The miracle of Berlin
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| Original title | The miracle of Berlin |
| Country of production | Germany |
| original language | German |
| Publishing year | 2008 |
| length | 105 minutes |
| Age rating | FSK 12 |
| Rod | |
| Director | Roland Suso Richter |
| script | Thomas Kirchner |
| production |
Benjamin Benedict , Alexander Bickel (ZDF), Heike Hempel (ZDF), Nico Hofmann |
| music | Ulrich Reuter |
| camera | Holly Fink |
| cut | Bernd Schlegel |
| occupation | |
| |
The Miracle of Berlin is a German television film made by the director Roland Suso Richter in 2008. The original film is based on recordings by the former NVA soldier Tilo Koch. The film is set in East Berlin from summer 1988 until the fall of the Berlin Wall .
action
Marco Kaiser is just 18 years old and punk . He lives in his parents' house. His father Jürgen is a lieutenant colonel in the Ministry for State Security , Hanna, his mother, used to be a nurse and now works in a bookstore. Grandfather Walter, Jürgen's father, also lives in the house. When Marco and the nursing student Anja attended a forbidden punk concert, they were arrested and interrogated.
Lieutenant Colonel Jürgen Kaiser learns that Marco has been arrested. While still in the interrogation cell, he made his son promise to join the National People's Army . With this he can avert the threat of Marcos being imprisoned in the Bautzen correctional facility . On the condition that Marco does not have to take on border guards and Anja is also released, the son agrees and Marco becomes a recruit. He introduces Anja to his parents' house. Hanna, the mother, takes the girl into her heart straight away, and Grandfather Walter is quick to love Anja too; the father Jürgen, however, remains suspicious.
At the ministry, Lieutenant Colonel Jürgen Kaiser learns from his lover, Lieutenant Marion Niemann from HV I that Anja has a file that connects her with OV-Tango, the operational Tango event . Anja thinks she is an orphan ; she grew up in an orphanage . Her parents, she thinks, were both killed in a traffic accident. In truth, Anja is the daughter of Major Wolf, who was sent to Chile as a military advisor , was taken prisoner there and - as the file shows - was probably "turned around" . Therefore, his daughter was taken away from him. However, when he returned to East Germany, Major Wolf was able to prove himself. He happens to be Marco's superior. Jürgen Kaiser believes Anja is set on him and his family and throws the girl out. He burns all Western literature that Grandfather brought back from his visits to the West in the basement. Jürgen, a staunch supporter of real existing socialism and SED member , hates his father, who inwardly still lives completely in the time of the Second World War and the imprisonment suffered in Siberia, for his eternal attitude.
In the bookstore, Hanna comes into contact with the country's progressive forces, e. B. the professor and his partner Juliana, and begins to get involved in the new forum . The political situation begins to roll, the forces of the Reformation are gaining popularity, for example through the peace services, the New Forum, the Leipzig Appeal, and the Monday demonstrations . Jürgen is presented with photos at the ministry that show Hanna, Anja and Walter at a peace demonstration. For Jürgen, with the political change in his family, his private world begins to collapse. He considers the events to be counter-revolutionary . " Why are you leaving me in the lurch now?" He yells at his wife. "What do you think the comrades will do to me when they find out that my wife supports the New Forum?"
Marco proves himself with the NVA, Major Wolf supports him. Marco, a former member of the country's sporting elite - he was in the national swimming team - is given the chance to join the NVA's leadership elite. Service on the anti-fascist protective wall, the “wall” is now a fatherland duty for him. He believes that this will protect his country.
