Sun Alley (1999) User Reviews

Better and more nuanced than Goodbye Lenin

[orangesitcom · 8/10 · 3 February 2005]

As an American who lived in former East Germany for a time, I was impressed by the way this film portrayed the ambivalence many Ossis felt about the fall of the Wall. The characters were more nuanced and their treatment more sensitive than that seen in the more popular Goodbye Lenin which, while a good movie, is more about the character's relationship with his mother than it is an accurate portrayal of life in East Germany. Goodbye Lenin seems to reduce the Ossi existence to communist commodification -- to be an Ossi is about what kind of pickles you eat -- whereas Sonnenallee allows its characters to be much more than consumers. In interviews with the makers of Goodbye Lenin, they have mentioned that much of their inspiration for their treatment of East Germans came from TV shows on East Germans.... Sonnenallee presents the eastern life without the extra refraction of the television screen.

Slightly hyperbolic, but essentially a true story

[BeneCumb · 8/10 · 23 January 2015]

I am sure that those who have at least their childhood (like me) spent in a pseudo-socialist undemocratic country, would watch Sonnenallee with sense of recognition, with things most of us have probably aimed to forget. On the other hand, when you are young, minor, your perceptions are still different from those of adults, who are in need of living on and supporting their family. First love, new music, friendship, coming of age, hobbies, plans for future are universal. In my opinion, all those aspects are well and realistically (now one can giggle or laugh out these absurd things) depicted in this movie, with convincing performances by an even cast. By the way, the Soviets would have vacated all streets close to their "enemy", odd that it was possible to live so close to the Berlin Wall.

Furtermore, I would disagree with them who think that Sonnenallee is a kind of glorification of the GDR. Really? For nonrenovated houses, constant shortage of even crumbling goods, brainwash by authorities, fear for police and "rats", strict punishments for harmless pranks, limited travel options, etc.? Those who do had apparently a "good" life at the expense of others...

I can hardly guess how films like this would act upon the people unaware of socialist dictatorships. Perhaps they would regard them as unintelligent comedies. But the film in question could be shown more within the former Eastern bloc.

Sex, drugs and "rock 'n' roll"...

[Nuuttipukki · 8/10 · 22 October 1999]

The movie is located in a Berlin street of the 70's - the Sonnenallee. The street is divided by the Wall. Micha and his friends live on the other side of the Wall - in the East.

This movie shows us that DDR-Kids were not very different from those in the West. They are not interested in politics or communism, but in what is much more important: SEX DRUGS AND ROCK 'N' ROLL!

In addition to this interesting insight into everyday life in the DDR the movie is really funny. There are so many comedy elements in it. There is for example a scene in which a East German soldier tries to explain to a West German why the Eastern radio is superior to the Western technology - it has less functions and is therefore easier to handle. And the disastrous party is just great... But - just watch it!

Delightfully humorous but realistic film about life in the former East-Germany.

[MayhapsItWasGoodBackThen · 3 February 2001]

I had absolutely no idea of what this film was about (other than that it was supposed to be a comedy of some sort) and therefore had hardly any grand expectations of it. A German movie? Right... well why not give it a try anyways... and what do you know, this film turned out to be an excellent one!

Fresh, funny and tragic, full of lively acting (Thanks to great actors albeit rather unknown to bigger audience I presume), clever script and witty and eloquent dialogue. A sort of coming-of-age story in a disturbing setting which is not exactly the world of opportunities to say the least. Craving for something so bad it's about the only thing you live for (be that a new rock album, a girl you've fallen in love with or something else), rise of counter-culture idealism, loss of innocence, making important choices for the first time in your life (and having sex with more partners than with just yourself, heh).

Altho an average American might think this story must have been a vastly exaggerated, it's not (I'm not of German origin either so I don't have a strong personal feel on the topics this picture deals with but I've read my share of history books so I dare to say I have the basic facts right in which to back myself up). Strip down the humorous elements and I bet you get what life pretty much was back then in the East-Germany. Strong censorship, limited freedom of speech (banned topics, one-party politics), one of the closest guarded boarder lines in the history of mankind with extremely thorough customs procedures etc etc.

It now seems more than unbelievable that there once was a huge wall (and mind you people just 12 years back in history!) which divided a whole city in the middle thus separating an entire nation in two: to the rich west and the poor east. People in the East-Germany forced to live under the forever observing eyes of the Big Brother in the communists' utopia while the better-off people of the West-Germany lived the capitalists' dream...

