The Lives of Others
Das Leben der Anderen
Synopsis
In 1984, Communist East Germany, every kind of human action is strictly controlled and monitored by the government. Captain Gerd Wiesler is one of the top agents of the state police, and for his next mission he must spy on a playwright who may be a threat to the government…
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Awards & Festivals
Academy Awards
2007 | Winner: Best Foreign Language Film of the Year
Locarno International Film Festival
2006 | 2 wins including: Audience Award
Independent Spirit Awards
2007 | Winner: Best Foreign Film
Critics reviews
The fictional story here, set between 1984 and 1991, focuses on the investigation of a popular and patriotic playwright (Sebastian Koch); that the captain assigned to his case (touchingly played by Ulrich Mühe) is mainly sympathetic and working surreptitiously on the playwright’s behalf only makes this more disturbing.
Jonathan Rosenbaum
February 16, 2007
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