West (2013)

She Can See Her Future, But Can't Escape Her Past.

Director:

Christian Schwochow

Writers:

Heide Schwochow (screenplay), Julia Franck (novel)

Stars:

Jördis Triebel, Tristan Göbel, Jacky Ido

5 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jördis Triebel	...	Dr. Nelly Senff
Tristan Göbel	...	Alexej Senff
Jacky Ido	...	John Bird - CIA-Agent
Anja Antonowicz	...	Krystyna Jablonowska (as Anna Antonowicz)
Ryszard Ronczewski	...	Jakub - Krystynas Vater
Andreas Nickl	...	Gerd Becker
Polina Voskresenskaya	...	Jelena
Alexander Scheer	...	Hans Pischke
Hendrik Arnst	...	Pförtner Neumann
Michael Benthin	...	Arthur Wilhelm
Tatjana Berges	...	Großmutter von Jelena
Angelika Böttiger	...	Dame vom ärztlichen Dienst
Winnie Böwe	...	Susanne
Indre Bogdan	...	Frau mit roten Haaren
Diana Maria Breuer	...	Beamtin 1 (as Diana-Maria Breuer)

Storyline

East Germany. Summer, late 70's. Three years after her boyfriend Wassilij's apparent death, Nelly Senff decides to escape from behind the Berlin wall with her son Alexej, leaving her traumatic memories and past behind. Pretending to marry a West German, she crosses the border to start a new life in the West. But soon her past starts to haunt her as the Allied Secret Service begin to question Wassilij's mysterious disappearance. Is he still alive? Was he a spy? Plagued by her past and fraught with paranoia, Nelly is forced to choose between discovering the truth about her former lover and her hopes for a better tomorrow.

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Plot Keywords:

boy wears eyeglasses | berlin germany | border | germany | german | 

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Taglines:

She Can See Her Future, But Can't Escape Her Past

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for a sex scene, brief nudity and violence

Did You Know?

Trivia

This film's "West" (German: "Westen") title refers to the former German nation country of "West Germany".

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Connections

References I'm Shy, But I'll Heal (1978)

User Reviews

The institution of trust

As it's name suggests, Christian Schwochow's 'West' is a film about the West, but also the East: specifically, about cold-war Germany. Its central protagonist, wonderfully played by the beautiful Joerdis Triebel, is a somewhat arrogant east German who, on crossing the iron curtain, struggles to cope with the demands made of an unconnected immigrant in a strange country; but who also struggles with the legacy of her past. The film neither glosses over the evils of the eastern regime, nor suggests that life in the west is a simple panacea; above all else, it demonstrates the fatal way that police states damage the institution of trust in a way that cannot easily be repaired. The ambiguous figure of a rumoured informer provides a focus for a powerful story that is ultimately more about people than systems.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

Germany

Language:

German English Russian Polish

Release Date:

7 November 2014 (USA)

Also Known As:

West

Filming Locations:

Bonn, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$220,857

Company Credits

Production Co:

ö Filmproduktion, Zero One Film, Terz Filmproduktion

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1