But still entire families were simultaneously torn apart, former friends and neighbors now living on the other side were seen as traitors and enemies of the state by both sides. The threat was always coming from "the other side" depending on which side you were living in! West-Germans looking down and pitying on their Eastern neighbor while East-Germans envy the western lifestyle but want to hold onto their pride. Common shared past is something you just can't wipe out altogether. Ridiculous times but unfortunately true nevertheless.

I felt that this movie dealt with important issues and things which we should never forget. We all know it's easier to cope with difficult situations if you can filter them through humor and see something good and redeeming in most things rather than always seeing the worst in everything.

Don't get me wrong this isn't a serious movies or hard one to watch per se (except for the ending)- it's great fun but if so desired a great opportunity to start a discussion. There were many outrageously funny scenes and on more than one occasion I burst out laughing out loud!

I strongly recommend seeing this movie. Saved my day at least!

Existentialist humor

[eabakkum · 7/10 · 17 July 2013]

The film Sonnenallee is a comedy of the absurd humor type, a bit like the Monty Python stories. A sense of humor is always rather personal, and to be fair the fun in Sonnenallee is not my thing. Maladjusted fun feels weird, and this makes the conception of this review a somewhat precarious undertaking. In Sonnenallee everything is chaotic. The characters are ill-contrived and unpredictable. They move in all directions, without pattern. There is a scene, where the main character Micha suddenly strikes down his friend, for the simple reason that he has accepted this narrow-minded job. The events have no understandable coherence, but arbitrary hop on and off your screen. Evidently the fact that I watched the "extended" version did not allay the confusion. Does it reflect the existentialism of Sartre, which is actually hailed in the film itself? Or is it an attempted alliance with the Nouvelle Vague? The story unfolds in a quarter of East-Berlin, in an alley immediately behind the illustrious Wall. Although the Wall is a stage-property that dominates many of the scenes, it remains an object without meaning or significance. If there are witted allusions, they are lost on me. More obvious hints would help. An example of the incomprehensible character studies: Micha has no pangs of conscience to enlist in the people's army. In one of the scenes at the Wall he even threatens to shoot down tourists, that are peeping from the west side. But at the same time, he keeps a diary, in which he taunts the allegedly repressive nature of the Leninist state. There can be no doubt: he is mentally unstable. You can allege that Sonnenallee is about a youth troop, whose members are in the process of trying to discover their own identity. But the adults in Sonnenallee are just as all-out deranged as the kids. The mother of Micha plans to defect to the west, on her own, but reconsiders and allures and seduces her dull husband. Two visitors in Berlin, who at home can not receive the western TV broadcastings, are impressed by their glitter and for hours sit gazing at the test screen. Joke: where is the English Channel? Answer: I don't know, my TV does not pick it up. To be fair, not all is bunk. Yes, tall exaggerations can be fun. For instance, there is this scene, where a young guest from Vietnam makes an allocution before an audience of pupils, in her own exotic language. Naturally she almost disappears behind the reading-desk. At the end the audience reacts elated. And: the teacher is indignant, or should I write shocked, because Micha has peed in the direction of her beloved "anti-fascist protection barrier". Joke 2: did you hear about the cross-eyed teacher? She could not control her pupils. So let us allow for some amusing moments in Sonnenallee. But it could be more. I had all-time expectations, considering the awkward theme of the clash of ideologies. To be fair, Sonnenallee avoids the demagogic and self-conceited atmosphere, that is alloyed in Goodbye Lenin. If you enjoy kids being silly, the film Berlin Ecke Schönhauser of Defa Studios also narrates about a youth troop. In Berlin, yes. Pronounce: Bearleen. This film dives deep into the commonplace temptations of East and West, without becoming too censorious. The translation is not all-in, as usual with Ice Storm. Or see my other reviews.

It's a Comedy

[cds-46440 · 6/10 · 9 November 2019]

Don't forget it's a comedy movie. The final sentence safe the whole movie from my point of view. We was young ...

