Good Bye Lenin!
Germany 2003
Directed by Wolfgang Becker, comedy/drama, 120 min, eng subtitles, 12+
Written by Wolfgang Becker, Bernd Leichtenberg
With Daniel Brühl, Katrin Sass, Florian Lukas, Chulpan Khamatova, Maria Simon, Alexander Beyer
The story of a family in East Germany – the mother who is dedicated to the communist cause falls into a coma in October 1989, shortly before the fall of the Berlin Wall. When she awakens eight months later in June 1990, her son Alex does everything he can to protect her from a fatal shock by concealing from her the collapse of the communist regime.
Like many other “ostalgia” pieces which lovingly revisit memories of life in the former eastern bloc – assembling propaganda slogans, film clips, songs, post-cards and other memorabilia – Good Bye Lenin! plays with the fragments, trying to recreate the lost world in an idealised form that would be worth remembering. The Wall may long be gone, but the memories remain.
Awards:
Golden Globes 2004 (Best Foreign Language Film)
BAFTA Awards 2004 (Best Film not in the English Language)
César Awards 2004 (Best European Union Film, César)
European Film Awards 2003 (Audience Award, Best European Director, Best European Actor, Best European Actress, European Film Award, European Film, European Actor, European Screenwriter)
Goya Awards 2004 (Best European Film, Goya)
German Film Awards 2003 (Audience Award, Outstanding Feature Film, Best Direction etc.)
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