Reports on television show the wave of refugees over Hungary - Austria . Hanna and Juliana copy the Leipzig appeal on the bookstore's copier. Jürgen tries to prevent that. The cold love between Jürgen and Hanna turns into an open argument. The marriage breaks up, Hanna moves out. The grandfather cannot stay either. After a heart attack , he comes to the nursing home. The television shows the press conference at which Günter Schabowski announces the opening of the wall and the freedom to leave the country:
“ Private trips abroad can be applied for without the existence of any prerequisites (reasons for travel and family relationships). The permits are granted at short notice. The responsible passport and registration departments of the People's Police District Offices in the GDR are instructed to issue visas for permanent departure immediately without the requirements for permanent departure having to be met. [...] Permanent exits can take place via all border crossing points from the GDR to the FRG or to West Berlin . "
TV pictures of the Berlin Wall and the border crossings convey the exuberant euphoria of the GDR citizens, crowds of people push towards the barrier at the Bösebrücke . Marco, now a platoon leader, has no other orders than to defend the border until the last second. A dangerous situation. But then he is the first NVA soldier to open the barrier and hug Anja. When Major Wolf, a staunch communist, saw the pictures of the opening of the border, he didn't want to go on living and ended his life with the service pistol. Hanna stands in the crowd at the open border, but remains for the time being in the east and looks for Jürgen in his office, where he follows the current events on television.
Reviews
“Dramatic television film based on an authentic case, which tells of the change of a young person in the face of permanent influence by the political system of the GDR, but also of long-lived life lies of a seemingly system-compliant older generation who primarily dealt with the time of change the loss of their privileges. "
“Based on the real experiences of a GDR soldier, the successful director Roland Suso Richter (" Der Tunnel "," Dresden ") and author Thomas Kirchner (" Mord am Meer ") describe the dramatic turning point as a captivating family drama. With a top-class cast, "Das Wunder von Berlin" tells a gripping piece of contemporary history from the perspective of those affected. "
“Based on the Kaiser family, the fate of the GDR population at that time is told from a wide variety of perspectives and brought closer to the viewer. (...) The film is not about the heroic stories of those who turned their backs on the GDR, but about the many who had to or wanted to stay. A look at the GDR "from the inside" shortly before the end of its existence. "
“In general,“ The Miracle of Berlin ”captivates above all because the film lets itself into Tilo Koch's spectacular memories, but also shows a kind of sub-film of collapse. Kirchner's script repeatedly incorporates documentary scenes. The characters watch TV, they read and they make up their own mind. Once we see Ulrich Mühe, who has since passed away, speaking at a meeting of the New Forum. “The Miracle of Berlin” is also a film about the destabilizing effect of the media in dictatorships. And last but not least, it is also a film about the power of freedom of thought. "
“It should be a historical document and show the life of a GDR family during the political change in 1989 up to the fall of the Berlin Wall. Lacking the courage for a multi-part on this explosive topic, the authors took several individual fates, threw everything into one big pot, enriched it with a few original recordings from that time, stirred briefly and the result was a story that is nothing halved and nothing whole . "
Audience rating
- When it was first broadcast on January 27, 2008, 8.03 million viewers saw the family drama.
Trivia
The scenes on the Bösebrücke were not shot on this one, as the traffic volume is far too high here, but on the nearby Swinemünde bridge , which can be closed for a few days.
Awards
- Nomination for the German TV Prize 2008 for the category Best TV Film / Multi-Part
- German television award for Michael Gwisdek as best actor in a supporting role (role grandfather Walter)
- Nomination for the International Emmy Award for the category Best TV Movie / Mini-Series 2008
- Golden Chest Grand Prix (first category golden prize) of the TV films and mini-series section at the 33rd Golden Chest International TV Festival in Sofia
- Award for the best screenplay (by Thomas Kirchner) at the 33rd Golden Chest International TV Festival in Sofia
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Release certificate for Das Wunder von Berlin . Voluntary self-regulation of the film industry , February 2008 (PDF; test number: 112 841 DVD).
- ↑ The miracle of Berlin. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed October 1, 2015 .
- ↑ Das Wunder von Berlin , accessed on October 1, 2015.
- ↑ ots.Audio: "Das Wunder von Berlin" , accessed on May 7, 2008.
- ↑ The Miracle of Berlin - The slogans of national defense , accessed on May 7, 2008.
- ↑ Thoralf Haß: The miracle of Berlin. In: Zelluloid.de. January 28, 2008, archived from the original on December 4, 2016 ; accessed on September 22, 2018 .
- ↑ The miracle of Berlin. filmfotos-berlin.de, accessed on November 6, 2013 .
- ^ ZDF film "The Miracle of Berlin" awarded in Sofia Article from October 10, 2008, accessed on November 8, 2014.