The most common title of this film in English is "A Woman in Berlin," based on the published diaries of an anonymous female author in 1959. The film presents in a riveting manner the moment when the Soviet forces entered Berlin in the final stage of World War II. The atrocities committed by the Soviets, especially in the rape of women in Berlin, are well chronicled. But this film places a face on the tragic developments, as recounted by the anonymous diarist.
The film graphically conveys the brutality inflicted on civilians, especially the women, as the Soviet army awaits the arrival of the allies of England and America from the west. The time seems endless, as the Soviets are awaiting the unified effort to deliver the knockout punch to the Reichstag.
Nina Hoss gives a complex and multi-layered performance as the anonymous journalist and Eugeny Sidikhim is the duty-bound yet vulnerable commanding officer, Andrej Rybkin with whom "Anonyma" has an affair. The film is careful to demonstrate the Anonyma's choice to develop her relationship with Andrej was purely based on survival. She made a conscious decision to exercise the limited amount of free will in her grasp to at least choose her partner. The film gives a fascinating portrayal of how their relationship develops.
The film may be excessive in its lengthy for such a a drama that is essentially focused on one main relationship. For a film that ran over two hours, some of the secondary characters could have been developed more completely.
It is shocking to contemplate there there was outrage in Germany when the diary was published in 1959. Incredibly, Anonyma was seen as a "collaborator" with the Soviets at the height of the Cold War. It is a credit to director Max Färberböck did not let this important memoir die, but brought in back to life in this moving and uncompromising film version. Bravo!
The film graphically conveys the brutality inflicted on civilians, especially the women, as the Soviet army awaits the arrival of the allies of England and America from the west. The time seems endless, as the Soviets are awaiting the unified effort to deliver the knockout punch to the Reichstag.
Nina Hoss gives a complex and multi-layered performance as the anonymous journalist and Eugeny Sidikhim is the duty-bound yet vulnerable commanding officer, Andrej Rybkin with whom "Anonyma" has an affair. The film is careful to demonstrate the Anonyma's choice to develop her relationship with Andrej was purely based on survival. She made a conscious decision to exercise the limited amount of free will in her grasp to at least choose her partner. The film gives a fascinating portrayal of how their relationship develops.
The film may be excessive in its lengthy for such a a drama that is essentially focused on one main relationship. For a film that ran over two hours, some of the secondary characters could have been developed more completely.
It is shocking to contemplate there there was outrage in Germany when the diary was published in 1959. Incredibly, Anonyma was seen as a "collaborator" with the Soviets at the height of the Cold War. It is a credit to director Max Färberböck did not let this important memoir die, but brought in back to life in this moving and uncompromising film version. Bravo!