*POSSIBLE SPOILERS*
As the Cold War has become a part of history rather than a fact of life, films like this serve as a useful reminder of the horrors of life behind the Iron Curtain and also as a warning to a complacent modern generation not to take their freedoms for granted. The fear and oppression induced by agents of the East German state demanding of the characters, 'Your papers!!', should silence anyone who thinks Identity Cards are a 'good idea'.
This film will not be in anyone's top ten, I fear, but it is a solid and worthwhile viewing experience (I gave it an "8"). This is enhanced by the fact that the male lead has an ambiguous attitude to the west and to any concept that life could be better or that there is any real freedom over the wall. Not only that, but we are - subtly - shown why he has developed this attitude and it is reinforced by some agreeably underplayed secondary roles, such as his mother and his uncle; you always feel that uncle is going to produce some sort of surprise... and he certainly does in the end!
The female lead is a slightly weak link, but not in any sort of Sophia Coppola style disastrous way, and I do think more could have been made of her parents, particularly her mother, who added a religious dimension to the ingredients of the plot that was not adequately explored. Her father's behaviour towards the end of the film displays the corrosive effect of Communism upon the human soul brilliantly.
A more complex and enjoyable film that it at first may seem, it is an intelligent contrast to so many modern 'action' vacuums.
As the Cold War has become a part of history rather than a fact of life, films like this serve as a useful reminder of the horrors of life behind the Iron Curtain and also as a warning to a complacent modern generation not to take their freedoms for granted. The fear and oppression induced by agents of the East German state demanding of the characters, 'Your papers!!', should silence anyone who thinks Identity Cards are a 'good idea'.
This film will not be in anyone's top ten, I fear, but it is a solid and worthwhile viewing experience (I gave it an "8"). This is enhanced by the fact that the male lead has an ambiguous attitude to the west and to any concept that life could be better or that there is any real freedom over the wall. Not only that, but we are - subtly - shown why he has developed this attitude and it is reinforced by some agreeably underplayed secondary roles, such as his mother and his uncle; you always feel that uncle is going to produce some sort of surprise... and he certainly does in the end!
The female lead is a slightly weak link, but not in any sort of Sophia Coppola style disastrous way, and I do think more could have been made of her parents, particularly her mother, who added a religious dimension to the ingredients of the plot that was not adequately explored. Her father's behaviour towards the end of the film displays the corrosive effect of Communism upon the human soul brilliantly.
A more complex and enjoyable film that it at first may seem, it is an intelligent contrast to so many modern 'action' vacuums.