Das Leben der Anderen (2006)

Director:

Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck

Writer:

Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck (written by)

Release Date:

23 March 2006 (Germany)

Genre:

Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

Before the Fall of the Berlin Wall, East Germany's Secret Police Listened to Your Secrets

Plot:

In 1984 East Berlin, an agent of the secret police, conducting surveillance on a writer and his lover, finds himself becoming increasingly absorbed by their lives.

Plot Keywords:

1980s | Surveillance | Germany | Writer | Party

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 60 wins & 21 nominations

Cast

Martina Gedeck	...	Christa-Maria Sieland
Ulrich Mühe	...	Hauptmann Gerd Wiesler
Sebastian Koch	...	Georg Dreyman
Ulrich Tukur	...	Oberstleutnant Anton Grubitz
Thomas Thieme	...	Minister Bruno Hempf
Hans-Uwe Bauer	...	Paul Hauser
Volkmar Kleinert	...	Albert Jerska
Matthias Brenner	...	Karl Wallner
Charly Hübner	...	Udo
Herbert Knaup	...	Gregor Hessenstein
Bastian Trost	...	Häftling 227
Marie Gruber	...	Frau Meineke
Volker Michalowski	...	Schriftexperte (as Zack Volker Michalowski)
Werner Daehn	...	Einsatzleiter in Uniform
Martin Brambach	...	Einsatzleiter Meyer

Also Known As:

The Lives of Others (UK) (USA)
Das Leben der Anderen - Die Sonate vom guten Menschen (Germany) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for some sexuality/nudity.

Runtime:

137 min

Country:

Germany

Language:

German

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Germany:12 | Czech Republic:12 | USA:R | Argentina:13 | Finland:K-11 | Sweden:7 | UK:15 | Ireland:15A | Singapore:M18 | Hong Kong:IIB | France:Unrated | Australia:MA | Netherlands:12 | Portugal:M/16 | Canada:14A (Ontario) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Geneva) | Italy:T | South Korea:15 | Malaysia:U | Spain:7 | Brazil:12 | New Zealand:M | India:A | Norway:11

Filming Locations:

Altes Stadthaus, Klosterstraße, Berlin, Germany

Company:

Arte

Trivia:

The German DVD of this film was recalled due to some statements director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck made in his audio commentary about the alleged activities of politician Gregor Gysi and actress Jenny Gröllmann as in-official agents (IM) for the "Staatssicherheit" (secret police of former East Germany). New and old revisions of the DVD can be distinguished by a marking on the back spine (old retail/rental: Z4/Z4R, new retail/rental: Z4A/Z4S).

Goofs:

Incorrectly regarded as goofs: In the first scene in the theater, a program clearly states the birthdate of Georg as 1939, but just a few scenes later he says he is preparing for his 40th birthday. As the action is said to take place in 1984, there is a five-year discrepancy. [Possibility: Georg says that he is 40 in an attempt to shake off the impression that he might be 50. Hence, he could very well be 45. That age would also be the same as that of the actor who plays him]

Quotes:

[Wiesler enters the elevator at his apartment building. A young boy with a ball joins him]
Junge mit Ball: Are you really with the Stasi?
Hauptmann Gerd Wiesler: Do you even know what the Stasi is?
Junge mit Ball: Yes. They're bad men who put people in prison, says my dad.
Hauptmann Gerd Wiesler: I see. What is the name of your...
[pauses]
Junge mit Ball: My what?
Hauptmann Gerd Wiesler: [thinks for a few more seconds] Ball. What's the name of your ball?
Junge mit Ball: You're funny. Balls don't have names.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Zomergasten: (#22.4)" (2009)

A wonderful film that deserves a wide audience

I saw this film in its North American premiere in a packed theater at the Toronto Int'l Film Festival this past week and was pleased to be part of a standing ovation at the end for the director and star, who were both on hand.

"The Lives of Others," set in East Germany not long before the fall of the Berlin Wall, tells the moving story of a police investigator forced to confront himself and the work he does. In a society poisoned by secrecy, fear and the abuse of power, a number of the movie's characters -- artists, actors, writers -- must look deep inside and decide what they are made of; none more so than the investigator.

This is a movie that took me to a place and time that felt very authentic, for a tale that was very satisfying.

Ulrich Muhe, who plays the investigator, is mesmerizing, and the young director is to be applauded for this, his first full-length film. Some have compared "The Lives of Others" to Coppola's "The Conversation" but the two have completely different story arcs and are only superficially similar.

Both my companion and I felt this was our favorite of the six films we had a chance to see at the festival.