Goodbye Lenin review

 Number 541 on the top 1000 films of all time is the German tragicomedy 'Goodbye Lenin.'

On the eve of the fall of the Berlin Wall, the emotionally fragile mother and staunch Socialist Unity Party supporter Christiane Kerner (Katrin Suss) falls into a coma. Upon waking up, the wall has fallen and Germany has been re-unified. However, her son Alex (Daniel Bruhl) resolves to hide the truth, in case, the shock kills her.

I think it's quite easy to compare this film to the later German film: the Lives of Others. Released three years later, this film is also set in the newly-reunited Germany although with a far more dour tone.

Not necessarily a bad thing, but Goodbye Lenin had a far more hopeful and optimistic tone. The Lives of Others was all about exposing subterfuge, but Goodbye Lenin hinged on subterfuge. Most of all from Alex who is desperately trying to keep the truth from his mother even as his web of lies spins out of control.

Alex was played by Daniel Bruhl in his breakout role. Since then he has gone onto appear in Hollywood films like Inglorious Basterds and Rush. But Goodbye Lenin was where everything started. Alex's dedication into keeping the truth from his mother soon grew into an unhealthy obsession that threatens to tear apart his relationship with hi sister Ariane (Maria Simon) and girlfriend Lara (Chulpun Kamatova.)

Although the charade starts with the best of intentions it soon unravels as Christiane starts getting glimpses of the real world. No amount of fake news reports that Alex films especially will do anything to stop Christiane from discovering the truth.

All this would be good and well expect this narrative work is undone in the film's final act. After Christiane recovers well enough to visit the family dacha and reveal a devastating family secret, she suddenly relapses and has to return to hospital. It all just seemed a rather cheap way to generate conflict.

That being said, I did enjoy Goodbye Lenin. I enjoyed its hopeful, optimistic tone and it did launch Daniel Bruhl's career. Although it wasn't Oscar-nominated it quite rightly won other awards like Cesars and Lolas.

Wings of Desire review

 Number 258 on the top 1000 films of all time is Wim Wenders 1987 romantic fantasy 'Wings of Desire.'

Damiel (Bruno Ganz) and Cassiel (Otto Sander) are two angels watching over the citizens of Berlin able to hear thoughts but unable to engage in the human world. That all changes when Damiel falls in love with acrobat Marion (Solveig Dommartin) and decides to give up being an angel and become human.

It's been a while since I've fallen asleep watching a film, but it has also been a while since I've watched a film as slow, boring or pretentious as Wings of Desire. It had a lot of potential, which was all ultimately squandered in faux-philosophy.

The angels have the ability to hear people's thoughts and all the people they hear are thinking deep, profound thoughts. It's complete nonsense. Nobody thinks like that in real life. I'm sure we all like to think we're the next John Locke, but we're really not. Myself included. And their telepathy seems ultimately pointless as they have little positive effective in the human world. Cassiel hears the thoughts of a suicidal young man, but is unable to stop him from jumping to his death.

And when Damiel meets and falls in love with Marion - of which he decides to turn human for, I had all but lost interest. The film's redeeming feature was Peter Falk who played a human who had once been an angel. He provided some warmth into what was otherwise a cold, soulless film.