Great way to look at History!!!!! :-)

[GermanChic00 · 10/10 · 6 February 2002]

When I first saw this movie I watched it from a unique perspective. Actually, two unique perspectives... One is that of an American and the other is that of a German. I see this film as a giant leap in German culture. You may be asking yourself why... It is a comedy, not a drama, the acting is good but not stellar, and the film is only about a small portion of German culture (that doesn't even exist anymore). How can a movie like that be a major step in German culture? I'll tell you... This movie deals with History. Not just history, modern history. the ONLY people in Germany who haven't lived through this period in History are children under the age of 9 (as of the release of this film in 1999) EVERYONE was touched by the cold war and the split of Germany into east and west. In my opinion, the day a culture can joke about its history is the day in which they have come to terms with what happened and have accepted the facts... Sonnenallee is the first film (to my knowledge) that has satirized former East Germany and its everyday life (including the Stasi...secret service and the Grenzpolizei.. boarder patrol) To me this shows that the Germans have accepted their history and are ready to move on... Bravo!!!!! :-)

East Side Story

[tangelo_2001 · 8/10 · 26 November 2001]

I've seen Sonnenallee in a small European film fest in Ottawa in the fall of 2001. This film is another reason to blame commercially-driven distributors for the lack of variety in our movie theaters. Here is a funny, daring film about life in Communist East Berlin in the 70s that would not have found its way to our screens but thanks to innovative festival programmers. It took courage to even think about making a comedy (with musical overtones, no less !) on such a subject. Yet, thanks to energetic direction, an enthusiastic cast, and some truly memorable ideas (the scene with the multi-table is a real gem, and the take on West Berliners probably well deserved !), Sonnenallee will stay in your minds for a long time. And the joyful finale, complete with East Berliners dancing their way up to the infamous wall, makes you wonder why the film was not also titled : East Side Story.

1/10 and this is why...

[sorokous · 1/10 · 19 July 2020]

Having lived my childhood in communist times in Yugoslavia some parts of this movie capture that period of communism transition to a freer world... In what it fails this movie is the characters. It is exaggerated comedy, that made all the characters on screen look like idiots, crude jokes that it doesn't hit the right target, just like slapstick comedy you laugh on clumsiness, outer appearance but not on what really was bad in that system and deserved to be joked about.

a funny piece of history

[bandit-15 · 9/10 · 16 October 1999]

'Sonnenallee' is definitly the funniest german pic this year and furthermore a perfectly developed piece of history, that soon will be forgotten trough to the fall of the berlin wall. The biggest plus on Leander Haussmanns film is the cast of no-names, who give so much realism to the flick that you feel thrown back in time without any doubt. And I laughed troughout the whole 90 minutes. Nevertheless will it be difficult for the movie to get real attention outside germany trough to the specific theme, but a must for everyone inside this country.

Boredom at Sun Street

[Horst_In_Translation · 4/10 · 8 March 2016]

"Sonnenallee" is a German 85-minute movie from almost 20 years ago that features some of Germany's biggest rising stars from around that time in Alexander Scheer, Robert Stadlober and Alexander Beyer. They may not be too well-known today anymore, but back then they were. And there are some more established actors on board too, such as Henry Hübchen, Katharina Thalbach and Detlev Buck. It's not really their fault that this film is not working for the most part. There is a touch of "Goodbye Lenin" to it as it depicts life in the GDR of especially younger people, but it's all less refined and does not feel right on many occasions. The writer and director is Leander Haußmann, certainly well-known here in Germany, and I felt at times that he tried to make a mix of stuff like coming-of-age films like "The Breakfast Club", but also included the political context that has been overdone by now in German cinema.

And in terms of the genre, nothing new is delivered by this movie here. I cannot say I enjoyed the watch a lot. It was obviously the filmmaker's intention to make almost all the characters likable, but the actors weren't good on several occasions, especially the younger actors and Stadlober in particular, who just isn't very talented. One of the few good things is that the film is fairly short, but it's still disappointing to see a team of so many writers work on a movie and the result is something as forgettable as "Sonnenallee". I cannot agree with all the awards attention that this film got. Haußmann has done better on several other occasions and it's a bit sad that this is probably his most known work to-date. I do not recommend the watch. Thumbs down.

Great movie !

[marco-111 · 8/10 · 4 September 2000]

I caught this one on a long flight from Singapore to Vancouver in German with English subtitles and I really loved it, it was really funny and sad in some ways at the same time.

I probably can relate to it more than the average North American because I grew up in Europe, but I think the movie would be very enjoyable for more or less everybody, and surely better than some crappy movies recently seen on this side of the ocean

Highly recommended if you can find it.

my whole youth on the east side of the wall

[DXtv · 10/10 · 22 August 2009]

You won't believe it ... but this movie describes my whole sucking youth on the eastern side of the iron curtain! My name is Michael (short Micha), I was just 16 years old when the wall became opened and I lived (and still live) on the eastern side of Berlin :D Yeah! That movie is telling the absolutely truth of my youth and the life of all the other young people in East Berlin - not only them who lived nearby the wall! My western relatives brought (smuggled) some western stuff to the GDR which we couldn't buy on the east side ... except you had some DM (Deutsche Mark /currency of West Germany) ... for that money you had the chance to buy western stuff in some so called "Intershops" on the east side. But because not so many people had hard currencies, the black market was the first and mostly only choice for us to buy western music, western magazines and any other western stuff illegally for a much higher price. For a simple Stones album you had to pay a damn huge price ... up to 200 or 300 Mark (former eastern currency) as far as I remember ... most people in the GDR got up to 800 Mark per month. The already working youth had not much more then 150 Mark per month.

