German Films that Define the 2000s

As part of the Best Films of the Noughties: Helping us find lesser known greats Project;

http://www.theauteurs.com/topics/6662

So mein freunds, what be the German films that defined the decade. Impart on us reams of knowledge.

Elementarteilchen / Atomised (2006) Dir Oskar Roehler
Das Experiment / The Experiment (2001) Dir Oliver Hirschbiegel
Das Leben der Anderen / The Lives of Others (2006) Dir Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck
Der Baader Meinhof Komplex / The Baader Meinhoff Complex (2008) Dir Uli Edel
Die Fälscher / The Counterfeiters(2007) Dir Stefan Ruzowitzky
Das Weisse Band / The White Ribbon (2009) Dir Michael Haneke

“The White Ribbon” and "The Counterfeiters " are actually both Austrian films. In my opinion the German films that defined the 2000s are those made by the Berlin School directors. Since Arsaib already made a list of the most relevant films, I just need to pass you the link (http://www.theauteurs.com/lists/82).

Ooops. Lazy research I’m afraid.

Downfall (2005, Oliver Hirschbiegel)

Invincible is one of the finest films made on the holocaust.

Gegen Die Wand (Head-On, 2004) of course! And Haneke isn’t too far with The White Ribbon. The today’s Golden Globe winner.

I’d say also Die Hoehle des gelben Hundes (The Cave of the Yellow Dog, aka La Leyenda del Perro Amarillo, 2005). Great film by Davaa. Looking for THE TWO HORSES OF GENGHIS KHAN…

Yep, arsaib made a fine list. I second apursansar: http://www.theauteurs.com/lists/82

I’d like to add some non-Berlin school films that are worthwhile and old German directors who are exceptional:

2000
Der Krieger und die Kaiserin “The Warrior and the Empress” (Tom Tykwer)
Die Polizistin “The Policewoman” (Andreas Dresen)
L’amour, l’argent, l’amour “Love, Money, Love” (Philip Gröning)

2001
Der Felsen “A Map of the Heart” (Dominik Graf)
Nichts bereuen “No Regrets” (Benjamin Quabeck)

2002
Baader (Christopher Roth)
Identity Kills (Sören Voigt)
Madrid (Daphne Charizani)
Sophiiiie! (Michael Hofmann)

2003
Goff in der Wüste “Goff in the Desert” (Heinz Emigholz)
Lichter “Distant Lights” (Hans-Christian Schmid)
Schussangst “Gun-shy” (Dito Tsintsadze)

2004
Frau fährt, Mann schläft “Woman Driving, Man Sleeping” (Rudolf Thome)
Gegen die Wand “Head-On” (Fatih Akin)
Nicht ohne Risiko “Nothing Ventured” (Harun Farocki)

2005
…Es wird jemand kommen, der ja zu mir sagt “Ruth” (Michael Blume)

2006
Aus der Ferne “From far away” (Thomas Arslan)
Sommer ’04 “Summer ’04” (Stefan Krohmer)

2007
Das Gelübde “The Vow” (Dominik Graf)

2009
Die Liebe der Kinder (Franz Müller)
Pink (Rudolf Thome)

Der Freie Wille (The Free Will) (2006) is the best German film of the decade.

I’m stunned that someone called Invincible “one of the finest films made on the Holocaust.” Arguably Herzog’s worst film, it’s horrible and says absolutely nothing about the Holocaust.

Allein Allein Allein !

• I will defend this film no matter what)

Marc (and Mr. Sano): Thanks for the citation of the list. Much appreciated. I will update it soon. You’re right, The Counterfeiters is (primarily) Austrian. It was eventually claimed and promoted as such during the awards season a couple of years ago. (I remember the sly remark from the inestimable German critic Olaf Möller: “good riddance”.) But I think the situation is a little more complicated with The White Ribbon, a “co-production” both Austria and Germany were eligible to nominate for the Academy Awards. But, reportedly, the film’s U.S. distributor, Sony Classics, wanted Germany to do so since a couple of Austrian films, including the aforementioned The Counterfeiters, had already done well with the academy recently (which just goes to show how petty and trivial the whole process really is). I guess one could argue that its subject matter renders it to be German.

Grey: I don’t think you will need to defend that film. Looks like Durchschlag has mostly done television since then.

There is also Die Welle (The wave) Dennis Gansel

Goodbye Lenin and the Edukators

I second that comment on The Free Will.

I’m waiting for Marseille before I start taking this thread seriously.

Leaves: I’m here.

Start taking this thread seriously now.

I see a plethora of German films every year, at the cinema, the way the directors originally intended them to be seen (NOT on a laptop, mobile phone or i-Fad!). So I believe I have a fair amount of authority on the subject (as do many of the above movie fans—you ought to read what they have to say, some wonderful film choices!).

Films that define the 2000s? Even though I was not overwhelmed by it, “Der Edukators” seems like a film perfect for our times. However, an even better example, one more reflective of the world today, is Hans Weingartner’s follow up film, “Reclaim Your Brain” (also known as “Free Rainer”).

“Sommer ’04” was a largely forgettable film. Not terrible, but I really can’t recall much from it at all.

I’m surprised nobody has mentioned “Sophie Scholl: The Final Days”. I’d be hard pressed to find a better German film of the past decade. “The Lives of Others” (“Das Leben Der Aderen”) is up there with it. I also loved “Der Rote Kakadu”.

I think “Blueprint” starring Franka Potente is a science-fiction movie that doesn’t get enough credit. It was unflashy and slow-moving, devoid of special effects, but did what great sci-fi should do: it gets you to think about the fate of our world, where we’re going, plus the film also raises some ethical questions and managed to be entertaining sans CGI special effects. It also doesn’t hammer home a heavy-handed message, so even though I wouldn’t call it the best German film of the past decade, it’s worthy of some serious respect.

