Muiden elämä (2006)

In 1984 East Berlin, an agent of the secret police, conducting surveillance on a writer and his lover, finds himself becoming increasingly absorbed by their lives.

Director:

Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck

Writer:

Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck

Stars:

Ulrich Mühe, Martina Gedeck, Sebastian Koch

Top Rated Movies #59 | Won 1 Oscar. Another 78 wins & 35 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Martina Gedeck	...	Christa-Maria Sieland
Ulrich Mühe	...	Hauptmann Gerd Wiesler
Sebastian Koch	...	Georg Dreyman
Ulrich Tukur	...	Oberstleutnant Anton Grubitz
Thomas Thieme	...	Minister Bruno Hempf
Hans-Uwe Bauer	...	Paul Hauser
Volkmar Kleinert	...	Albert Jerska
Matthias Brenner	...	Karl Wallner
Charly Hübner	...	Udo
Herbert Knaup	...	Gregor Hessenstein
Bastian Trost	...	Häftling 227
Marie Gruber	...	Frau Meineke
Volker Michalowski	...	Schriftexperte (as Zack Volker Michalowski)
Werner Daehn	...	Einsatzleiter in Uniform
Martin Brambach	...	Einsatzleiter Meyer

Storyline

Gerd Wiesler is an officer with the Stasi, the East German secret police. The film begins in 1984 when Wiesler attends a play written by Georg Dreyman, who is considered by many to be the ultimate example of the loyal citizen. Wiesler has a gut feeling that Dreyman can't be as ideal as he seems, and believes surveillance is called for. The Minister of Culture agrees but only later does Wiesler learn that the Minister sees Dreyman as a rival and lusts after his partner Christa-Maria. The more time he spends listening in on them, the more he comes to care about them. The once rigid Stasi officer begins to intervene in their lives, in a positive way, protecting them whenever possible. Eventually, Wiesler's activities catch up to him and while there is no proof of wrongdoing, he finds himself in menial jobs - until the unbelievable happens.

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Plot Keywords:

stasi | political thriller | secret police | spy | murder | 

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Taglines:

Before the Fall of the Berlin Wall, East Germany's Secret Police Listened to Your Secrets

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Genres:

Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

K-11

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [United States]

Country:

Germany

Language:

German

Release Date:

27 October 2006 (Finland)

Also Known As:

Muiden elämä

Filming Locations:

Gedenkstätte Hohenschönhausen, Hohenschönhausen, Berlin, Germany

Box Office

Budget:

$2,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$213,971, 11 February 2007

Gross USA:

$11,286,112

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$77,356,942

Company Credits

Production Co:

Wiedemann & Berg Filmproduktion, Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR), Arte France

Technical Specs

Runtime:

137 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Italian censorship visa # 100662 delivered on 3 April 2007.

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Goofs

Christa-Maria and Georg's apartment is in Wedekind street in Friedrichshain, as confirmed in the DVD commentary. The buildings in the entire quarter surrounding Wedekindstr were part of a massive rebuilding project in the GDR, and were completed in the early 1950s. All of the balconies that can be seen while Georg is playing football with the children on the street, along with the ceramic work illustrate the particular Soviet style really clearly. However, the interior of the apartment and most of what we see of the building interior is what would be called 'alt bau', effectively 'old style' - the apartment has high ceilings, the stairwells have carved wooden balustrades and doors which clearly predate the 50s. When the Stasi men come through the front doors for the first time, you can see the interior of these buildings as they really look, in the next shot the style has gone back at least 40 years.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Guard: [subtitled version] Stand still. Eyes to the floor.
[pause]
Guard: Walk on.

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Alternate Versions

The US version features a written prologue in English, explaining the historical context of the film.

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Connections

Referenced in Cleanflix (2009)

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Soundtracks

Das Leben Der Anderen
Composed By Gabriel Yared, Stéphane Moucha
Conducted by Adam Klemens
Performed by The City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra
© & (p) 2006 Colosseum Schallplatten GmbH, under exclusive license of Gabriel Yared, Stéphane Moucha & Sony BMG Music Entertainment (Germany) GmbH.

User Reviews

Best film in years

After seeing the outstanding Pan's Labyrinth, I could not understand how anything could beat it to the Oscar for Best Film, let alone the accolade of Best Foreign Film. That was until I saw The Lives of Others.

Putting it simply, this is the best film released in years. The framework of the story surrounds a Stasi officer who is assigned to monitor a writer and his actress girlfriend considered loyal to East German regime. That is all I am prepared to reveal because this film operates on so many levels that I wouldn't know where to begin. On the surface this can be enjoyed as a taut drama but essentially it is a study of the human condition and the capacity for compassion and humanity exists in even the most inhumane people. All of this is shot against the backdrop of the greys and browns of communist East Germany.

As a film it is virtually flawless. The three central performances are nothing short of electric, with particularly Ulrich Muhe giving one of the greatest leading man performances since Al Pacino in The Godfather. None of this would be possible without a brilliant script and exemplary direction, that brings the characters to life extracting the best out of the actors. The result is no words are wasted, and every scene is relevant and expertly conceived. This manages to explore deep issues without being turgid, is moving without being draining and remains gripping and entertaining without being superficial.

In summary, this is film-making at its finest. It is the sort of movie that you'll go down on bended knee and pay homage to the inventor of cinema, because it is films like this that cinema was created for. You'll forgive a year of tedious sequels and cash cows, for the one day that films like this get released.

10 out of 10 is too modest.