Yeah ... that movie is telling the absolutely truth about my live ... well ... up to 90 percent ;o) Watch that movie! DO IT!!! :D

worst movie I've ever watched

[varga-bencea · 1/10 · 6 October 2019]

This was a complete waste of my precious time. Watching it was obligatory (for a subject at the university). The movie was full of clichés and it was unbearably boring. If only something would have happened in it. No story, awful actors and actresses, cheap af. So, all in all don't waste your time on this complete shietwreck pls for my sake. Cheers

long laugh

[jomfruphd · 9/10 · 10 June 2002]

i laughed the whole way through. the no-name actors gave this film a breath of reality, and after this triumph, i'm sure we'll see much more of them. it would have been easy for this film to bog itself down in the muck of trying to do something really serious with the subject matter and situations, but it remained light and playful and self-mocking. i was actually scared by how much the characters reminded me of my own family! i'm not sure what that says about me, but it makes for some hillarious scenes in the film. everyone should see this comic gem that proves germans have a great sense of humor and can laugh at themselves along with everyone else.

A boy finds the girl of his dreams and has to tempt her with his Eatern charms!

[steffilambert · 10/10 · 28 January 2008]

I watched this film as it was recommended by a friend and also it could be incorporated into a project I have to do in my University.

When I watched the opening 5 minutes I thought it would be another depressing look in the GDR culture, but the story line was up beat and kept me entertained throughout! My favourite part was when his friend is shot as there is a black out and they think people are going to try and run to get through to the West. However the bullet that 'hits' him, hits his LP instead and shatters the Rolling Stones LP which he had just bought. I also enjoyed at the school dance when the boys danced to T-Rex!!!! It was a great hindsight into the culture of the GDR, which in recent years has been noted for its oppressiveness. I like the light-heartiness of the film content and it is very similar in certain themes to "Goodbye Lenin" Enjoy!

Fun and a bit of sadness to let people know about DDR

[Ulisseinviaggio · 8/10 · 24 September 2009]

When I saw this movie I was in Germany for a period of studying with my university, and in the first days I was there, we attended a small course to let us know something more about German culture... anyway, in those first days our teacher proposed to see this movie, because she thought it could be useful for us, and she was right!! I didn't understand all the things the characters said ( I didn't know so good the language at that time ), but I could understand the major situations and make myself a small idea of the atmosphere the people in East Berlin lived in... the great thing is that they make it not with a drama, but using irony, awkward situations and lots of fun!! I will see it soon again, but I recommend it to everybody if someone wants to laugh, but also to think a bit about the problems the totalitarianism brought with it. Ciao dall'Italia!!

Street drama

[kosmasp · 8/10 · 10 July 2021]

When you haven't watched a movie because you thought it would be way too dramatic ... and it turns out it is more a comedy. I finally came around to watch this. German movies can be good and can be bad - which I reckon is true for any other countries movies too. But when you have to decide what to watch, there was a time where I just wasn't ready to experiment with German movies - so that is on me.

Having seen this the other day, I have to admit, the beginning alone with the main character walking on the street, with all the east/west conflict (do not confuse this with East Coast and West Coast rap battle/war) - a subject that Germany likes to explore in movies. And when it is done with such an ease as here ... well everyone is happy.

Very funny but not that realistic

[monika-uni · 8/10 · 18 August 2005]

The movie is fun to watch and there is a lot of truth in it, but there are also lots of inaccuracies and exaggerations - especially the first minutes are almost unbearable. Some are for the humorous effect, but I feel some are because of lack of care.

'Goodbye Lenin' definitely is the better movie.

The character of Miriam remains very shallow, she mutates from the teasing and arrogant girl to Micha's girlfriend, but hey, it's a comedy, character development needn't be realistic.

I loved that the neighbor turns out not be in the stasi but an undertaker, and that the "rich West kid" really is a valet parking cars and gets into deep trouble in the end.

So after all, there are stabs at both East and West Germans. Fair play.