German film that was for unclear reasons denied a best foreign film nomination in the recent Oscars, but I consider it one of the best films I've seen this year. 'Good Bye, Lenin!' is an entertaining and surreal black comedy, that doesn't really stand the test of logic and reality, but beneath the surface it's really a very socially conscious film, that gets across very well the atmosphere and problems of the post-communist East Germany.

The story is of Alex, whose mother, a devoted member of the Communist Party, suffers a heart attack which sends her into a coma - through which she sleeps throughout the months of revolution and the fall of the communist regime. When she awakes, the doctors warn Alex not to cause his mother any anxiety or excitement; therefore, he goes to ludicrously immense lengths to keep her convinced that communism in East Berlin is still alive. Not much of it, once again, stands the test of reason, but it's incredibly witty and entertaining, and manages, throughout, to get across some powerful statements.

'Good Bye, Lenin!' is both fun and important, a film which I recommend to everyone. Don't be afraid of European cinema; even though the film might be difficult to come by, it's very rewarding and well worth your time.

Details

Official Sites:

German Cinema Archive Océan Films [France]

Country:

Germany

Language:

German English Russian

Release Date:

14 May 2004 (USA)

Also Known As:

Good Bye Lenin!

Filming Locations:

Studio Berlin Adlershof, Am Studio 20, Adlershof, Berlin, Germany

Box Office

Budget:

EUR4,800,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$57,968, 29 February 2004

Gross USA:

$4,064,200

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$79,316,957

Company Credits

Production Co:

X-Filme Creative Pool, Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR), ARTE

Technical Specs

Runtime:

121 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Black and White (archive footage) Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1