Rossini
This 1997 satire, in case it weren’t obvious enough by the title image, is not recommended for educational purposes. That being said, it is a star-studded cast for the time and may be worth discussing…
Das Jahr der ersten Küsse
This 2002 film is marketed as a drama comedy. There are pieces in the rom-com category, but in true German film nature, the drama pulls it back to reality. We know Max Mauff from Die…
Driven Crazy
This 2020 film, currently available on Amazon Prime, is rated 16+ there. It would easily be rated R, were it to be rated in America. Robin Czerny is a face we may recognize from Kokowääh…
Nach Fünf im Urwald
This early Franka Potente film (1995) is a classic rom-com, focused on the issues of teenagers. This was Potente’s first professional film. Alongside Franka Potente is Axel Milberg. We may know him from the Fifth…
Der Untergang
This 2004 film starring Bruno Ganz shows the final days of Hitler as reported by his last secretary. It is important to remember the 1955 film, Der letzte Akt, which also used Traudl Junge as…
Der Krieger und die Kaiserin
This film, released in 2000, is full of A-list actors, and of course the famous Tom Tykwer as director. It is billed as a drama-romance. Taking place in a mental institution, the setting lends itself…
Der Baader Meinhof Komplex
This 2008 Moritz Bleibtreu film is based on the true story of the Red Army Faction (RAF) and its actions during the 1960s and 70s. The styling of this film makes it look like a…
Das Boot
The story of life in an U-Boot during the war, this 1981 film explores the psyche and trials of the men serving their country under the sea. Giving a different view of the war from…
Die Fälscher
Based on Operation Bernhard, this 2007 war film with August Diehl and Karl Markovichs is the story of a Jewish man whose skills in counterfeiting become well known among the Nazis. This film shows various…
Good Bye Lenin!
This 2003 film with Daniel Brühl sees the differences between East and West Germany through a different lens than most films. The premise of this one is a fragile mother who falls into a coma…
Nirgendwo in Afrika
Released in 2001, this film centers around a Jewish family that must leave 1930s Germany, settling in Kenya. Interestingly, the actress who plays Jettel, Juliane Köhler, also played Eva Braun in Der Untergang. Her husband…
In Tranzit
This 2008 movie was filmed in English in Russia. It was released directly to DVD, and considerably earlier in Russia than anywhere else. The film takes place in 1946 and follows German prisoners of war…
Das Leben der Anderen
This 2006 film is based on the lives the Stasi watch – and of course, the lives of the Stasi members themselves. East German actor Ulrich Mühe plays our Stasi main character. Mühe died the…
Was tun, wenn’s brennt?
This 2001 Til Schweiger film focuses on Berlin in the 80s – and the punk life that dominated the era, and how that affected the (former) punks as the years went on. Next to Til…
Die fetten Jahre sind vorbei
This 2004 film is known in America by it’s English title, The Edukators. Young activists come together and perform interesting crimes against rich businessmen… Daniel Brühl, Julie Jentsch, and Stipe Erceg play our main characters.…
Der Steppenwolf
This film adaptation of Hermann Hesse’s Steppenwolf was released in 1974. It was originally done in English. Before the movie begins, there is a note stating that this version includes scenes not available in the…
Gegen die Wand
Gegen die Wand, released in 2004, is a film that deals with cultural expectations, addictions, and other (bad) coping devices. In other words, right away one I wouldn’t recommend for the classroom, though it might…
Die verlorene Ehre der Katharina Blum
This film version of the Heinrich Böll novel, published only a year before the film was released. It is also the directorial debut of Margarethe von Trotta, who later went on to direct Rosenstraße. In…
Lili Marleen
This 1981 film, directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder, is a West German production, but several of the actors are speaking other languages and then are dubbed into German, which may be distracting for some viewers.…
Bandits
This 1997 film with Katja Riemann (not to be confused by the 2001 movie of the same name but featuring Bruce Willis) had been my favorite movie for years. The rating means I don’t get…
Lola rennt
Lola rennt was originally released in 1998, which means the first time I watched it, it was newly released while I was an exchange student in Germany. It was among the first German movies I…
Soul Kitchen
Released in 2009, Soul Kitchen is a drama-comedy featuring Moritz Bleibtreu. It is also one of the movies Monica Bleibtreu (his mother) was in that was released after her death. Soul Kitchen has many ties…