You also get twice as much Franka Potente as she plays both Iris and Siri—you can’t argue with that!

(…and yes, everyone loves a German girl).

“I’m waiting for Marseille before I start taking this thread seriously.”

- It’s actually included in the Berlin School list I referred to above.

http://www.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/review/3890/

Hans-Christian Schmid’s “Requiem” is one of the best german films of the decade. Most of the others have already been referenced here.

THE STRATOSPHERE GIRL!!

Imaginative, beautiful and unique!! It’s my favorite german film of the last decade by a mile!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6unjWZ0tJnk

It’s a shame the director hasn’t done another film since then!!

Apart from this, GEGEN DIE WAND, SCHUSSANGST, ALLE ANDEREN, DER FELSEN – and yes, DAS WEIßE BAND are up there.

Untergang, Baader-Meinhoff, Gespenster or Die Innere Sicherheit are absolutely terrible, and exactly what people should not look for in german film. It really hurts to see people hype these kind of films, because they are exactly what’s wrong with german cinema.

I’d go as far and say most of the Berlin-school-directors are terrible. Petzold is for sure, and some of the others I looked into were as dumb as a Michael Bay film, only with arthouse aesthetics.

“- It’s actually included in the Berlin School list I referred to above.”

- Ahh, well, there you have it. Yet, looking at this page and not seeing the name ‘Schanelec’ or ‘Marseille’ but seeing the words ‘Der Edukators’ and ‘Das Leben Der Aderen’… it’s just too much for one pair of eyes to withstand!

Most of the Berlin-School directors may be terrible, especially if you start expanding the term to more and more terrible directors, but if you want to actually address those filmmakers who are not terrible who may in some circles be referred to as ‘Berlin School’ then I think that’s a good place to start for this thread. Casting off directors who make exceptional work just because you dislike films by Petzold, however, is absolutely absurd. You’re holding them artistically responsible for the work of others based on a label attached to them by a third equally artistically irrelevant party. That you simultaneously dismiss all filmmakers under the label and admit one into the pantheon of greats is comedy at its highest level, I think.

FILINOIR:

I saw “The Stratosphere Girl” at the cinema back in 2004. It is a passable yet unexceptional film. And it wasn’t anywhere nearly as impressive as “Blueprint” and “Gate of Heaven” (the other films I saw at the festival that year).

“Alle Anderen” (“Everyone Else”) was possibly the WORST German film I saw from its decade! I’m so glad this didn’t make the cut for the local Festival of German Film this year! I don’t think German cinema needs anymore films about a group of yuppies bickering mindlessly about their supposed “problems” they face in their empty lives, strung together by random erotic sequences, equating to what is known in Australia (and this isn’t necessarily complimentary) as a “good film on SBS” (i.e. lots of sex and nudity, but little else of interest; SBS is a free-to-air station that specialises in language-other-than-English films and foreign news programmes).

Downfall
The Edge Of Heaven
Free Will
Head On
The Lives Of Others

So there aren’t many Fatih Akin admirers on here eh? I took me a while to warm to him, but ‘The Edge Of Heaven’ was the film Babel really should have been.

i’m looking forward to the next part of his trilogy.

JOKS (CAPITAL LETTERS!):

I do fancy the work of Fatih Akin—they had a few of his films at this year’s Festival of German Film!

A film like “Edge of Heaven”, one that is somewhat similar in theme to “Run Lola Run” (little events having big impacts upon the lives of others, plus the way the story was structured), is probably too clever to be deciphered by the majority of audeinces. Consequently, I now get the impression most audiences who fawned over “Run Lola Run” either (a) had a lesbian crush on Franka Potente (ahem) or (b) simply liked it from an MTV perspective.

Why hasn’t the success of “Run Lola Run” led to a much greater interest in German film?

I believe there are many cutting edge German filmmakers with something to say, if only distributors gave their films a chance, then maybe people would get over their irrational fear of subtitles.

“A film like “Edge of Heaven”, one that is somewhat similar in theme to “Run Lola Run” (little events having big impacts upon the lives of others, plus the way the story was structured), is probably too clever to be deciphered by the majority of audeinces.”

there was a lot more to Edge Of Heaven than that Mark. i think it’s closer to Babel than Run Lola Run, at least thematically, and even structurally.

‘Soul Kitchen’ was rubbish though.

“Why hasn’t the success of “Run Lola Run” led to a much greater interest in German film?”

Maybe it should have lead to a greater interest in Polish film. At least that’s where Tykwer took his ideas from.

^^Run Lola Run was a gimmick anyway. never saw the big deal in that film.

I second that. The New German Cinema certainly has better and more original things to offer than “Run Lola Run”.

@ Mark: Funny you claim STRATOSPHERE GIRL wasn’t unique and trash ALLE ANDEREN, but then praise the very rightfully trashed hack-job BLUEPRINT. :P ALLE ANDEREN even was rewarded the special jury prize at the Berlinale.

As for Petzold/Berliner Schule – my problem with that “movement” is its approach towards realism. What I have seen of the Berliner Schule films struck me as very unimaginative, at times truly dire films. I have not seen every film by ever director who is associated with the movement, but I always thought it says enough somebody like Akin, who’s not in line with any of the BS-directors, also got this label after HEAD ON came out and he had success.

That reminds me – SOLINO was a really good film. The plot wasn’t really brilliant, but the camerawork and the acting was amazing.

Not a big fan of Oskar Roehler, but AGNES UND SEINE BRÜDER was also a pretty good film.